BPS2024 Full Program & Abstracts

Education and Career Opportunities Fair 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm, Exhibit Hall AB Come to this fair to meet with representatives from educational institutions as well as industry and government agencies. Students and postdoctoral candidates will be able to meet with representatives from colleges and universities with leading programs in biophysics. Attendees can connect with representatives from industry and agencies who will provide information about employment and funding opportunities at their institutions/companies. Learn about the variety of opportunities available and to talk one-on one with representatives from participating organizations! Exhibitor Presentation Mad City Labs Inc 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm, Room 103C Looking to the Future – Enabling Single Molecule Methods for Im proved Health Outcomes This session features researchers employing single molecule methods aimed at improving medical diagnosis or health outcomes. The empha sis is on the challenges facing scientists to develop improved methods and sensors to achieve these outcomes. Interfacing Coherent Qubits with Biological Targets Speaker: Uri Zvi, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago Prof. Peter Maurer’s lab at the University of Chicago investigates new quantum sensing techniques and their application to probe physi cal properties of biological processes with nanoscale resolution. The scientific challenges our lab addresses fall roughly into two distinct yet synergetic areas: (1) What are the sensitivity limits of nanoscale quan tum sensors in a noisy environment and can we engineer qubit sensors and sensing protocols that overcome these limitations? (2) How can we interface these qubit sensors with biological systems and what are the specific biological questions that we can address with quantum sensing? Single Molecule Pharmacology Reveals the Kinetic Mechanism of Ac tion of Splicing Modulators Speaker: Aaron Hoskins, Wasson Professor of Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison Therapeutics targeting pre-mRNA splicing are a promising avenue to treat human diseases, including spinal muscular atrophy and Hunting ton’s disease. Here, we use single molecule colocalization spectroscopy (CoSMoS) to directly measure modulation of 5' splice site recognition by human U1 snRNP. By leveraging large single molecule data sets with >50,000 immobilized molecules and >33 million video frames, we show that a modulator enhances the binding of targeted splice sites by chang ing the off-, but not on-, rates. The magnitude of the changes in binding kinetics in vitro mirror those measured in vivo for changes in mRNA iso form generation, suggesting that U1 lifetime could be at least partially limiting for splicing in cells. Our results demonstrate the power of single molecule fluorescence for revealing complex RNA pharmacology. PIP2 is a Negative Regulator of NaV1.4 Channels Gating Speaker: Kirin Gada, Jordie Kamuene & Leigh Plant, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Center for Drug Discovery, Northeast ern University Voltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels activate in response to depolariza tion, causing the rapid influx of Na+ ions that initiates action potentials in excitable cells. NaV channel gating is tightly controlled, with pertur bations leading to a range of diseases. Recently, we reported that the ubiquitous signaling phospholipid, PI(4,5)P2 is a negative regulator of NaV1.4 channels gating. Combining patch-clamp with optogenetic acti vation of specific, membrane associated phosphoinositide phosphatases we showed that dephosphorylating PI(4,5)P2 left-shifts the voltage

dependence of NaV1.4 channels to more hyperpolarized potentials, slows the rate of fast inactivation, augments the persistent late current, and speeds recovery from fast inactivation. Using TIRF microscopy, we show that the changes to NaV1.4 gating coincide with decoupling of a fluorescent PI(4,5)P2-biosensor from the plasma membrane. About Mad City Labs Mad City Labs designs and manufactures a complete product line of high-precision piezo nanopositioners, micropositioners, AFM, and Single Molecule Microscopes. Visit www.madcitylabs.com or stop by Booth #700 during the meeting! Snack Break 1:45 pm - 3:00 pm, Exhibit Hall AB Poster Presentations and Late Posters 1:45 pm - 3:45 pm, Exhibit Hall AB Teaching Science Like We Do Science 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm, Room 105AB This interactive, hands-on workshop focuses on practice-applicable, easy-to-use strategies and tools that educators at any level of biophysi cal science education can use to assess what their students take away from their teaching, and where changes to their educational methods might be appropriate. Moderators Yadilette Rivera-Colón, Bay Path University, USA Rita Sirrieh, University of Houston, USA Speakers Christopher Gaudreau, Bay Path University, USA Nathan Fried, Rutgers University, USA Jennifer Skirkanich, Bryn Mawr College, USA This workshop will delve into the details of how to plan an international job search, including what to do and when, no matter where in the world you are located or want to go. Opportunities for International Collaboration 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm, Room 109AB Science has long been considered a unified endeavor. Why? Because the methods, reasoning and search for answers are universal, regardless of the language spoken or country you live in. To that end, as an interna tional organization, the Biophysical Society strives to explore, expand and protect opportunities for international collaboration, education and research amongst members of the biophysical community. Join the Public Affairs Committee (PAC) as we discuss the various opportunities for researchers to work in a global, collaborative environment. This ses sion will explore everything from international fellowship opportunities to funding mechanisms designed for global partnerships. Moderators Kalina Hristova, Johns Hopkins University, USA Miguel Castanho, University of Lisbon, Portugal Ana-Nicoleta Bondar, University of Bucharest, Romania Panelists Christian Jorgensen, Portsmouth University, United Kingdom Theresa Good, NSF, USA Andrea Stith, Northeastern University, USA Career Development Center Workshop Navigating an International Job Search 2:30 pm - 3:30 pm, Room 108B

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