PI_Forum Brno #6: Kickstarting your lab 102

Starting your own lab is an exciting but daunting step – it’s not just about science, but also about people, priorities, and persistence. In this session, we’ll talk about what to look for when setting up your group, what really matters in the first months, and which early mistakes to avoid (often learned the hard way). Bring your questions, experiences, and ideas – let’s make starting a lab a little less of a mystery and a lot more of an adventure.

4. 11. 2025 od 17.30 | CEITEC MU, Brno

Registration is open

What?

An informal space for meeting, networking, and sharing of experience among Principal Investigators working in Czechia, open to all those who hold an independent research group leader position in any scientific field, regardless of age, experience, institution, or nationality.

Our guests

Dáša Bohačiaková

Our first speaker, Dáša Bohačiaková, leads a lab focused on modeling neural differentiation in vitro using human pluripotent stem cells. Her team studies the mechanisms of neural induction and differentiation to better understand and model CNS-related diseases, particularly Alzheimer’s disease and glioblastoma, using advanced 2D, neural stem cell, and 3D organoid models.

Ondřej Kováč

Ondrej leads a research group dedicated to the total synthesis of complex natural products inspired by nature’s remarkable structural diversity. His team designs and constructs bioactive molecules with potential applications in medicine and agriculture, including novel antibiotics with unique mechanisms of action and cytotoxic compounds with potential anticancer properties. By combining innovative synthetic strategies with deep mechanistic understanding, the group focuses on unlocking new chemical reactivity and molecular architectures with biological potential.

When and where?

4 November 2025 from 5:30 p.m.

CEITEC MU, room 211 (Kamenice 5, Brno-Bohunice)

Programme

5:30–5:40 p.m.	Opening words
5:40–7:00 p.m.	Discussion Dáša Bohačiaková (Group Leader, Department of Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University) Ondřej Kováč (Group Leader, Department of Organic Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacký University Olomouc) chaired by Stanislava Králová (MASH Group Leader at PharmMUNI)
From 7:00 p.m.	Open discussion, networking, drinks and refreshments