GMOs in the 21st Century: Innovation, Applications and Responsible Use of Biotechnology at the Heart of an Event at Collegio Cattaneo

Biotechnology is profoundly transforming scientific research, opening up new perspectives in fields ranging from crop improvement to healthcare, from the fight against vector-borne diseases to experimental medicine. New genomic techniques and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are increasingly important tools in this context, but also a field in which innovation and risk assessment must go hand in hand.

This is the focus of “GMOs in the 21st Century: Innovation, Applications, and Responsible Use”, an event organized as part of the PhD Course in Life Sciences and Biotechnology at the University of Insubria.

The event will take place on Thursday, 22 October, from 2:15 to 6:00 p.m., in the Conference Room of Collegio Cattaneo, Via Dunant 7, Varese.

The event is open to everyone interested, upon registration via the QR code on the event poster, and will be held in English.

The programme will explore a range of different perspectives. Christoph Tebbe, from the Thünen-Institut für Biodiversität/EFSA, will open the event with a reflection on three decades of GMO risk assessment in Europe, from research on bioluminescent bacteria to synthetic biology.

This will be followed by Piero Morandini, from the University of Milan, who will discuss the role of new genomic techniques in plant research and crop improvement, and Paolo Gabrieli, also from the University of Milan, who will focus on genetically modified insects for combating vector-borne diseases.

The second part of the afternoon will focus on biomedical research. Nicola Facchinello, from the University of Bologna, will present the use of engineered zebrafish as models for studying diseases, while Giorgia Foggetti, from IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital, will discuss genetically modified mouse models used in cancer research.

The event will conclude with a final discussion, offering participants the opportunity to explore the topics addressed in greater depth and to connect the different areas of research and application.