GCB Symposium 2026

Name: GCB Symposium 2026
Start: 2026-06-25T07:00:00Z
End: 2026-06-25T17:00:00Z
Location: vonRoll area University of Bern

vonRoll area University of Bern

June 25, 2026

Welcome

The GCB Symposium organizing committee is pleased to welcome you to the website of the 2026 event.

This event is part of the doctoral training for students enrolled in the doctoral program of the Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences (GCB).

The GCB office and PhD GCB committee invite all PhD students of the program, their supervisors, mentors and co-advisors to attend this event which brings the GCB community together once a year.

In 2026 we will have a career development session with a roundtable format. The panelists will discuss the versatility required by today's job market in an unpredictable research landscape. The session will be chaired by Prof. Dr. Carmen Faso (Institute of Cell Biology, University of Bern).

Objectives

The event objectives are:

Provide GCB student participants a safe environment in which to present their research to their peers.
Get visibility and recognition within the University of Bern for GCB PhD students and their research.
Stimulate insightful discussions and feedback.
Increase networking opportunities and collaborations.
Meet top researchers in the many fields constituting the GCB.
Broaden participants' understanding of other research fields.

About the event

Location: vonRoll building UniBE

Date: June 25, 2026

Registration (through this website) is free but mandatory.

Once you are registered you will be able to submit your abstract for evaluation and after the assignment is done, you can upload your blitz talk (one slide) if you are selected. Participants selected for Talks will be asked to upload their presentation on the morning of the symposium before opening remarks. Talks will be saved directly on the GCB Symposium PCs.

Keynote Speaker: Prof. Nicole Coufal, MD, PhD

Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Neuroscience. University of California, San Diego.

Nicole G. Coufal is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine. She is director of Pediatric Neurocritical Care and associate director of the UCSD MD-PhD Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP).

Abstract Title: Genes, environment, and the brain: reframing neurological disease through neuroimmunology

Abstract: Dr. Coufal is a physician scientist with training in pediatric critical care and a research interest in neuroimmunology. The goal of her lab is to understand the contribution of innate immunity to neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative diseases. By understanding the interaction between the brain environment and cellular ontogeny on macrophage function, the lab strives to understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying innate immune dysfunction to ultimately identify novel therapeutic targets in untreatable neurological diseases. Her lab utilizes a combination of translational, patient-specific pluripotent stem cells and genome-wide approaches to identify cellular mechanisms in common neurodevelopmental and rare pediatric neurodegenerative disorders. Her career goal is to bring novel translational therapies to children with neurological diseases.

Frequently Asked Questions

Find quick answers to common questions about the conference.

Registration must be done through the Fourwaves meeting website. Registration.

In person format.
The symposium schedule will available on the website. It will include a detailed list of sessions, workshops, keynote speakers, and networking events.