Biology at Scale: From Variants to Cellular Programs and Functions

Human genetics has entered a transformative era, driven by vast genomic resources, perturbation experiments and multimodal cellular technologies reshaping how we decode complex biology. This new conference will bring together world leaders to discuss the integration of cutting-edge technologies and the development of analytical methods that can bridge the gap between genetics, cell biology, and human health to tackle a key challenge: linking polygenic signals to mechanistic insights. The scope of the meeting is to go beyond variant curation or single-gene models, to showcase frameworks that are context-aware, scalable and multimodal.

Sessions will feature advances in high-resolution trait mapping, functional genomics, and causal inference, spanning CRISPR-based perturbation screens, single-cell phenotyping, spatial transcriptomics, and high-content imaging. The programme will emphasise how these diverse technologies can be integrated into scalable frameworks that move beyond transcriptomic readouts to capture the true complexity of genetic effects.

By fostering cross-disciplinary collaboration, the meeting will enable the development and application of methods and approaches that connect polygenic signals to gene programs, cellular mechanisms, and functional insight. Attendees will gain fresh perspectives on bridging genotype to function, with opportunities to engage through keynote talks from global leaders, selected short talks, and poster presentations.

The conference will also provide unique networking opportunities, fostering discussions, collaborations, and connections across diverse research communities.

The conference will start at approximately 12.00 on Monday, 29 June and close at approximately 13:00 on Wednesday, 1 July 2026.  All times are in BST. See the time where you are here.

Discussions will focus on a variety of exciting topics, including:

• Scalable genomic perturbations
• Imaging technologies for cell profiling
• Linking polygenic signals to gene programs
• From genetic and induced perturbation to phenotype through imaging
• Generating high-resolution trait descriptors
• Charting cellular function at high-throughput
• Computational methods for multimodal data integration

Scientific programme committee

Melina Claussnitzer
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, USA

Craig Glastonbury
Human Technopole, Italy

Jonathan Pritchard
Stanford University, USA

Gosia Trynka
Wellcome Sanger Institute, UK

Confirmed speakers to date

Andrew Bassett
Wellcome Sanger Institute, UK

Paul Blainey
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, USA

Melina Claussnitzer
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, USA

Hannah Currant
University of Oxford, UK

Bart Deplancke
École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland

Silvia Domcke
University of Zurich, Switzerland

Jess Ewald
The European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), UK

Tuuli Lappalainen
KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden & New York Genome Center, USA

Romain Lopez
New York University, USA

Stephen Michnick
University of Montreal, Canada

Jonathan Pritchard (keynote speaker)
Stanford University, USA

Mikko Taipale
University of Toronto, Canada

Sarah Teichmann
University of Cambridge, UK

Miriam Udler
Harvard University, USA

Xinyi Zhang
AITHYRA Research Institute for Biomedical Artificial Intelligence, Austria

Organisers – Wellcome Connecting Science
Amanda Fletcher, Event organiser
Nagehan Ramazanoglu Bahadir, Programme developer

Registration deadline: 1 June (in person) | 22 June 2026 (virtual)

The in-person registration fee includes:

• Full access to scientific programme: oral and poster presentations, and networking on campus
• Access to the online conference portal to network with online participants
• Meals (lunch and dinner) and refreshments during the conference. Breakfast will be provided for delegates who have booked onsite accommodation.
• Recordings of the live-stream sessions, which will be available ‘on-demand’ for four weeks after the event ends

Virtual registration fee includes:

• Access to the virtual event portal (Log in details will be emailed a few days before the event starts)
• Live-stream sessions, including posters and online networking channels
• Recordings of the live-stream sessions, available ‘on-demand’ for four weeks after the event ends.

* To promote more inclusive scientific discussions with international colleagues at our conferences, virtual delegates based in Lower and Middle-Income Countries can register for free (see list of countries here).

If you are an editor or journalist, please contact the conference organiser for more information about the discounted fee or media pass.

Accommodation
Booked accommodation is for the nights of 29 and 30 June 2026.
Please note: there is limited onsite accommodation and this will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis; therefore, early registration is recommended.

If you wish to book campus accommodation either side of the conference dates, please contact the Hinxton Hall Conference Centre directly.

Accommodation services phishing scam – please be vigilant. More information.

Travel visas

Please check the UK government website for advice on whether you will need a visa or an electronic travel authorisation and how to obtain one: https://www.gov.uk/standard-visitor. 

Confirmed attendees requiring a letter to support a visa application should contact our events team.

Bursaries

Bursary deadline: 7 April 2026

Wellcome Connecting Science offers registration bursaries (usually up to 50% of the registration fee) to those who would benefit from attending the conference but face financial barriers to attending events.

Priority will be given to PhD students/trainees, applicants from lower and middle income countries, or those from underrepresented/minoritised groups. Other early career researchers will be considered if funds allow.

To apply for funding support, please register and then select that you want to apply for a bursary. This will direct you to the online application form. Please explain why you need support and how you will benefit from attending the conference. Once you have submitted the application form, you will be emailed an abstract portal link. Please use this to submit your abstract before bursary deadline.

Applications without abstracts will only be considered in exceptional circumstances.

Additional funding opportunities

Visit our support page for information on financial support, including carer grants to help delegates with the costs of caring for children or dependent family members while attending a course or a conference.

Abstract deadline: 20 April 2026

We welcome abstracts from all areas relevant to the main themes of the meeting, for both oral and poster presentations. Several oral presentations will be chosen from the abstracts submitted. Presenters of oral presentations are expected to be onsite for the duration of the conference.

To submit an abstract, you must first register for the conference. Once your registration is completed, you will be emailed a link to submit to the abstract submission portal. If you wish to edit your abstract following submission, please use the link in the abstract acknowledgement email.

All abstracts must be submitted and, if desired, edited by the deadline. The scientific programme committee will then assess your abstract and you will be notified about 2 weeks after the deadline whether you have been selected to present an oral or poster presentation. If you require acknowledgment that your abstract has been accepted earlier than this, please contact the event organiser.

Poster boards onsite will accommodate 118 cm high by 84 cm wide (A0-portrait) of printed material. Accepted abstracts will appear in the conference programme book; poster board numbers will be allocated at the conference.

All those accepted for a poster presentation will also have the opportunity present a ~1 min ‘poster pitch’ summarising their work.

If you are interested in supporting this meeting, please contact us.

For more information about the benefits of having a presence at this meeting, see our sponsorship page.