The Chromatin Digest has been on tour!

I attended the 2025 Epigenetics Society International Conference in Chicago, USA last week. I had a brilliant time, and was fortunate enough to be invited to present a poster and short talk about my MSc by Research project (see About), which was definitely the highlight of my academic career so far.

The conference took place at Northwestern University in the Simpson Querry Biomedical Research Center, a towering modern building in downtown Chicago completed in 2019. I arrived in the city the day before so I could explore a little, and took a walk down to Lake Michigan in the evening.

_{View of Chicago from the lake. I was surprised to see people playing volleyball on a Tuesday evening in October!}

During the opening speech from the Conference Chair, we were told that the Epigenetics Society was founded in 1994 in the U.S. as the DNA Methylation Society, but changed its name as the field evolved and became broader, encompassing histone modifications and other processes beyond methylation.

And I don’t think it was until this conference that I fully grasped how broad the field is today. There were researchers investigating how histone K27 acetylation can distinguish where an ant falls in its colony’s social system, how minuscule edits to RNAs in bees can alter their behaviour, and how heat shocking stem cells from cows can rewire the epigenome, which may have considerable implications for climate change research.

_{The Simpson Querry Biomedical Center’s main lecture theatre and atrium.}

I also learnt in detail about unfamiliar techniques in epigenetics, such as chromatin tracing, which allows you to map 3D genomic interactions even from low numbers of cells, and the (charmingly-named) “comet” assay to model breaks in DNA. There were industry speakers also, who gave impressive explanations of how novel epigenomics approaches could be used beyond academic labs.

After the first day of talks was the poster session, wherein I presented my poster, and this lasted approximately an hour. We all attended a Chicago-style pizza diner just down the road in the evening (not pictured; I was too busy talking and eating!).

_{Me with my poster outside the conference centre 🙂}

The next day, there were inspiring talks on the complexity of chromatin remodelling complexes, DNA methylation patterns in colon cancer, and the functions of tiny storage spaces within the nucleus called nuclear speckles. It was great to chat with students from a variety of countries (even as far flung as Australia) over the hearty American food and strong coffee that was provided at lunchtime.

Soon, it was the morning of the final day of the conference, when my presentation was due to take place. I was incredibly nervous, but I found I relaxed after starting to speak, and ultimately found it quite fun!

Having the chance to speak about my research, especially as an MSc student, in front of pioneers in the field was pretty incredible, and I was asked several insightful questions to take into the final few months of my project.

Overall, the conference was a great experience with many insightful presentations from students and professionals who were all clearly passionate about their work, and I was incredibly grateful to have been invited for a talk. Wherever the next Society conference is, I’ll be sure to try and make it 🙂

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Notes

All pictures are my own. Please do not reuse without my permission. Thanks!

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