The First Guatemalan School of Biophysics aims to create an interdisciplinary space where local students and early-career researchers from fields such as physics, biology, biochemistry, computer science, and related disciplines can explore modern quantitative tools to address scientific questions at the interface between the physical and biological sciences.

This initiative seeks to equip participants with foundational skills in quantitative research, prepare them for postgraduate training abroad, and foster collaborations across institutions and countries. By doing so, it will lay the foundations for a national biophysics network, promote research in biophysics and quantitative life sciences, and build lasting connections between Guatemalan universities and the international scientific community.


Main Topics

1. Statistical Tools and Probability

Lecturer: Javier Aguilar, University of Padova, Italy

Due to the complexity of biological systems, probability theory has become a fundamental framework for studying them quantitatively. From random variables and probability distributions to stochastic models of dynamical systems, this module offers hands-on sessions in data analysis and stochastic process modeling, providing skills that underpin quantitative research across the life sciences.

2. Ecology and Evolution

Lecturer: Jacopo Grilli, International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Italy

How do populations grow, compete, and evolve? This module introduces quantitative models that describe ecological interactions and evolutionary change. Participants will explore how simple mathematical models can describe complex biological systems, including the classic Luria–Delbrück experiment that revealed the role of randomness in evolution.

3. Machine Learning Applied to Molecules and Proteins
Lecturer: Francesca Cuturello, Area Science Park, Italy

Biological sequences contain rich statistical patterns shaped by evolution. This module introduces how machine learning can uncover meaningful relationships in molecular data. Starting from the central dogma and multiple sequence alignments, participants will explore how statistical models inspired by physics reveal structure in biological sequences, using AI tools to connect data, inference, and molecular function.

4. Neuroscience

Lecturer: Rubén Herzog, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Spain

How can we model the brain as a physical system? This module introduces the principles of whole-brain models that reproduce measurable patterns of neural activity using anatomy, connectivity, and dynamics. Participants will build and analyze simplified dynamical models to explore how collective behavior emerges from interacting neural regions, illustrating how physics helps reveal the organizing principles of the brain.


Audience and Participation

The school is open to final-year undergraduate students and recent graduates in Physics, Biology, Biochemistry, Biotechnology, Computer Science, and related disciplines from Guatemalan universities.

A maximum of 20 participants will be selected based on motivation, background, and representation across institutions.

As part of the registration process, applicants will be asked to briefly self-assess their level of mathematical knowledge (basic, intermediate, advanced, or specialized). This information will help the organizers adapt the hands-on sessions to the participants’ backgrounds.

Language: English (some lectures may be delivered in Spanish). Participants are expected to be able to follow lectures and materials in English.

Format: In-person



Registration

There is no registration fee.

Registration form: https://forms.gle/DvKzc6MEcM1ZzkSg7

Registration period: 6–16 November 2025

Notification of selected participants: 18 November 2025

School dates: 26 November – 5 December 2025

Schedule: 9:30 AM – 5:00 PM

Students are expected to attend all sessions and will receive a diploma upon completion.



Organizing committee

Manuel Vásquez Ibarra (Gulbenkian Institute for Molecular Medicine, Portugal) – Project Coordinator

Giovanni Ramírez García (Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala, Guatemala) – Local Coordinator

Natalia Villegas García (University of Trieste, Italy)

Carlos Soto López (OGS, Italy)

Joshua Lemus (University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy)

Luis Benjamín Rodríguez Aguilar (University of Trento, Italy)

Pedro Camposeco Ovalle (Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, Guatemala)



For inquiries: biofisicaguatemala@gmail.com