Initiation Course

Introductory Course to Research in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

This course is a four-day program, consisting of one-day Introductory Course to Research in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, three days of assistance to the 43^rd SEBBM Congress and participation in a mentoring program. This course will provide undergraduate students insight into the latest research in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and information for future career planning in this field.

Introductory Course to Research in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

The first-day course will consist of several seminars that will provide an overview of current research in the field of biosciences in Spain. The opportunities and strategies for the design of the research career in our country will be addressed. It will include a round-table discussion and opportunities for the students to interact with prestigious researchers. Coffee during breaks and lunch will be provided to the students. The course will be taught in Spanish. The program of the course and a detailed description of the seminars are found below.

• Date: Monday, 19 July 2021
• Venue of the course: Hotel Hesperia Barcelona Tower (Avenida de la Gran Via de l’Hospitalet, 144 08907 Barcelona)
• Organizer: María Lucas (IBBTEC, Universidad de Cantabria-CSIC, Santander)
• Co-organizers: David Sebastián (IRB), Rosalía Rodríguez (UIC), Joan-Marc Servitja (IDIBAPS)

43^rd SEBBM Congre­­ss

The selected students will get a free registration to attend the 43^rd SEBBM Congress that includes access to the conference meeting rooms, conference material, handed out program with titles and authors of all communications, online access to the book of abstracts, coffee and lunch during breaks and welcome cocktail. The gala dinner is not included. Information about the scientific program of the SEBBM congress can be found in https://congresosebbm.barcelona2020.es/program/

Mentoring

Each student will be assigned a mentor to guide them during the congress, taking advantage of the different activities from the plenary lectures to the poster sessions. Mentors will be PhD students or postdocs who have obtained the SEBBM travel grant to attend the congress. The mentors can guide and share their experience in the pursuit of scholarships, choice of master studies, selection of research group, etc. Three meetings will be held, one on Monday 19 July at 19:00 for the introduction of the mentors, another on 20 July 2021 at 10:30 and the last one on 21 July at 10:30 to evaluate the development of the mentoring program. There will also be an organized visit to the posters of the mentors to promote scientific discussion among the students and mentors.

Requirements to be selected as a student of the course

This course is addressed to students of the last two years of any Degree that has contents of Biochemistry or Molecular Biology. This year we have increased the number of participants to 50 students but only 30 will get the fellowship that covers free accommodation and breakfast. Three spaces are reserved for students belonging to the Society of Spanish Olympics in Biology. Those students who participated in any of the last two editions of the course cannot participate in the selection.

How to apply

Students that are interested in participating in the course must fill the application form in the following link before 30 March 2021.

The following documents should be also sent before 30 March 2021 by email to curso.sebbm@gmail.com, indicating in the subject: Barcelona SEBBM 2021. The documents can be sent in Spanish or English.

• Motivation Letter (500 words maximum). The reasons that lead the candidate to present this application must be briefly stated, explaining the impact that the attendance to this course and congress may have for the design or development of his/her professional career.
• Recommendation letter from a professor or researcher who is a member of the SEBBM.
• Copy of the academic record. For the application, an unofficial copy of the academic record obtained from the virtual campus of the corresponding university will be sufficient at this point. The selected students must send a copy of the official academic record of the studies completed.

Selection process:

The applications will be evaluated by the Organizing Committee of the SEBBM Congress. Up to 10 points will be awarded for the academic records, up to 1 point for the motivation letter and up to 1 point for the recommendation letter. The 47 applications with the highest scoring will be selected to participate in the course and congress. The first 27 will also get the fellowship that covers the accommodation and breakfast. The decision will be communicated to the applicants before April 5^th. A copy of the academic record of the studies completed duly accredited must be sent to curso.sebbm@gmail.com before April 20^th in order to formalize the registration. Final selection will be communicated by April 20^th.

The fellowship will include:

The selected students will get financial help to attend the Course and Congress that will include:

1. Attendance to the course (Monday, July 19^th 2020, including lunch).
2. Registration in the 43^nrd SEBBM Congress, to be held in Barcelona, from 20 to 22 July 2020.
3. Accommodation and breakfast in shared double rooms for students residing outside Barcelona for 27 of the students with the highest scoring (entry on July 20^th and departure on July 22^nd 2020).

Travel expenses are not included. Those who are selected should attend the Course and the SEBBM Congress. A certificate of attendance to the Course and to the SEBBM Congress will be provided at the end of the Congress.

Program Overview

Monday, July 19^th (Neptuno room)

Tuesday, July 20^th (Sears + Eiffel rooms)

10:30-11:30 Meeting of students and mentors. A Speed Dating session between mentors and students will be organized. The students will have 5 minutes to meet each of the mentors and ask them questions about their experience doing a PhD, their specific area of expertise or any doubts they have about working in a research lab.

Wednesday, July 21^st (Foyer Sedna)

18:30 – 19:30 Meeting of students and mentors. Organized visit to the posters of the mentors.

Thursday, July 22^nd (Sears + Eiffel rooms)

10:30 – 11:30 Meeting of students and mentors to evaluate the experience through open debate and a survey.

Detailed Programme

• PhD degree manual

María Lucas (IBBTEC, Universidad de Cantabria-CSIC)
Why do a PhD? What requirements do I need to meet? What skills should I acquire? Where can I get PhD funding in Spain and abroad? What problems can I find? These and other issues related to the completion of a PhD thesis will be addressed.

• Scientific research in the clinical field

Ramón Gomis (Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, IDIBAPS, Hospital Clinic)

Ramón Gomis is an endocrinologist and currently, director of the Health Sciences Studies of the Open University of Catalonia and emeritus researcher at the August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBAPS) linked to the Hospital Clinic of Barcelona. He was from 2008 to 2018 director of IDIBAPS. Ramón Gomis will talk about the translational research carried out in Spain and the possibilities of starting a research career in the clinical field.

• Scientific research in the private sector

Marc Martinell (CEO de Minoryx Therapeutics)

Marc Martinell is the executive director of the biotechnology company Minoryx. He will present the research lines he leads for the development of new therapeutic solutions for rare diseases of the central nervous system, often characterized by neurodegeneration. He will also talk about the job opportunities of bioscience researchers in biotechnology companies.

• Scientific publishers: of necessity … business

Ismael Mingarro (Universidad de Valencia)

Scientific discoveries are published in scientific journals in the form of articles. For publication, articles are submitted to an unpaid peer review process. But scientific publishers charge both authors and readers, although digital technologies have significantly reduced production costs. In this scenario, do we really need publishers as we have known them in the past?

• Practical workshop in biomedical research: Search for new therapeutic targets and strategies.

Ana V. Villar (IBBTEC, Universidad de Cantabria-CSIC)

Thhis workshop will focus on the search for pharmacological targets and their possible therapeutic strategies within the pathology of cardiac fibrosis. The students will participate in an interactive group activity that will show them the dynamic process of the scientific method.