TrainMALTA hosted the 2nd Summer School for 2017 which will focused on Model Systems. It was held between 18 and 22 September 2017 at the Centre for Molecular Medicine and Biobanking, University of Malta Msida Campus.

The summer school was both lecture-based and practical-based. Researchers from UCAM, KU Leuven and UOM gave presentations on model systems and iPSCs. The lab-based session focused on CRISPR technology which is a technique used for gene editing.

View the summer school programme and presentation abstracts.  

Participants learned about:

• the Danio rerio (zebrafish) and Drosophila melanogaster (the common fruit fly) as model organisms;
  
• Induced pluripotent stem cells (IPSCs), their uses and applications, cell re-programming to induce adult somatic cells to revert to the pluripotent stage as well as induction mechanisms that can push cells down varied differentiation pathways;
  
• CRISPR which also included a 3-days hands-on laboratory practice following specific protocols  .