CRISPR and Beyond: Perturbations at Scale to Understand Genomes

We are pleased to announce our fourth conference on perturbations at scale to understand genomes.

The rapid development of CRISPR/Cas-based technologies and DNA synthesis makes it possible to modulate genomes with relative ease. These tools can help us understand how genetic variation influences phenotype and thereby answer long-standing questions in biology that impact human health, laying the foundations for precision medicine for heritable diseases and cancer treatment. This advancement in gene-editing technology enables us to understand the functional implications of natural and disease-related human genetic variation.

This year’s programme will once again cover emerging technologies and models, including computational approaches. In addition, we will highlight the recent advances in precision genome editing and protein engineering methods and discuss using the applications of CRISPR/Cas-based functional genomics to identify new drug targets.

The meeting will bring together biomedical researchers working on high throughput screening, genome engineering, and/or variant effect interpretation.

This conference will be a hybrid meeting – with onsite or virtual attendance.

The conference will start at approximately 12.50 on Wednesday 28 September and close at approximately 13.30 on Friday 30 September 2022. All times are given in BST. See the time where you are here.

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

• Emerging technologies and models
• Computational models
• Controlling transcription
• Protein engineering
• Highly parallel readouts
• Precision editing
• Functional genomics in drug discovery (panel discussion)

Scientific Programme Committee

John Doench
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, USA

Jolanda van Leeuwen
University of Lausanne, Switzerland

Leopold Parts
Wellcome Sanger Institute, UK

Lea Starita
University of Washington, USA

Confirmed speakers

Junhong Choi – University of Washington, USA
Willow Coyote-Maestas – The University of California, San Francisco, USA
Ben Lehner – Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Spain
Jose McFaline-Figueroa – Columbia University, USA
Tina Perica – University of Zurich, Switzerland
Evangelia Petsalaki – EMBL-EBI, UK
Elizabeth Radford – University of Cambridge/WSI, UK
Holly Rees – Beam Therapeutics, USA
Daniel Schraivogel – EMBL, Germany
Mikko Taipale – University of Toronto, Canada
Hyejung Wong – University of North Carolina, USA

Organisers – Wellcome Connecting Science

Lucy Criddle, Conference & Events Organiser
Nagehan Ramazanoglu Bahadir, Scientific Programme Officer

Registration deadline: 30 August (in-person) | 20 September 2022 (virtual)

Deadlines close at 23.59 British summer time.

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.

Accommodation
Booked accommodation is for the nights of 28 and 29 September 2022.
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
Citizens of many countries can travel to the UK to attend a course or conference without needing a visa. Please check the UK government website for visitor information: https://www.gov.uk/standard-visitor.

Confirmed attendees requiring a letter to support a visa application should contact the conference organiser.

Bursaries

Bursary deadline: 2 August 2022

A limited number of registration bursaries are available to attend this conference in person (up to 50% of the registration fee). Priority will be given to PhD students submitting abstracts who are facing financial barriers.

To apply, please complete your event registration and bursary application before the bursary deadline. The following documents will need to be provided as part of the bursary application:

• Abstract (to be submitted during the registration process)
• A short CV
• A justification letter explaining how you will benefit from attending the conference and indicating financial need.

If you have already registered for the conference you are still welcome to apply for a bursary, please contact the conference organiser.

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: 2 August 2022

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, whereas those presenting posters can do so in person or virtually.

Abstracts will only be considered from registered delegates. Please use our online abstract submission system and follow the instructions given to ensure your abstract is submitted correctly. All abstracts must be submitted by the deadline. You are welcome to submit a second abstract, please follow the instruction below.

The scientific programme committee will assess your abstract after the deadline has passed and you will be notified whether you have been selected to present an oral or poster presentation.

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.

If you have already completed your registration and subsequently wish to submit an abstract, please follow these instructions.