FEBS Workshop 2025 – Conservation and diversity of gene regulatory mechanisms across eukaryotes

Deciphering the mechanisms that regulate gene expression is central to the understanding of life at many scales. Eukaryotic model organisms have been on the forefront of discovery in this field, especially in the area of regulating gene transcription. More recently, non-model organisms have emerged as powerful experimental systems to interrogate both the conservation and diversity of gene regulatory transcription mechanisms. While the phylogenetic conservation of the factors that control transcription regulation including local chromatin organization is remarkable, there are numerous examples of functional divergence. In the current scientific climate, there is little opportunities to share and discuss findings obtained from such diverse approaches in model and non-model organisms. Here we propose to bridge this gap into a unique workshop that will bring together scientists studying fundamental mechanisms of gene transcription including local chromatin organization in yeast, fly, plants, and mammalian cells, and other organisms (such as Paramecium and Candida), using a variety of approaches including genomics, single molecule/cell, structural biology, systems analyses and computational modelling. Importantly, the workshop has been structured such as to discuss the conservation and diversity of mechanisms across model and non-model organisms and how we can bridge findings in various systems.