Speaker:

Professor João Pedro Magalhães

Title:

Tackling the complexity of ageing with systems approaches

Abstract:

Ageing is the major biomedical challenge of the 21st century, yet it remains largely mysterious, in part because of its intrinsic complexity. In this talk, I will present systems approaches aimed at deciphering the genome and increasing our knowledge about how genes and processes impact on ageing. I will present network and machine learning approaches for predicting longevity genes and compounds, which we validated experimentally. Lastly, I will discuss integrative, multi-dimensional approaches that provide insights into longevity pathways and their role in age-related diseases.

Biography:

Prof de Magalhaes graduated in Microbiology in 1999 from the Escola Superior de Biotecnologia in his hometown of Porto, Portugal, and then obtained a PhD in 2004 from the University of Namur in Belgium. Following a postdoc with genomics pioneer Prof George Church at Harvard Medical School, in 2008 Prof de Magalhaes joined the University of Liverpool and, in 2022, he was recruited to the University of Birmingham where he leads the Genomics of Ageing and Rejuvenation Lab (https://rejuvenomicslab.com/). His lab studies the ageing process and how we can manipulate it to fend off age-related diseases and improve human health. Prof de Magalhaes has authored over 100 publications and given over 200 invited talks, including three TEDx talks. He is also CSO of YouthBio Therapeutics, a US-based biotech company developing rejuvenation gene therapies.

Association: Professor João Pedro de Magalhães, Genomics of Ageing and Rejuvenation Lab, Institute of Inflammation and Ageing, University of Birmingham

Host: Professor Claire Steves

This is a hybrid meeting - attend in person in the Rayne Large Seminar Room, in St Thomas' Hospital, or join the meeting online from the link on the right.