TYAN holds its first Summer School in Bolivia
The Universidad Mayor de San Andrés (UMSA) and the Bolivian Academy of Sciences (ANCB) hold the “1st TYAN Summer School in Bolivia”, an event that brought together 120 students and researchers from different public and private universities in Bolivia attending the five parallel thematic courses. The event counted with the presence and active participation of Dr. Max Paoli (UNESCO-TWAS Program coordinator), Dr. Franco Cabrerizo (TYAN Chair) and the TYAN members Dr. Yraima Cordeiro, Dr. Pablo Bolaños, Dr. Leslie Tejeda ,and Dr. Federico Brown.
1 – “Plants reproduction improvement” Phd Pablo Bolaños from Universidad de Costa Rica (Costa Rica). The goal of this course is to share key aspects of plants reproduction in order to facilitate the improvement of important crops.
2 – “Animal models for experimental research in developmental biology”– Phd Federico Brown from Universidade de São Paulo (Brasil). The objective of this course is to provide basic tools for the study of invertebrates models for experimental research.
3 – “Bioespectroscopy”. Phd Yraima Cordeiro, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro will teach how to analyse UV-Vis spectrum and fluorescence of biomolecules.
4 – “Food Chemistry” Phd Leslie Tejeda, Universidad mayor de San Andrés (Bolivia). The objective is that students can comprehend the chemical process of the main compounds of food during its formulation.4
5 – “Principles of photochemistry” Phd Franco Cabrerizo, Universidad Nacional de San Martín (UNSAM, Argentina). The aim of this course is to learn basic aspects of the interaction of matter-radiation, as well as the mechanistics aspects of the photochemical and photophysical processes.
For more info, contact tyantwas@gmail.com or Leslie Tejeda Pérez PhD (lktejeda@umsa.bo)
COURSES
Dr. Federico Brown (Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil)
Main field: Biology
Language of instruction: Spanish
Assumed prior knowledge: Introductory biology, genetics, cell and molecular biology, evolution
The aim of this course is to provide basic tools to collect and study invertebrate models for experimental research, focusing on:
- The establishment of these worms as laboratory model species: history and nobel-prize winning research findings
- Contemporary developmental biology research
After passing this course the students will be able to:
- Know how to collect and culture worms (nematodes and planarians)
- Be familiar with the publicly available scientific resources to work on these experimental models
- Write a short proposal on how to implement these animals to address a research question of your choice
The course includes lectures, with extensive hands-on practical laboratory sessions
The number of participants is limited to 8 students
Are you interested in this course? Get in touch with us!
Contacts: TYAN (tyantwas@gmail.com) and Federico D. Brown PhD, Área Biología Evolutiva del Desarrollo (Evo-Devo), fdbrown@usp.br
Dr. Yraima Cordeiro (Universidade do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
Main field: Biochemistry/Biophysics
Language of instruction: Spanish
Assumed prior knowledge: Protein Biochemistry.
The aim of the course is to allow the students to acquire and interpret UV-VIS and fluorescence spectra of biomolecules, specially:
- The use of simple spectroscopic methods to quantify proteins and protein aggregates.
After finishing, the participants will be able to:
- Qualitatively and quantitatively analyze UV-VIS spectra of proteins.
- Interpret fluorescence emission and excitation spectra of proteins.
- Understand the basic principles of protein fluorescence spectroscopy.
- Propose different spectroscopy approaches to quantify proteins in solution.
- Work with a simple equipment, such as an UV-VIS spectrophotometer, to obtain relevant information about protein concentration, to use extrinsic dyes and to perform quality control of samples.
The course includes short lectures, with hands-on practical laboratory sessions.
The number of participants is limited to 8 students
Are you interested in this course? Get in touch with us!
Contacts: TYAN (tyantwas@gmail.com) and Yraima Cordeiro, PhD, Laboratory of Structural and Molecular Biology, yraima@pharma.ufrj.br
Dr. Pablo Bolaños-Villegas (Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica)
Main field: Agriculture/Horticulture
Language of instruction: Spanish
Assumed prior knowledge: Basic genetics
The aim of the course is share key aspects of plant reproduction to facilitate breeding in key crops, focusing on:
- The state of the art on how DNA recombination occurs in plants, especially during reproduction, this knowledge may allow students to understand how valuable natural genes can be passed on or exchanged
- The state of the art on molecular plant cytogenetics, this may allow students to breed larger fruits, tubers or flowers
After finishing, the participants will be able to:
- Understand the key aspects of meiosis and gamete formation
- Understand how crossover regulation occurs in plants
- Understand the regulation of pollen tube development and attraction
- Propose tentative experiments in local crops
- Interpret cytological and genetic data from plant reproductive processes in and suggest a breeding program for a crop in order to introgress traits or increase fertility
The course includes lectures and plant microscopy with commercial plant cytology samples.
The number of participants is limited to 8 students.
Are you interested in this course? Get in touch with us!
Contacts: TYAN (tyantwas@gmail.com) and Pablo Bolaños-Villegas Ph.D, Fabio Baudrit Agricultural Station/Jardín Botánico Lankester/Universidad de Costa Rica, pablo.bolanosvillegas@ucr.ac.
Dr. Leslie Tejeda (Universidad mayor de San Andrés, Bolivia)
Main field: Food Technology
Language of instruction: Spanish
Assumed prior knowledge: Organic Chemistry and/or Biochemistry.
The aim of the course is to describe the chemical properties of food components, focusing on:
- Chemical and physical-chemical properties of protein, fat and carbohydrates in food as well as the role of water for the properties of foods.
- Basic chemistry of taste, flavor and color.
After finishing, the participants will be able to:
- Understand the fundamentals and basic concepts of food chemistry
- Understand the basic physical-chemical properties of foods.
- Describe basic concepts of chemical and sensory analysis of foods.
- Evaluate relations between the chemical composition and the properties of foods.
The course includes lectures and basic sensory analysis.
The number of participants is limited to 8 students
Are you interested in this course? Get in touch with us!
Contacts: TYAN (tyantwas@gmail.com) and Leslie Tejeda Pérez PhD, Área Química de Alimentos / lktejeda@umsa.bo
Dr. Franco M. Cabrerizo (Universidad Nacional de San Martín, Argentina)
Main field: Chemistry
Language of instruction: Spanish
Assumed prior knowledge: Physical-Chemistry, Organic Chemistry.
The aim of the course is to allow the students to gain basic knowledge on the fundamental aspects of the radiation-matter interaction as well as on the mechanistic aspects of photochemical and photophysical processes, specially:
- Fundamental aspects of the interaction between radiation (UVA and visible) with matter
- Experimental techniques used in photophysics and photochemistry
- Mechanistic aspects of photoinduced chemical reactions
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Understand, at a molecular level, the fate of organic molecules when subject to photoexcitation
- Design specific experiments to study the mechanistic aspects of conventional photochemical processes
The course includes short lectures, with hands-on practical laboratory sessions.
The number of participants is limited to: 8 students
Are you interested in this course? Get in touch with us!
Contacts: TYAN (tyantwas@gmail.com) and Franco M. Cabrerizo, PhD, Laboratory of Photochemistry and Molecular Photobiology, fcabrerizo@intech.gov.ar