On September 17-20, 2025, the VI Life Sciences Congress BIO, BIO2025, which was simultaneously the 54th Meeting of the Polish Biochemical Society (PTBioch) took place in Poznan. The Polish Biochemical Society served as the titular organizer of the event, while the main organizer was the Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IBCH PAS). The Congress was held at the Faculty of Political Science and Journalism and the Faculty of Biology of Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznan, which also served as co-organizers of the event. The Congress brought together over 600 participants from 5 European countries, confirming its position as the largest national forum for meetings and exchange of scientific experiences in the field of life sciences.

The BIO2025 Congress, drawing on the tradition of PTBioch meetings dating back to the 1950s, confirmed the value of returning to in-person conference formats. After years of pandemic restrictions, we demonstrated that we not only can but also want to meet face-to-face to present and discuss our research results. Thanks to the full commitment of the Congress organizers and the volunteers supporting them, high scientific and organizational quality was ensured throughout the Congress, which was reflected in numerous congratulatory letters and acknowledgments received from participants.

The Congress Chair and Chair of its Scientific Committee was Prof. Marek Figlerowicz, while the Chair of the Organizational Committee was Dr. hab. Zbigniew Warkocki, Prof. IBCH PAS. The scientific program of the conference included 5 plenary lectures, 22 scientific sessions divided into three main thematic blocks: “Nucleic acids,” “Proteins and metabolites,” and “Cells and organisms.” Additionally, there were two sessions dedicated to scientific career development, a session devoted to the PTBioch publication “Acta Biochimica Polonica,” and presentations by sponsors and scientific institutions (four sessions and one plenary lecture). A total of 92 oral presentations were delivered, selected from submitted abstracts, and four poster sessions were conducted.

The plenary lectures were particularly well-received, delivered by world-class scientists: Prof. Harold E. Varmus – Nobel Prize laureate in medicine (1989) for discovering the cellular origin of retroviral oncogenes, creator of PubMed Central, currently professor at Weill Cornell Medicine and chair of WHO’s scientific advisory board, Prof. Magdalena Żernicka-Goetz – pioneer in human embryology, professor at California Institute of Technology and University of Cambridge, member of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Prof. Virginijus Šikšnys – pioneer of CRISPR-Cas genome editing technology, Kavli Prize laureate from Vilnius University, Prof. Nikolaus Rajewsky – pioneer of spatial transcriptomics from MDC Berlin, who delivered the FEBS National Lecture, and Prof. Adrian Krainer – co-creator of the first registered drug based on therapeutic nucleic acids – nusinersen, used in treating spinal muscular atrophy.

During the congress, important events for the biochemical community also took place – on September 17 (Wednesday), a PTBioch Board meeting was held, while on September 18 (Thursday), the PTBioch General Assembly was organized.

The scientific portion of the Congress was enriched by a series of accompanying events, including a visit by guests to the Center for Innovation and Social Education IBCH PAS, symbolic planting of a commemorative tree by Prof. Harold Varmus, a concert by a young artist who combines passion for science with music, and a ceremonial congress dinner that enabled informal summarizing of the proceedings. On Saturday, September 20, satellite events were organized, including popular science lectures “Science and society” for Poznan residents and sightseeing tours during which participants could visit Poznan and historical sites in Rogalin and Kórnik.

On behalf of the organizers and the entire IBCH PAS community, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Polish Academy of Sciences, the Mayor of Poznan, Adam Mickiewicz University, and the Poznan Science and Technology Park, whose support and patronage significantly contributed to the success of this event. We also thank the numerous sponsors and exhibitors, particularly our Main Sponsor – Merck Life Science.

On behalf of the Congress organizers, we cordially invite you to explore the photo gallery documenting this remarkable event!