IMA Gold Medal Lecture 2019 – Geometry as a weapon in the fight against viral disease to be given by Professor Reidun Twarock (University of York), winner of the 2018 IMA Gold Medal.
Abstract
The protein containers encapsulating the genetic material of viruses are remarkable examples of icosahedral symmetry in biology. Professor Twarock will demonstrate how techniques from group, graph and tiling theory have enabled her and her team to solve long-standing puzzles regarding the structures and assembly of these viral Trojan horses. In particular, the concept of Hamiltonian paths has been instrumental in the discovery of an assembly mechanism that occurs in many viral families, such as the Picornaviruses that include the common cold virus. Using Gillespie models of viral evolution in the context of a viral infection, Professor Twarock will demonstrate how these insights into virus structure open up novel opportunities for anti-viral therapy. She will also show how her recent classification of virus structure based on Kepler’s Archimedean lattices has revealed a design principle for icosahedral architectures, that solves open problems in structural virology and suggests new avenues in our fight against viral disease.
There will be an opportunity after the lecture to experience the models of viral geometry ‘in action’ in a virtual reality environment.
Further Information
Admission is by advance booking only on a first-come, first-served basis. For those who wish to attend the lecture only there is no charge, whilst a payment of £16 is required for the reception which follows the lecture. All attendees must register in advance.
Please register via https://my.ima.org.uk/ Bookings close on 16 June; for enquiries after that date or if you require any assistance in making your booking or further information please contact alison.penry@ima.org.uk or gemma.reeves@ima.org.uk or call 01702 356112. If you are an IMA Member or you have previously registered for an IMA event, then you are already on our database. If required, please “request a new password” using the email address previously used, to log in.
This event is not organised or endorsed by the Royal Society.
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