Join us for the 2nd International Symposium on “Dynamic Organization of Cellular Protein Machineries” in Freiburg!
The goal of the SFB 1381 is to better understand how protein machineries are assembled during biogenesis, how they are organized in modular (sub-)assemblies and how the dynamics in assembly and organization and their regulation are used for precise operation of cellular functions.
Over the course of three days, we will explore these topics through presentations and discussions highlighting the latest research in the field. Invited speakers and SFB 1381 researchers from Freiburg will share their insights, and early career researchers are especially encouraged to present their work during the poster session.
Keynote Speaker:
Michael N. Hall (Basel)
Confirmed Speakers:
- Asifa Akhtar (Freiburg)
- Sonja-Verena Albers (Freiburg)
- Morgan Beeby (London)
- Agnieszka Chacińska (Warsaw)
- Tim Clausen (Wien)
- Oliver Einsle (Freiburg)
- Ben Engel (Basel)
- Helge Ewers (Berlin)
- Julia Fritz-Steuber (Stuttgart)
- Johannes Herrmann (Kaiserslautern)
- Thorsten Hugel (Freiburg)
- Hans-Georg Koch (Freiburg)
- Claudine Kraft (Freiburg)
- Thomas Langer (Köln)
- Edward Lemke (Mainz)
- Heidi McBride (Montreal)
- Melanie McDowell (Frankfurt)
- Chris Meisinger (Freiburg)
- Torsten Ochsenreiter (Bern)
- Jacob Piehler (Osnabrück)
- Matthias Rief (München)
- Sebastian Schuck (Heidelberg)
- Katja Sträßer (Gießen)
- Viviane Timmermann (Freiburg)
- Sharon Tooze (London)
- Nora Vögtle (Heidelberg)
Program
23.03.2026
Opening of the Meeting | |
| 01:00 pm | Registration |
| 02:00 pm | Chris Meisinger Opening Remarks |
Session I: Mitochondrial protein machineries Chair: Carola Hunte | |
| 02:10 pm | Johannes Herrmann Mitochondrial protein biogenesis: A big challenge for eukaryotic cells |
| 02:40 pm | Nora Vögtle Mitochondrial proteostasis |
| 03:10 pm | Thomas Langer Programming of mitochondria by proteolysis |
| 03:40 pm | Agnieszka Chacińska Quality control of mitochondrial protein import |
| 04:10 pm | Coffee Break |
Session II: Protein machineries in protein synthesis and quality control Chair: Pitter Huesgen | |
| 04:40 pm | Tim Clausen The ubiquitin big bang theory |
| 05:10 pm | Sharon Tooze Initiation of autophagy |
| 05:40 pm | Claudine Kraft The autophagy machinery functions through dynamic phase separation |
| 06:10 pm | Thorsten Hugel Memory and randomness in the organization of the Hsp90 machinery |
| 06:40 pm | Flash Talks |
| 07:00 pm | Welcome reception and poster session |
24.03.2026
Session III: DNA and RNA processing machineries Chair: Annegret Wilde | |
| 09:00 am | Torsten Ochsenreiter How to link mitochondrial genome maintenance and cell division: the tripartite attachment complex in Trypanosoma brucei |
| 09:30 am | Katja Sträßer Phosphorylation of the mRNP component Yra1 couples heat shock to nuclear mRNA export inhibition |
| 10:00 am | Asifa Akhtar Identification and characterization of MOF interaction and substrate repertoire |
| 10:30 am | Coffee Break |
Session IV: Dynamic prokaryotic protein machineries Chair: Matthias Boll | |
| 11:00 am | Julia Fritz-Steuber The Na+ -translocating NADH:quinone oxidoreductase from pathogenic bacteria: essential redox pump and promising target for antibiotics |
| 11:30 am | Sonja-Verena Albers Horizontal transfer of the archaellum machinery to bacteria |
| 12:00 pm | Morgan Beeby Inferring how protein machineries evolve by visualising flagellar motors in situ |
| 12:30 pm | Hans-Georg Koch The ribosome as a switchboard for coordinating the bacterial stress response |
| 01:00 pm | Lunch Break |
Session V: Signalling machineries Chair: Thomas Ott | |
| 02:30 pm | Jacob Piehler Structural and functional plasticity of cytokine receptor signaling complexes |
| 03:00 pm | Chris Meisinger Oncogenic hijacking of the mitochondrial import machinery |
| 03:30 pm | Coffee break and poster session |
Session VI: Young researchers session - Speakers invited by SFB 1381/SGBM doctoral students Chair: PhD students’ representatives: Mirjam Odermatt and Aaditya Jonnalagadda | |
| 04:30 pm | Melanie McDowell Structural insights into membrane protein biogenesis at the ER |
| 05:00 pm | Matthias Rief Single molecule mechanics of proteins and RNA |
| 05:30 pm | Viviane Timmermann (SFB 1381 Young Investigator Grantee) Navigating the TCR machinery: A likelihood-based feedback analysis |
25.03.2026
Session VII: Protein machineries in organelle remodeling and bioenergetics Chair: Wolfgang Schamel | |
| 09:00 am | Heidi McBride New insights into the role of mitochondria in the biogenesis of peroxisomes |
| 09:30 am | Sebastian Schuck Protein relocalisation during ER stress: revealing the spatial dimension of a cellular stress response |
| 10:00 am | Ben Engel Environmental structural biology: Exploring the molecular architecture of bioenergetic organelles |
| 10:30 am | Coffee Break |
Keynote Lecture Chair: Chris Meisinger | |
| 11:00 am | Michael N. Hall mTOR signaling in growth, metabolism and disease |
| 12:00 pm | Lunch Break |
Session VIII: Protein machineries driving cellular structure and function Chair: Ralf Baumeister | |
| 02:00 pm | Edward Lemke Decoding molecular plasticity in the dark proteome |
| 02:30 pm | Helge Ewers Multiscale imaging of cytokines |
| 03:00 pm | Oliver Einsle Nitrogenase and the power of biological nitrogen fixation |
Closing Remarks | |
| 03:30 | Chris Meisinger |
Scientific program committee
- Sonja-Verena Albers
- Thorsten Hugel
- Hans-Georg Koch
- Claudine Kraft
- Chris Meisinger
- Nora Vögtle
