This symposium will highlight the latest developments in signalling research at the Babraham Institute, set in the context of the field with research updates from external speakers and leaders in their respective areas.

Separated into sessions on proteostasis, PI3K, autophagy, redox biology and nuclear signalling the symposium will cover a breadth of pioneering research that continues to break new ground and probe existing dogma to revolutionise how we think about cell signalling and apply this in our quest to main health across the life course. Additionally, Len will give the 2026 Morton Lecture and be presented with the award by Prof. Patrick Eyers, Morton Lecture Representative with the Biochemical Society.

The symposium is timed to coincide with the retirement of Len Stephens and Phill Hawkins. Len and Phill have worked together at the Institute since 1990, although their friendship predates this, going back to their University of Birmingham days. Len and Phill are rightly regarded as pioneers in the PI3K signalling field, elucidating key mechanisms that enabled the field to move from mapping out PI3K signalling towards therapeutic targets and clinical trials. Dedicated to the rigorous quest to advance our understanding of fundamental cellular biology, they have continued to shape signalling biology over these last 35 years, with the development of key research tools, analytical methods and genetically modified mice. We look forward to welcoming lab alumni as well as those who have been influenced and inspired by their work, plus signalling biology afficionados.

The symposium will conclude with a celebratory barbecue to wish Len and Phill well and to thank them for their many contributions to research, and to the life of the Institute.

AGENDA

Thursday 1st May

12.00 – 13:00 - Arrival and lunch

Welcome

13:00 – 13:05- Dr Simon Cook, Director, The Babraham Institute

13:05 - 13:55 - The Morton Lecture, Dr Len Stephens, Babraham Institute

Session 1 - Proteostasis | CHAIR Peter Parker, Francis Crick Institute

13:55 – 14:25 - Laurence Pearl, Genome Damage and Stability Centre, University of Sussex

"Protein Kinase Regulation by the HSP90 Molecular Chaperone System"

14:25 – 14:55 - Rahul Samant, Babraham Institute

"Divergence in proteostasis strategies underpins the stress resilience of senescent human cells"

14:55 – 15:25 - Ian McGough, Babraham Institute

"A novel RASopathy caused by hyperactive non-canonical Wnt signalling"

15:25 – 15:45 - Yoon Hee Choi, Babraham Institute

"Uncovering the extracellular proteostasis machinery to promote healthy ageing"

15:45 – 16:05 - Tea/Coffee and poster session

Session 2 - P13K | CHAIR Dario Alessi, University of Dundee

15:05 – 16:35 - Roger Williams, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology

"Dog’s breakfast to running fast, structural insights into PI3Ks"

16:35 – 17:05 - Bart Vanhaesebroeck, UCL Cancer Institute

"A Shared Journey in PI3K Research"

17:05 – 17:35 - Tamara Chessa, Babraham Institute

"PLEKHS1 and PI3K pathway re-wiring: a link with inflammation?"

17:35 – 18:30 - Drinks reception

18:30 - Transport provided into Cambridge city centre

Friday 2nd May

Session 3 - Autophagy | CHAIR Peter Cullen, University of Bristol

09:00 – 09:30 - Sharon Tooze, Francis Crick Institute

"ATG9A and ARFIP2 cooperate to regulate PI4P levels for lysosomal repair"

09:30 – 10:00 - Nick Ktistakis, Babraham Institute

"How autophagy helps cells eat themselves, and is this a good thing?"

10:00 – 10:30 - Oliver Florey, Babraham Institute

"Bridging the CASM – A journey to understand non-canonical autophagy"

10:30 – 10:50 - Alex Van Vliet, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology

‘The role of Rab proteins in the birth of the autophagosome’

10:50 – 11:20 - Tea/Coffee and poster session

Session 4 - Redox Biology | CHAIR Edwin Chilvers, Imperial College London

11:20 – 11:50 - Helena Cochemé, MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences

"Redox signalling in the regulation of metabolism and ageing"

11:50 – 12:20 - Hayley Sharpe, Babraham Institute

"Protein tyrosine phosphatases and redox signalling"

12:20 – 12:40 - Ahmet Tuncay, Amar Soory, Babraham Institute

"The Role of RNA Oxidation and tRNA Availability in Age-Induced Ribosome Dysfunction"

12:40 – 14:00 - Lunch and posters

Session 5 - Nuclear Signalling | CHAIR Robin Irvine, University of Cambridge

14:00 – 14:30 - Nullin Divecha, University of Southampton

"Nuclear Phosphoinositide signalling: a life of head and tails"

14:30 – 15:00 - Maria Christophorou, Babraham Institute

"Bug or feature? Understanding the role of protein citrullination in mammalian biology"

15:00 – 15:30 - Philipp Voigt, Babraham Institute

"Decoding the bivalency signal: mechanisms of poising at developmental gene promoters"

15:30 – 15:50 - Yuen Jian (Mark) Cheong, Babraham Institute

"Nuclear-specific propionyl-CoA metabolism"

15:50 - Closing remarks

16:00 - Barbecue on the lawn at Babraham and symposium close

Cellular signals for health & disease