#SCSS2025

A slide displaying an image of a whisky distillery plus a list of 22 specialist biological terms, some from the stem cell and developmental biology field. These include transcription factor, central doga, gastrulation, stem cell niche, mRNA, flow cytometry, chromatin, cell culture, and more.

The Scientific Distillery

Could you distil a complex scientific concept so that it can be explained in 30 seconds and be understood by a lay person, but *without* sacrificing scientific depth?

The delegates at #SCSS2025 were brilliant at this task 👏

Super-impressive talk from Christine Mummery, who uses iPS-derived cardiac microtissues to measure disease-specific arrhythmias.

In a brilliant application of of data sonification:
we could actually "hear" the calcium-imaging data as arrhythmias respond to drugs added to the media 🤯

#SCSS2025

A group of people talking on a balcony overlooking the azure Agean sea.

Our wonderful #SCSS2025 faculty spend the sunny afternoons discussing science, careers, life, the universe, & everthing with our delegates.

Lively chat here with @alejofraticelli.bsky.social, who blew our minds yesterday with data showing that long-established textbook models are WRONG.

Matthias Lutolf treats us to a breathtaking tour through his work using engineering principles to guide self-organisation, aiming to build complex human tissues. There has been remarkable progress in this area in recent years.

#SCSS2025

Anna Couturier guides us through a fascinating, sometimes terrifying, talk on Stem Cell Research in Society: Philosophy, Misinformation, and Digital Futures

We discuss the [distorting] lenses through which the world views our work, & the challenges we face in combating misinformation

#SCSS2025

Austin Smith points out that naive pluripotent cells in the embryo only self- renew rarely, if ever.

In response to some heckling from the faculty, he says “You can call ES cells artifacts if you want, but they’re still bloody marvellous” 😃

#SCSS2025

A provocative opening this morning from Cedric Blanpain, who sets out to argue that most tissues are maintained by unipotent stem cells. We look forward to hearing him make his case.. #SCSS2025

Fireworks across the sea. This is the ceremonial burning of a boat as part of the festival.

BOOM! The Spetses Stem cell Summer School is off to a spectacular start as we take time off to visit the island's Armata festival. We've heard lots of great science already: stay tuned for more updates #SCSS2025

Less than a week to go!

Follow #SCSS2025 for updates during the meeting

Thirst for knowledge?

The 2025 Stem Cell Summer School starts next Friday! We have an uncommonly spectacular array of faculty, and have no doubt that our delegates will also be spectacular

Follow ‪@stemcellsummer.bsky.social‬ and #SCSS2025 for updates during the meeting