Conference: 2023 Mammalian Synthetic Biology Workshop

Mammalian synthetic biology is the design of genetic devices that enables the study and control of biological processes in mammalian cells to provide the tools and design strategies to accelerate the advancement of various therapies; therefore, many of the technologies being developed will be useful for eventual medical use in the long term. The 2023 International Mammalian Synthetic Biology Workshop (mSBW) will bring together leaders in synthetic biology with experts from other relevant fields to highlight and inspire cutting-edge synthetic biology and cellular research. The program features talks on foundational technologies, reporters and recorders, circuits and dynamics, regenerative medicine and organoids, and immunoengineering that encourages the participation of students in order to train a new generation of engineers. This research positively impacts society by helping us to better understand and diagnose diseases, more rapidly discover effective therapeutics and develop precision medicine for individuals. By focusing on mammalian synthetic biology across a broad range of applications, the meeting creates a unique environment to gather researchers with varying expertise, skillsets and levels of experience. This allows for the exchange of ideas, knowledge and opportunities for collaboration between people who rarely have the opportunity to interact. Funding for the conference will also support the attendance of underrepresented groups in engineering. The workshop will emphasize novel computational tools/methods to aid in predicting and quantitatively studying system behavior. The advances in fundamental science, engineering techniques, and computation models will be critical for the development of medicinal products in the long term as it will be useful for improving understanding, monitoring, and treatment of disease. The workshop will contain five technical sessions: (1) Foundational advances, (2) Applications in stem cells, (3) Immunotherapy and cell therapy, (4) Gene regulation, (5) Sensors and multi-input logic. The workshop will also host several Q&A discussions, networking breaks, as well as poster sessions that allow students to present their work. It is our hope that the various networking opportunities will give the attendees the ability to discuss the state-of-the-art technology being presented, and that the discussions will lead to potential collaborations that may accelerate development in the field. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.