PhD STUDENTS CONFERENCE
6th-8th October 2026
About the Conference
The conference will take place on October 6–8, 2026, in Warsaw, Poland, and will bring together young researchers and leading experts from diverse fields, including molecular biology, psychology, neurobiology, biochemistry, physiology, and human pathology. As a vibrant interdisciplinary forum, the event offers an exceptional opportunity to exchange ideas, present cutting-edge research, and foster new scientific collaborations. This year’s conference is organized in partnership with EMERALD/EMBL, an international initiative dedicated to strengthening cooperation between the Polish life sciences community and scientists affiliated with the European Molecular Biology Laboratory - EMBL. The scientific program will feature plenary lectures and special EMBO/EMBL lectures delivered by internationally renowned researchers, oral presentations by PhD students, poster sessions, and science outreach activities designed to communicate the latest scientific advances to a broader audience. Participants will also have the unique opportunity to engage with distinguished invited speakers, including: Wojciech Galej, Roger Gomis and Nick Goldman.
Adding further significance to this year’s anniversary edition, the conference will be accompanied by the inauguration ceremony of the new International Doctoral School in Biological Sciences and Translational Medicine - Bio4Med, marking an important milestone in the development of advanced doctoral education and research training. The conference will be held in the Conference Hall of the Nencki Institute, located at 3 Pasteura Street, Warsaw.
We warmly encourage PhD students, early-career researchers, and all those passionate about scientific discovery to join us for this inspiring event. The conference offers an outstanding platform for presenting research achievements, expanding professional networks, exchanging knowledge, and building lasting collaborations within the international scientific community.
We look forward to welcoming you to Warsaw for three days of scientific excellence, innovation, and meaningful academic exchange.
Previous Editions
Program
6th October 2026, Tuesday
- Welcome address by prof. Agnieszka Dobrzyń, Director of the Nencki Institute
- The letter from the Minister of Science and Higher Education, dr. Marcin Kulasek
- Remarks by Małgorzata Białczak, Marshal's Office of the Mazowieckie Voivodeship
- Remarks by the PhD Students’ Council Representatives
- Oath of First-Year Students
Wojciech Galej, PhD (EMBL Grenoble, France, IIMCB)
The Significant Other: Structural Studies of the Spliceosome’s Long-Separated Twinn biological matter.
Weronika Ficerman-Kuta (Laboratory of Molecular Basis of Cell Motility, Nencki Institute)
Investigating the role of unconventional myosin VI in cardiac metabolism.
Sabahat Gulzar (Laboratory of Cellular Metabolism, Nencki Institute)
Dystrophin deficiency alters calcium homeostasis and mitochondrial organization in brain endothelial cells of dystrophic mice.
| Filip Schymik | Predicting the protein functions of the microbiome with metagenomic-deepFRI. |
| Oksana Okhrymovych |
Identification of stress-induced paraspeckle-like nuclear bodies containing NONO-1 in C. elegans. |
Anjaly Yadav (Laboratory of Emotions Neurobiology, Nencki Institute)
The role of the prelimbic cortex in the transition from out-group to in-group social interactions.
Adam Brosnan (Laboratory of Emotions Neurobiology, Nencki Institute)
MCage-Ultra: Social Hierarchies, Context, and Psychedelics in Automated Mouse Societies.
| Emilia Zarembska | The impact of early-life immune system activation on somatostatin-expressing interneurons in the mouse medial prefrontal cortex. |
| Agata Jabłońska | IgA-coated bacteria as next generation probiotics candidates to ameliorate allergic asthma. |
7th October 2026, Wednesday
Roger Gomis, PhD (Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Barcelona, Spain)
ER+ Breast Cancer Metastasis Cell Fate
| Cita Hanif Muflihah |
Increased antigen presentation signature in IFNγ-induced transcriptional memory in glioblastoma. |
| Anna Szulc-Kapuścińska |
Decoding Hypoxia-Induced Chromatin and Nuclear Architecture Changes in H3K27M-Mutant Diffuse Midline Gliomas |
| Joao Pedro Alves de Araujo |
IRF7 is a master regulator of the reprogramming of microglia during glioma progression. |
| Dejan Rajkovski | The epigenetic basis of IFNγ-induced transcriptional memory through the lens of epigenetic “readers”, “writers”, and “erasers”. |
| Julia Kirylczuk | Genomic location and regulation of RNA Polymerase II clusters in C. elegans. |
Nabodit Bhattacharya (Dioscuri Center for Chromatin Biology and Epigenomics, Nencki Institute)
Deciphering the Distinct Functions of CBP and p300 in Human Neurodevelopment and Their Implications for Rubinstein–Taybi Syndrome.
Jake Pickering (Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Barcelona, Spain)
‘Don’t go breaking my heart’: The role of mitochondrial heterogeneity in immune and cardiovascular health
| Nikodem Kasak | Role of energy metabolism in the senescent bone marrow stroma-driven protection of chronic myeloid leukemia. |
| Wiktoria Laprus | Hypoxia-dependent regulation of galectin-3 in diffuse midline glioma and its association with the H3.3K27M mutation |
Dawid Stępnik (Laboratory of Cytometry, Nencki Institute)
Specific immune signatures of T cells as biomarkers of the neuro Post-COVID Syndrome and predictors of long-term health dysfunctions.
Magdalena Wolska (Laboratory of Host-Microbiome interactions, Nencki Institute)
Harnessing microbiota-dependent metabolites to modulate pulmonary inflammation.
| Karolina Zielińska | Language skills, brain functional activity and oxytocin level in children with ASD and ADHD. |
| Katarzyna Jurkowska | SCSM-HLA: Genetic Demultiplexing of Single Cells. |
8th October 2026, Thursday
Omid Saberi-Khomami (Laboratory of Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Nencki Institute)
CacyBP/SIP as a potential regulator of different cellular processes.
Zuzanna Luczak-Sobotkowska (Laboratory of Molecular Neurobiology, Nencki Institute)
When microglia return? Tracking changes after microglia manipulation in vivo and ex vivo.
| Wiktoria Zaniewska | Individual and sex differences in social responses to DMT, psilocybin and LSD in rats |
| Nupur Mahadeokar |
Silencing the Amygdala: Chemogenetic Inhibition of Central Amygdala At Relapse Phase Reduces Alcohol Seeking and Consumption. |
| Anna Redeł | Language Network Morphology and Language Skills in Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders. |
Simran Yadav (Laboratory of Preclinical Testing of Higher Standard, Nencki Institute)
Stage- and sex-dependent dynamics of human plasma miRNA biomarker candidates across Alzheimer-like disease progression in 3xTg-AD mice.
Marta Agnieszczak (Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Nencki Institute)
Beyond visible lesions: cognitive, diffusion and volumetric MRI markers of brain injury in asymptomatic multiple sclerosis.
| Tulasiram Mora | Mitochondrial Remodelling and Intercellular Communication Drive Endothelial Adaptation to Pro-Inflammatory Stress. |
| Dominika Dębowska | Senescence-dependent alterations in the composition and transport of the nuclear pore complex (NPC) in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). |
| Wiktoria Gawryś | Investigating age-dependent platelet regulation of pancreatic β cells function and glucose homeostasis. |
| Sandra Romanis | The influence of maternal obesity and Lipocalin 2 gene deletion on the behavior of offspring. |
| Nataniel Stefanowski | Exploring the potential of a novel BbKI peptide for targeting insulin resistance. |
Nick Goldman, PhD (EMBL Cambridge, UK)
Post-pandemic Phylogenetics.
Registration
We remind you that participation in the conference is obligatory for all PhD Students. We are looking forward to seeing you all there!
You can choose one of the following forms of presentation:
- Long Talk - 20 minutes presentation + 3 minutes for discussion
- Speed Talk - 5 minutes presentation, without discussion
- Poster
Poster Info:
- size: A1 or A0
- orientation: vertical
- language: English
Venue
3 Pasteur Street, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland
Centre Conference Hall, 1st floor
From the airport by bus:
From Arrivals go to Lotnisko Chopina Przyloty 02 bus stop, where you can take bus 175 (towards Pl. Piłsudskiego) or bus 188 (towards Gocławek Wschodni). The ride takes approximately 18 minutes. Get off at the “Banacha Szpital 02” bus stop on Żwirki i Wigury Street. From there, it’s less than a 12-minute walk to the Institute (850 m). Tickets can be purchased from ticket machines located at the bus stop or inside the bus. Only card payments are accepted. A 20-minute ticket costs 3.40 PLN.
From train station by tram:
From the central train station you might take a tram 7, 9 or 33 from Dworzec Centralny 08 tram stop (P+R Al.Krakowska or Banacha direction) and get off on Plac Narutowicza 13 tram stop on Grójecka Street. The ride takes approximately 10 minutes. From Narutowicza Square it is less than a 10–minute walk to the Institute (700m). Tickets can be purchased from ticket machines located at the tram stop or inside the tram. Only card payments are accepted. A 20-minute ticket costs 3.40 PLN.
By taxi:
You can catch a taxi outside the terminal or the central train station. Alternatively, you can you can use ride-hailing services such as Uber or Bolt or call one of the taxi companies directly: Ele TAXI +48 22 811 11 11, MPT Taxi +48 22 19191, WAWA Taxi +48 22 333 4444; SAWA Taxi +48 22 644 44 44. The ride from the airport to the Institute typically takes 10–15 minutes and costs approximately 50 PLN (around 12 EUR).
Accessibility
Organizers
Agnieszka Dobrzyń
Director of the Institute
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
Joanna Szczepanowska
Head of the Warsaw-4-PhD School
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
Dominika Malińska
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
Ewelina Krogulec
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
PhD Student Council
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
Adam Kłosin
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
Magdalena Kulma
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
Paweł Mikulski
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
Laura Turos-Korgul
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
Marcin Barański
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
Support
10th International PhD Students Conference at the Nencki Institute is a part of the EMERALD Projectsupported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Poland grant no. MNiSW/2024/DWM/272
The conference is held under the honorary patronage
of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education and the Marshal of the Masovian Voivodeship
Conference sponsor
Conference Bingo
read Rules and Regulations...