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EMBO Courses and Workshops are selected for their excellent scientific quality and timelines, provision of good networking activities for all participants and speaker gender diversity (at least 40% of speakers must be from the underrepresented gender). Organisers are encouraged to implement measures to make the meeting environmentally more sustainable.Upon registration - More info and registration on the EMBO website.

Characterization of trehalase from Acyrthosiphon pisum for the design of new insecticides SummaryAphids are major pests in agriculture, causing direct damage to plants and acting as vectors for phytopathogenic viruses. Conventional insecticides are widely used to control them, but their toxicity and efficacy pose problems in terms of the environment, human health and the emergence of resistance to these compounds. New alternatives are therefore needed, such as biological control using predators or parasitoids. However, these methods are not always economically viable on a large scale. As part of this thesis, another approach is being explored which involves developing new insecticides targeting the biochemical functions of aphids.The project aims to discover new inhibitors of trehalase, an enzyme essential for insect energy metabolism. Inhibition of this enzyme could disrupt vital insect functions without affecting mammals. This research involved several stages: the purification and complete characterization of trehalase from Acyrthosiphon pisum (the model for this study), the in vivo, in vitro and in silico analysis of commercial inhibitors on this enzyme, before moving on to the search for new inhibitors. Two points of integrated insect management were explored, biological and chemical control.The biological side saw the study of a strain of Streptomyces naturally producing trehalase-inhibiting metabolites, notably validamycin A, a molecule recognized in the literature as one of the best inhibitors, but not applicable as an insecticide. Other molecules appear to have interesting features, but we have not been able to isolate and characterize them.The chemical side has enabled us to create a pharmacophore hypothesis based on experimental results on molecules obtained by virtual screening. Although these molecules are not usable as insecticides as they stand, this hypothesis provides a better understanding of trehalase inhibitors in general and can be used to refine future analyses. JuryProf. Jean-Yves MATROULE (UNamur), presidentDr Catherine MICHAUX (UNamur), promoter and secretaryProf. Frédéric FRANCIS (ULiège), co-promoterProf. André MATAGNE (ULiège)Dr Rudy CAPARROS (ULiège)Dr Morgan HANS (Biocidal)

The workshop provides a forum for the discussion of new research directions and applications in Artificial Life, Evolutionary Computation and in related fields, where different disciplines and research areas could effectively meet. It was first held in 2007 in Sampieri (Ragusa), as the incorporation of two separate workshops (WIVA and GSICE).

Jelena Luyts has been awarded a prize for her research on climate migration in Senegal.

At the beginning of each academic year, the Board of Trustees grants Namur Research College (NARC) Fellowship status to researchers who demonstrate a high level of research achievement and who have recently received a prestigious award or funding. A look back at the fellowship of Professor Frederik De Laender.

Networks are fundamental to the modelling of complex systems, systems composed of an incredibly large number of interacting parts. Applications are numerous, in neuroscience, epidemiology, but also in computer science and engineering. A collaboration between the University of Catania (Italy) and the University of Namur, led by Professor Timoteo Carletti of the Department of Mathematics (naXys Institute), has developed a new formalism that allows the modelling of systems where several parts interact at the same time (multi-body) and in an asymmetric way. This research has been published in the prestigious journal Communication Physics, part of the Nature group.

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) published a report (August 2022) which lists and assesses the different values we place on nature. This is a huge task carried out over three years by experts from all over the world, including Nicolas Dendoncker, professor at the Department of geography and member of the ILEE Institute at the UNamur.

The design and analysis of the individual and collective behaviour of small biological vermiform robots: this is the objective of BABots, an ambitious interdisciplinary research project led by the University of Namur and conducted by a consortium of seven European partners. This project could lead to multiple and promising solutions in the field of agriculture, bio-industry or even industry and medicine.

In a new publication, the European Reference Genome Atlas (ERGA) announces the success of its pilot project. This pioneering initiative has brought together a vast collaborative network of researchers and institutions in 33 countries to produce high-quality reference genomes of 98 European species. This continental effort paves the way for a new, inclusive and equitable model of biodiversity genomics.

ILEE combines a broad range of basic, applied and social science skills that focus on three key areas of study, including historical perspectives and extensive partnerships with the global South.

The availability of natural resources for future generations can only be ensured through prudent use.

Through a variety of chemical, biological and physical factors, humans are modifying ecosystems, often with negative results. Environmental changes, in turn, affect the dynamics of human populations.