Multiscale Computational Modeling: From Electronic Structure to Cellular Mechanisms

On Friday, April 14, ASEF, in cooperation with MC Podlaga and the Student Club of Sežana, organized the April popular science lecture as part of the ASEF young minds lecture series. This time with Domen Pregeljc, an ASEF Junior Fellow of the 2022 generation and a doctoral student at the Swiss State University of Technology Zurich (ETH Zurich).

In the lecture, Domen first described his life path, which led him from his native Hrpelje to Ljubljana to the Vič High School, and from there on to London and finally to Switzerland, where he is perfecting his knowledge on a doctoral program in Zurich. He thanked his mentors who guided him and sponsors for their sponsoring support. He completed his ASEF research visit in San Francisco at the University of California under the mentorship of dr. Andrej Šali.

In the content part of the event, we learned the basics of integrative structural biology, which includes determining the structures of macromolecules by combining information from experimental and theoretical methods. After presenting many examples, Domen devoted himself to multiscale computer modeling, where he presented us with size classes and time scales, and then explained the modeling from the perspective of classical and quantum mechanics. He also supported everything with equations and examples, for example how a mutation affects the functioning of an enzyme and how certain molecules affect the transmission of a nerve signal.

At the event, the representative of the co-organizers, Matis Ukmar, greeted the participants, and the entire event was coordinated by Arjana Savarin, an ASEF Junior Fellow of the 2022 generation.

The ASEF Young Minds project is supported by the Governemnt Office for Youth and the Government Office for Slovenians Abroad.