Workshops

Workshops at The Festival of Genomics & Biodata will provide the perfect setting to discuss your own challenges, gather new information and share experiences with and learn from others in the field.

Please note:

The "Single-Cell Genomics Decoded" and "Integrating Multi-Omics Data"  workshops are now fully booked.

We have a few spots available in the "Association to Function Knowledge Portal" workshop due to last-minute dropouts.

You can secure a place by going to the Genome Dome 5 minutes before the discussion is scheduled to start. Please note that the available spots will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.

* Please note that this workshop is now at capacity and is no longer available for registration.

Duration: 2 hours 20 mins

Date: 2:15pm - 4:35pm on Thursday October 5th

Workshop Leaders:

• Josh Fienman, Scientist (NGS Technology Center), Pfizer
• Linda Orzolek, Director, Single-cell and Transcriptomics Core, Johns Hopkins University
• Rathankumar Kumaragurubaran, Director, Single Cell Genomics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
• John Preall, Associate Professor and Head of Genomics Technology Development, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
• Seth Garren, Head of Genomics in Precision Oncology, Sanofi

Learning Objectives:

• Discuss the considerations when using different technologies including the pros, cons and recommendations for different studies.
• Learn from the experts about the latest technologies being used and what they have learnt from their own experiences.
• Find out how researchers and drug developers are overcoming the key challenges in single cell including resolution, throughput, speed, automation, data interpretation and data quality.

Workshop Agenda:

Short presentations of the technologies that speakers have had experience using (45 minutes).

• Includes considerations of setting up the experiments, lessons learned and achievements.

Breakout into groups (1 hour).

• This time will allow both speakers and attendees to network and hold valuable discussions about their experiences and will allow for the attendees to ask the expert speakers any questions and for the speakers to provide any recommendations 

Report findings from each table back to the group (30 mins).

• During this time we’ll have a joint ‘roundtable-style’ discussion with the whole group to assimilate findings and conclude the session.

Quick survey to review the workshop experience (5 mins).

* Please note that this workshop is now at capacity and is no longer available for registration.

Duration: 3 hours 30 mins

Date: 9am - 12:30pm on Thursday October 5th (Including a 30 minute coffee break)

Workshop Overview:

This workshop aims to give participants an introduction to the knowledge and practical skills needed to effectively integrate and analyse multi-omics data. The workshop will cover the theoretical foundations of multi-omics data integration and an overview of the popular bioinformatics tools.

Workshop Leaders:

Julia TCW, Director and Principal Investigator, Laboratory of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Therapeutics, Boston University

Stephanie Byrum, Associate Professor, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

Jeff Xia, Associate Professor, Canada Research Chair in Bioinformatics and Big Data Analytics, McGill University

Serdar Bozdag, Associate Professor, University of North Texas

Learning Objectives:

• Develop an understanding of multi-omics data integration, recognising its significance, advantages, and challenges.
• Become acquainted with popular bioinformatics tools for multi-omics integration and demonstrate basic proficiency in their utilisation.
• Apply integrated multi-omics data analysis to real-life disease scenarios, identifying potential insights and avenues for therapy.
• Explore emerging trends, ethical considerations, and collaborate with experts and peers to discuss insights and challenges in multi-omics research.

Workshop Agenda:

Introduction to Multi-Omics Data Integration (1 hour) - Stephanie Byrum, Associate Professor, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

• Understanding multi-omics datasets (genomics, transcriptomics, epigenomics, proteomics, etc.)
• Rationale and benefits of integrating multi-omics data
• Challenges and considerations in data integration

Bioinformatics Tools for Multi-omics Integration (30 mins) – Jeff Xia, Associate Professor, Canada Research Chair in Bioinformatics and Big Data Analytics, McGill University

• Introduction to OmicsNet and an overview of popular tools (e.g., R packages, Bioconductor, Python libraries)

Coffee Break (30 mins)

A Case Study on Integrating Multi-Omics Data in Disease Application (30 mins) - Julia TCW, Director and Principal Investigator, Laboratory of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Therapeutics, Boston University

A Case Study on Disease-Associated Gene Prioritization (30 mins) - Serdar Bozdag, Associate Professor, University of North Texas

Future Directions, Challenges and Q&A with all workshop leaders (30 minutes)

Emerging trends in multi-omics data integration (using deep learning techniques)Ethical considerations and data sharing

Open forum for participants to ask questions and discuss insights gained Recap of key takeaways and workshop conclusion

Duration: 1 hour 30 mins

Date: 11:40am - 1:10pm on Wednesday October 4th

Workshop Leaders: 

• Maria Constanzo, Creative Lead, MPG Portals, Broad Institute of MIT & Harvard
• Mackenzie Brandes, Project Manager, The Broad Institute of MIT & Harvard

Learning Objectives:

Learn how to use the A2FKP to answer questions such as:

• Do current genetic and genomic data support the involvement of my gene of interest in a particular disease or trait?
• What is the overall genetic architecture of a particular complex disease?
• How can I integrate multiple data types to prioritize variants and genes in a genomic region of interest?
• Which genes are most likely to be causal for a trait or disease?