Secrets of Chromatin - Symposium
On September 12-13, 2018, over 100 current and former colleagues and co-workers of Professor Peter Becker (Molecular Biology Department, BMC) convened in the Small Lecture Hall of the BMC to celebrate his 60th birthday and to discuss past, present and future trends in chromatin research.
Genevieve Almouzni (Institut Curie, Paris) gave a fantastic keynote lecture highlighting the development of the chromatin field over the past decades, including Peter Becker's significant contributions. Excellent talks were given, ranging from molecular mechanisms of how chromatin remodeling factors move nucleosomes, presented by Carl Wu (Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore) and Cedric Clapier (Health University of Utah), over the role of histone modifications and histone variants, presented by Sandra Hake (Universität Giessen) and Francis Stewart (TU Dresden), to the influence of the microbiome on chromatin structure and function, elaborated by Patrick Varga-Weisz (Universtiy of Essex).
The program also included short chromatin project intermezzos by the organizers of the symposium, Gernot Längst (Universtität Regensburg), Alex Brehm (IMT Marburg) and Axel Imhof (BMC Munich), as well as Philipp Korber and Felix Müller-Planitz, both group leaders in the Molecular Biology department. The day ended with a barbecue in the courtyard of the Biomedical Center with much discussion among the guests, sharing fond memories, exchanging ideas and speculating on Secrets of Chromatin yet to be discovered.
The Peter-Becker Bridge
On the occasion of his 60th birthday, the bridge connecting the NB and NC tracts of the Biomedical Center was named Peter-Becker-Bridge to honor Peter Becker’s key role in the foundation and establishment of the Biomedical Center. We wish him all the best, and hope to continue to benefit from his dedication and enthusiasm in his work at the BMC for many years to come.
Peter-Becker-Brücke. From left to right: Peter Becker, Axel Imhof, Gernot Längst, Alexander Brehm
Website SFB 1064 "Chromatin Dynamics" with more pictures of the symposium