Program

Download the short program  here, only the agenda  here, or the program overview here;
You can download the complete program (including abstracts)   here.
The program is now also available as an → Online App.
The floor plan with the lecture rooms can be found  here , and the layout of the MDC.C Foyer and Haus 84  here.

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Wednesday, 9 September 2026

11:00 – 11:30 Axon 1/2	Opening GSCN Conference 2026
11:00 – 11:10	Welcome to Max Delbrück Center, Berlin Holger Gerhardt, Deputy Director Max Delbrück Center, Berlin
11:10 – 11:20	Welcome address from the Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (BIH) Christopher Baum, Chair of the BIH Board of Directors
11:20 – 11:30	Opening of GSCN Conference 2026 Heiko Lickert, President GSCN
11:30 – 12:15 Axon 1/2	Keynote lecture I K1 – Stem cells and the niche in myeloid blood cancer Paresh Vyas, University of Oxford, UK Chair: Claudia Waskow
12:15 – 13:00 Axon 1/2	Keynote lecture II K2 – Endoderm organogenesis from human pluripotent stem cells: some assembly required James M. Wells, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, USA Chair: Sina Bartfeld
13:00 – 14:30	Lunch break / Industry exhibition supported by Countstar
14:30 – 16:00	Concurrent scientific working group session I
14:30 – 16:00 Axon 1	Pluripotency, differentiation & PSC-derived models I supported by ACROBiosystems Chairs: Micha Drukker & Ralf Jauch
14:30 – 15:00	T01 – Super-SOX-mediated generation of pluripotent stem cells with enhanced developmental potential Hans Schöler, Max Planck Institute, Münster
15:00 – 15:15	T02 – Mosaic gastruloids reveal a temporal restriction for developmental cell competition Joshua Frenster, University of Freiburg
15:15 – 15:30	T03 – HERVHLin coordinates LIN28A/let-7 activity to preserve genome stability during early human development Zsuzsanna Izsvak, Max Delbrück Center, Berlin
15:30 – 15:45	T04 – HERVH-derived boundary elements shape 3D genome architecture in eFORM human pluripotent stem cells Saba Mottaghinia, Max Delbrück Center, Berlin
15:45 – 16:00	T05 – A multi-individual iPSC resource from five non-human primate species for comparative biology and in vitro developmental studies Vera Zywitza, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW), Berlin
14:30 – 16:00 Axon 2	Basic, translational & applied hematopoiesis Chairs: Simon Haas & Mick Milsom
14:30 – 15:00	T06 – Metabolic regulation of aged hematopoietic stem and multipotent progenitor cells Nina Cabezas-Wallscheid, ETH Zürich, Switzerland
15:00 – 15:15	T07 – The development of simultaneous single-cell tRNA and mRNA profiling reveals dynamic tRNA programs in human hematopoiesis Marius Külp, Goethe University, Frankfurt
15:15 – 15:30	T08 – Identification of a deeply dormant CD150neg hematopoietic stem cell population Dawn Shuiping Lin, German Cancer Research Center (DLFZ), Heidelberg
15:30 – 15:45	T09 – Multiscale biological interactions define clinical trajectories in acute myeloid leukemia Jan Barinka, Berlin Institute of Health (BIH) at Charité/Max Delbrück Center, Berlin
15:45 – 16:00	T10 – Molecular characterization and functional interrogation of dormant cancer stem cells in JAK2V617F-driven myeloproliferative neoplasms Elif Saf, German Cancer Research Center (DLFZ), Heidelberg
14:30 – 16:00 Dendrit 2	Computational stem cell biology & systems biology Chairs: Ingmar Glauche & Carsten Marr
14:30 – 15:00	T11 – Combining pooled single cell screens and deep learning to identify phenotypes driven by oncogenes Nils Blüthgen, Humboldt University of Berlin
15:00 – 15:15	T12 – Slow genes are soft genes: lineage memory and perturbation sensitivity share a common origin Ida Büschel, Helmholtz Munich
15:15 – 15:30	T13 – Emergent cell-type order in epithelia: a hallmark of stem cell fate characteristics in homeostasis? Philip Greulich, University of Southampton, UK
15:30 – 15:45	T14 – Epigenetic fidelity of hiPSC-derived T cell progenitors: Accurate remodeling and aberrant DNA methylation imprints Marcel Finke, Berlin Institute of Health (BIH) at Charité
15:45 – 16:00	T15 – SON maintains innate immune homeostasis in HSCs via splicing and retroelement control Mariela Cortez Lopez, Helmholtz Munich
16:00 – 16:30	Break time / Industry exhibition supported by R&D Systems™ by bio-techne
16:30 – 18:30 Haus 84 MDC.C: – Foyer – Mezzanine	Poster session I – Poster numbers P001 – P087 ↓ download supported by Biomerieux (with beverages) Basic, translational, applied hematopoiesis (P001 – P011) Computational stem cell biology (P012 – P016) Stem cells in disease modeling & drug development (P017 – P059) Stem cells in regenerative therapies (P060 – P087) Note: posters P064 – P087 will be displayed in the MDC.C Foyer – Mezzanine Even numbers: 16:30 – 17:30 Odd numbers: 17:30 – 18:30
18:30 -19:15 Axon 1	Keynote lecture III (on ELSA topics) K3 – Highly efficient base editing at PCSK9 and normal development in human embryos Stepan Jerabek, Columbia University, New York, USA Chair: Tobias Cantz
19:15 – 21:00 MDC Mensa	GSCN Get-together for all participants Dinner buffet
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Thursday, 10 September 2026

09:00 – 10:30	Concurrent scientific working group session II
09:00 – 10:30 Axon 1	Stem cells in regenerative therapies supported by Thermo Fisher Scientific Chairs: Ludovic Vallier & Wolfgang Wagner
09:00 – 09:30	T16 – Human pluripotent stem cell therapies to the heart and beyond: current status and challenges Robert Zweigerdt, Hannover Medical School (MHH)
09:30 – 09:45	T17 – Decoding neurovascular dysfunction in ADHD: Patient-specific iPSC-derived blood-brain barrier (BBB) models uncover hidden metabolic drivers beyond PARK2 genetics Antje Appelt-Menzel, University Hospital Würzburg
09:45 – 10:00	T18 – “Heps in a Bag”, an engineered hepatic patch against acute liver failure Fabian Bachinger, Berlin Institute of Health (BIH) at Charité
10:00 – 10:15	T19 – Off-the-shelf immune-shielded iPSC-derived CAR γδ T cells as novel cell therapy to treat hepatocellular carcinoma Stephanie Sontag, Evotec
10:15 – 10:30	T20 – Engineering basal cells to modulate epithelial-macrophage interactions in COPD Lili Rusznyak, Helmholtz Munich
09:00 – 10:30 Axon 2	Stem cells in aging & disease Chairs: Michael Rieger & Andreas Trumpp
09:00 – 09:30	T21 – Attenuation of stem cell aging to target aging-associated diseases Hartmut Geiger, University Ulm
09:30 – 09:45	T22 – A human brain organoid model of ageing identifies chromatin-mediated control of transposable elements during neural ageing Elisa Gabassi, University of Innsbruck, Austria
09:45 – 10:00	T23 – Extreme heterogeneity in hematologic aging is predominantly driven by stochastic variation, not by environmental nor genetic variation Yiwen Zhang, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg
10:00 – 10:15	T24 – Ontogenetically distinct bone marrow macrophages regulate HSC integrity and megakaryocyte-biased expansion Nina Henning, Leibniz Institute on Aging (FLI), Jena
10:15 – 10:30	T25 – Clonal trajectories of adult B-ALL in medullary sites and brain infiltration at single-cell resolution Hui Ming Tew, University Hospital Frankfurt
09:00 – 10:30 Dendrit 2	Stem cells in disease modeling & drug development I Chairs: Oliver Brüstle & Bert Klebl
09:00 – 09:30	T26 – Starting matters: quality and reproducibility in PSC-based research Bert Klebl LDC Dortmund, Michael Peitz, University of Bonn, and Harald Stachelscheid, Berlin Institute of Health (BIH)
09:30 – 09:45	T27 – Microglia modulate neurodevelopmental responses to micro- and nanoplastic exposure in human brain organoids Nelli Blank-Stein, University of Bonn
09:45 – 10:00	T28 – Dissecting the pathogenesis of Canavan disease using neuroglial organoids Shreenidhi Vitchanthangal Prathivathibayankaram, University of Bonn
10:00 – 10:15	T29 – Patient-specific iPSC-derived sensory neurons as a gateway to individualized neuropathic pain modeling and treatment Anika Neureiter, RWTH Aachen
10:15 – 10:30	T30 – In vitro/in silico reciprocal modeling of human neuronal networks reveals presynaptic vesicle dynamics underlying epileptiform activity Jianbin Wen, University of Bonn
09:00 – 10:30 Dendrit 1	ELSA symposium Panel: Stepan Jerabek, Moderation: Tobias Cantz
10:30 – 11:30	Break time / Industry exhibition supported by Evotec SE
10:45 – 11:30 Axon 2	General Member Meeting Executive Board & Managing Director Heiko Lickert, Claudia Waskow, Sina Bartfeld, Michael Cross, Andreas Trumpp, Daniel Besser
11:30 – 13:00	Industry session: "Technologies from GSCN industry partners"
11:30 – 13:00 Axon 1	Main Supporter Chair: Michael Cross
11:35 – 12:05	C01 – Streamlining advanced in vitro models: Principles and tools for stem cell-derived NAMs Katharina Debowski, STEMCELL Technologies Germany GmbH
12:05 – 12:25	C02 – Enabling the future of cell therapy: From discovery to the clinic Beau le Roy, ACROBiosystems
12:25 -12:45	C03 – Next-generation synthetic peptide growth factors/cytokines for regenerative medicine and cell therapy Kazuki Shigematsu, PeptiGrowth Inc.
11:30 – 13:00 Axon 2	Supporter II Chair: Mareike Albert
11:35 – 11:50	C04 – Closing the analytical gap in cell therapy manufacturing: Automated at-line flow cytometry for QC from research to GMP release Félix A. Montero-Julian, Biomerieux, Accellix
11:50 – 12:05	C05 – Integrating patient data and hiPSC microglia to model Alzheimer’s disease for drug discovery Henrik Renner, Evotec SE
12:05 – 12:20	C06 – 3D bioreactor stem cell culture: Consistent from R&D to commercial manufacturing Philipp Nold, Eppendorf SE
12:20 – 12:35	C07 – Characterizing human PSC-derived cerebral organoids across imaging, cytometry, and sequencing Hannah Johannsen, Miltenyi Biotec B.V. & Co. KG
12:35 – 12:55	C08 – Unlocking the future of gene-modified cell therapy with non-viral lipid-based transfection Nadia Mazzaro, Sartorius
11:30 – 13:00 Dendrit 2	Supporter III Chair: Laura Steenpaß
11:35 – 11:50	C09 – Watching stem cells live: continuous live-cell imaging in iPSC and organoid research Ceren Güneş, Countstar
11:50 – 12:05	C10 – Interrogating inflammatory signaling in human iPSC-derived pancreatic ductal organoids with a fully defined animal component-free matrix Joel Cresser-Brown, bio-techne
12:05 – 12:20	C11 – Advancing human relevant models: From AI-driven automated culture to high-content imaging and machine learning analysis – an end-to-end solution for iPSC and organoid workflows Robert Storm, Molecular Devices Germany GmbH
12:20 – 12:35	C12 – Building more relevant and reliable human iPSC-derived neuronal models with the new neurobasal PhysioPlus medium David Kuniger, Thermo Fisher Scientific
12:35 – 12:55	C13 – Innovative approaches and tools for investigating stem cell-based tissue culture Francesca Aglialoro, Corning Life Sciences
13:00 – 14:30	Lunch break / Industry exhibition supported by Corning Life Sciences
14:30 – 17:00 Axon 1/2	Presidential Symposium Chairs: Sina Bartfeld & Heiko Lickert
14:30 – 15:15	Presidential Invite PS1 – Stem cells, embryos and embryo models: from science to ethical concerns Janet Rossant, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada
15:15 – 15:45	GSCN 2026 Young Investigator Award PS2 – Building towards understanding: from embryo models to principles of development (& back) Jesse Veenvliet, Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Dresden
15:45 – 16:30	K5 – Human intestinal organoids (HIOs) to study human intestine development, differentiation and disease Jason Spence, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA
16:30 – 17:00	GSCN Publication of the Year 2025 – 2026 Award PS4 – Pluripotent stem-cell-based screening uncovers sildenafil as a mitochondrial disease therapy Annika Zink, Heinrich-Heine-University, Düsseldorf
17:00 – 17:30	Break time / Industry exhibition supported by Molecular Devices GmbH
17:00 – 19:00 Haus 84 MDC.C: – Foyer – Mezzanine	Poster session II – Poster numbers P088 – P171 ↓ download supported by Eppendorf (with beverages) Pluripotency, differentiation & PSC-derived models (P088 – P135) Stem cells in aging & disease (cancer stem cells): (P136 – P141, X1) Tissue-derived stem cells & organoids (P142 – P171) Note: posters P150 – P171 will be displayed in the MDC.C Foyer – Mezzanine. Even numbers: 17:00 – 18:00 Odd numbers: 18:00 – 19:00
20:00 – 01:00	GSCN networking event for all participants (with bus transfer starting at 18:45) supported by STEMCELL Technologies The entrance fee is collected onsite. Event location: ➚ Café am Neuen See, Berlin

Friday, 11 September 2026

09:00 – 10:30	Concurrent scientific working group session III
09:00 – 10:30 Axon 1	Stem cells in disease modeling & drug development II Chairs: Michael Peitz & Harald Stachelscheid
09:00 – 09:15	T31 – Cooperative GNAS–KRAS signaling shapes intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm phenotype and grade Meike Hohwieler, University of Ulm
09:15 – 09:30	T32 – Unveiling the genetic landscape of UV-induced cellular responses: A CRISPR whole genome screening approach Rafaela Ntzani, Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine (IUF), Düsseldorf
09:30 – 09:45	T33 – ELAPOR2 controls pancreatic endocrine differentiation through cell cycle regulation Osvaldo Rodrigues Pereira, Helmholtz Munich
09:45 – 10:00	T34 – Human iPSC models for safer drug discovery through predictive teratogenicity assessment Bastian Zimmer, Evotec SE
10:00 – 10:15	T35 – Fabry iPSC-derived dorsal root ganglia (DRG) model Ferdinand Teichert, University of Leiden, Netherlands
09:00 – 10:30 Axon 2	Tissue-derived stem cells & organoids Chairs: Mina Gouti & Robert Zweigerdt
09:00 – 09:30	T36 – Intersectional genetics for precise manipulation and tracing of lung and skeletal muscle stem cells Thomas Braun, Max Planck Institute Bad Nauheim
09:30 – 09:45	T37 – Characterization of naïve human neuroepithelial stem progenitor cells with unlimited self-renewal and broad neurogenic potential Angeliki Spathopoulou, Leopold Franzens University Innsbruck, Austria
09:45 – 10:00	T38 – Lymphatic vasculature reprograms liver epithelium in assembloids and patients Milad Rezvani, Charité University Medicine Berlin
10:00 – 10:15	T39 – Liver regeneration is programmed in the epigenetic landscape of cholangiocytes during fetal development Irene Talon, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin
10:15 – 10:30	T40 – Liver regeneration during chronic liver disease: SOX4 and KLF6 play a role in liver cell plasticity Marta Cagna, Berlin Institute of Health at Chaité
09:00 – 10:30 Dendrit 2	Pluripotency, differentiation & PSC-derived models II Chairs: Sebastian Diecke & Stefan Liebau
09:00 – 09:15	T41 – PluripotencyScreen – A new epigenetic framework to quantify cell fate decisions of pluripotent stem cells Vera Nischalke, RWTH Aachen
09:15 – 09:30	T42 – Modeling primate atherosclerosis using iPSC-derived macrophages Eva Briem, LMU Munich
09:30 – 09:45	T43 – CTCF insulates gene expression to safeguard migratory myogenic progenitor cells Sören Hüttner, McGill University, Montréal, Canada
09:45 – 10:00	T44 – Bioengineered muscle tubuloids: a human stem‑cell–based model of neuromuscular development and innervation Anita Florkowska, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
10:00 – 10:15	T45 – Multi-omics profiling reveals MAGEL2-driven defects in human corticogenesis shared across Prader-Willi and Schaaf-Yang syndromes Baran Enes Güler, University of Heidelberg
10:30 – 11:00	Break time / Industry exhibition supported by Sartorius
11:00 – 12:30	Concurrent strategic working group session
11:00 – 12:30 Axon 1	Clinical trials & regulatory affairs Chairs: Nina Graffmann & Zoltan Ivics
11:00 – 11:30	S1 – Driving multimodal AI in precision medicine Ulrike Weirauch, Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology (IZI), Leipzig
11:30 – 12:00	S2 – Translating regulatory expectations into context-specific genome-editing safety assessment Sandra Ammann, University Hospital Freiburg
12:00 – 12:30	S3 – Off-target effects in CRISPR-Cas genome editing for human therapeutics: Progress and challenges Giandomenico Turchiano, AstraZeneca, Cambridge, UK
11:00 – 12:30 Axon 2	Technologies in stem cell research Chairs: Sebastian Knöbel & Ole Pleß
11:00 – 11:30	S4 – Polymeric gene delivery agents, an emerging class of RNA nanocarriers Aidan Izuagbe, University of Würzburg
11:30 – 12:00	S5 – Engineering mutation‑specific and mutation‑agnostic gene therapy approaches and their delivery Jefferey Truong, Helmholtz Munich
12:00 – 12:30	S6 – “Translational tool making” to develop and improve vector-based research tools Leszek Lisowski, Children's Medical Research Institute, Sydney, Australia
11:00 – 12:30 Dendrit 2	Career development Chairs: Pascal Röderer & Insa Schröder Panel discussion with Hartmut Geiger, Kimberly Hartl and Sedona Murphy
12:30 – 14:00	Lunch break time / Industry exhibition supported by Miltenyi Biotec B.V. & Co. KG
14:00 – 14:45 Axon 1/2	Keynote lecture IV K4 – Designing complex miniature organs in a dish from pluripotent stem cells Takanori Takebe, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, USA Chair: Aydan Bulut-Karslıoğlu
14:45 – 15:30 Axon 1/2	GSCN 2026 Hilde Mangold Award PS3 – Studying diabetes with engineered stem cell islet organoids Maike Sander, Max Delbrück Center, Berlin Chair: Heiko Lickert
15:30 – 15:50 Axon 1/2	Award ceremony Daniel Besser Poster awards supported by Active Bioscience/PeptiGrowth Travel awards
15:50 – 16:00 Axon 1/2	Closing remarks by the GSCN president Sina Bartfeld
	End of GSCN Conference 2026
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