From April 18–24, 2023, the Department of Biochemistry & Biotechnology of the University of Thessaly hosted a Summer School at Biopolis Campus, Larissa, Greece, combining two back-to-back courses on small RNA-mediated plant protection and microbiome analysis using amplicon sequencing. The program brought together early-career researchers from molecular biology, plant biotechnology, and microbial ecology, with participants from Greece and across Europe. It included lectures and hands-on training led by experts from academia and industry.

Topics covered RNA interference mechanisms in plants (siRNAs, miRNAs, PTGS, TGS, RdDM), RNAi-based crop protection strategies (HIGS and SIGS), and practical applications in gene silencing. It also introduced microbiome analysis using metabarcoding, R/RStudio workflows, and statistical approaches for analyzing microbial diversity data.The Summer School provided an interdisciplinary training experience in modern plant biotechnology and microbial ecology, combining theory, computation, and practical applications.