Prof. Spyros Artavanis-Tsakonas delivered a compelling lecture on “Cell Communication Through Notch: A Paradigm of Biological Complexity” as a part of SCAN Lecture series at IIT Bombay.
Prof. Artavanis-Tsakonas is Professor Emeritus of Cell Biology at Harvard Medical School and founder of the Developmental & Regenerative Biology Program. He earned his PhD from the University of Cambridge, with postdoctoral training at the Biozentrum (Basel) and Stanford. A former Yale professor and HHMI investigator, he has held the Chair of Biology and Genetics of Development at the Collège de France and served as CSO & EVP at Biogen (2012–2017). He is President and co-founder of Fondation Santé and an elected member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, EMBO, and the Athens Academy. His lab uses molecular and genetic approaches—principally in Drosophila—to study signal integration and cell fate, with a current focus on neurodegeneration.
In his lecture, he highlighted how genetic networks modulate Notch activity, the conserved insights from Drosophila to humans, and the implications of these mechanisms for cellular communication. His talk offered both conceptual depth and translational perspectives, inspiring many in our research community. It was a privilege to engage with a scientist whose contributions—from Drosophila genetics to translational neuroscience—have profoundly shaped the field
Title: Cell Communication Through Notch: A Paradigm of Biological Complexity
Speaker: Prof. Spyros Artavanis-Tsakonas (Professor Emeritus of Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School; Honorary Professor, Collège de France; President, Fondation Santé)
Venue: Seminar Room A, Ground floor, Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering (BSBE), IIT Bombay
Date: Monday, 24th November 2025
Time: 3:30 PM
