In a new regional cyanobacterial research consortium, the Cyanometa project, supported by the Visegrad Fund, commenced its in-person meeting in Cracow this January. This event marked a collaborative effort among researchers in the region, with a focus on the exploration of cyanobacteria. The audience comprised at least three representatives from each partner country, including Pavol Jozef Safarik University in Kosice (Slovakia), Masaryk University in Brno (Czechia), Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences in Godollo (Hungary), University of Novi Sad, and University of Kragujevac (Serbia), and Jagiellonian University in Krakow (Poland).

The first CYANOMETA workshop unfolded on January 17-18, 2024, at the Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Biotechnology in Cracow. The opening day featured a comprehensive training session on metabolomic profiling of cyanobacterial strains using the LC-HRMS method. Nada Tokodi and Dariusz Dziga introduced the CYANOMETA project, paving the way for Agnieszka Zakrzewska from Jagiellonian Centre for Experimental Therapeutics, Jagiellonian University, who elucidated the application of Compound Discoverer software in interpreting data, particularly in identifying secondary metabolites from the species Raphidiopsis raciborskii. Subsequently, Robert Konkel from the Faculty of Oceanography and Geography, University of Gdańsk, showcased various open programs for processing cyanobacterial secondary metabolite data, including MZmine, Feature-Based Molecule Networking, Sirius, and Cytoscape, with active audience engagement.

Organizes (Dariusz Dziga, Nada Tokodi) and experts (Agnieszka Zakrzewska, Robert Konkel) giving presentation to the audience

 

On the following day, the workshop opened its doors to professors, students, and staff, inviting them to two public lectures. Robert Konkel delved into the realm of bioactive peptides produced by Nostoc edaphicum CCNP1411, while Adam Antosiak from the Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, presented insights into the Cyanobacterial metabolome during cyanophage infection.

Experts (Robert Konkel, Adam Antosiak) giving presentation to the audience

 

 

workshop program

For a detailed overview of the workshop program, please refer to the DOWNLOADABLE FILES section. The workshop was organized by Ph.D. Dariusz Dziga, the Head of the Metabolomics Laboratory and Professor at Jagiellonian University, who also serves as the lead coordinator of the CYANOMETA project, generously supported by the Visegrad Fund and Nada Tokodi, representative of the University of Novi Sad.