The symbol of the contemporary Czech state, the last Czechoslovak and the first Czech president Václav Havel died on December 18, 2011. He first came to international fame as a dissident playwright in the 1970s through his involvement with the human rights manifesto Charter 77. He was prosecuted for his stances and spent many years in prison. Not only thousands of Czechs gathered on Novemeber 23, 2011 for the funeral for Václav Havel, but also leaders from across Europe and around the world joined to mourn Mr. Havel at the St. Vitus Cathedral at the Prague Castle. Academic bulletin features personal memories of Václav Havel by Honorary President of the ASCR Rudolf Zahradník, former President of the ASCR Helena Illnerová and the Czech philosopher Jan Sokol. and Rudolf Zahradník.
The European Molecular Biology Organization organized a meeting in Prague October 1-3. At this symposium several topics were discussed: biology and genetics of mitochondria in relation to cancer; the role of mitochondria-targeting compounds in cancer suppression (including BH3 mimetics); mitochondria as transmitters of death receptor-induced apoptosis; regulation of apoptosis and the interplay of mitochondria with other organelles p53 and mitochondria in apoptosis regulation; and the role of mitochondria in targeting cancer stem cells. and Jiří Neužil, Ladislav Anděra a Alois Kozubík.