Join us Feb. 26 at Imperial! 🧬 PromoterAtlas: decoding regulatory sequences across Gammaproteobacteria using a transformer model Lucas Coppens (Biofoundry) 🌾 Resurrecting plant defence mechanisms to avoid crop pathogens Imogen Binnian (Resurrect Bio) tinyurl.com/2d52z38h

How could a simple self-replicating system emerge at the origins of life? RNA polymerase ribozymes can replicate RNA, but existing ones are so large that their self-replication seems impossible. Could they be smaller? Excited to share our latest work in @science.org on a new small polymerase. 1/n

Join us in our crusade to make materials sustainable! We are recruiting a PhD student (home fees) to work on an exciting project to decarbonise the nylon industry and create new biodegradable materials. Info on how to apply here: www.imperial.ac.uk/school-of-co... (deadline 27th of February!)

Reposting this paper now with a working link! 😅 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Feel like doing a SynBio PhD in Spain? Check this offer, many fellowships available 👉🏻 lifehub.csic.es/synbio-cofund/

"Are you not worried that engineered microbes can be released into the environment and eat all the plastic?" The answer is not really. Pleased to share our latest piece addressing this question by evaluating the current status of whole-cell plastic degradation: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

What happens when you suddenly remove half of an essential enzyme from cells? 🤔 We watched in real-time as cells deploy multiple backup strategies to buffer against changes in RNA Pol II abundance. Our lab's new preprint 👇 bit.ly/4pyPgax

#CIBpapers Researchers at the @cib-csic.bsky.social present a new bacterium capable of transforming plastic waste into high-value bioproducts More info 🔗https://cib.csic.es/news/research/researchers-cib-margarita-salas-present-new-bacterium-capable-transforming-plastic

New year resolution: develop the strength and technique to do ONE bloody muscle-up. Not a lot to ask. That at the back is the Bay of Cadiz. Not a bad place to start 2026. Happy New Year!!

Really happy to see this paper out. It looks like Santa had us on the nice list!! Congrats to all authors, it's been such a joy to be involved!

Manchester Institute of Biotechnology is looking for a new Professor. There are a few priority areas including microbial engineering (broadly defined, from pathways to cells to microbiomes). Closing 12 Jan. Join us in the best city in the UK 😜 www.jobs.manchester.ac.uk/Job/JobDetai...

So you think your mammalian plasmids have nothing to fear from cloning and propagation in E.coli? Quantitative profiling of millions of nucleotides by Tom Copeman will prove you wrong! Supervised with the amazing @proftomellis.bsky.social and AZ, now on BioRxiv: doi.org/10.64898/202...

- Using novel genomic tools to understand the evolution of Acinetobacter baumannii pathogenicity in clinical environments Supervisors: David Grainger, Katie Hopkins, Jessica Blair, Willem van Schaik www.findaphd.com/phds/project... (4/7)

As the year comes close to an end, just wanted to thank all team members for making my everyday better. Really proud of this talented and selfless group of scientists!!

We're advertising for a bacteriology technician and a post-doc to work on AI-guided antibiotic development as part of a large multidisciplinary Fleming Initiative project: www.imperial.ac.uk/jobs/search-... www.imperial.ac.uk/jobs/search-...

Our paper is out! Analysis of 30K+ genomes revealed that CPR bacteria assemble their ribosomes in unconventional ways, and that these assembly processes appear to have co-evolved with ribosome structure. doi.org/10.1093/molb... #Ribosome #Evolution #Patescibacteria #MBE

Just found this definition in the gov.uk webpage that thought might be useful for some. Btw, someone between 14 and 18 years old is sometimes called a Young Person, but is still legally a child.

The scariest thing I have seen this Halloween

The Wallace Lab is expanding in 2026, with five new Postdoctoral Research Associate positions now open. If you're passionate about engineering biology for sustainability, we'd love to hear from you! 🧬 ♻️ Deadline: 12th November 2025, details below ⬇️

1 week left to apply for a postdoctoral position in my group to lead the experimental component of a 5 year BBSRC project on synthetic microbial communities www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/...

Oct. 23, 6pm at UCL 🥳! Excited for: 🧬 Dirk Benzinger (Briscoe Lab) Dissecting and engineering cellular signal processing with synthetic biology and optogenetics 🌍 Brooke Wain (Jimenez Lab) Biocatalytic recycling of plastic: industrial viability and limitations events.humanitix.com/london-synbi...

This is how Castilla La Mancha will conquer the world: blending tradition and empathy. I'd recommend all world leaders to complete a couple of grape harvests (vendimia) to develop thoughtful leadership. Great mix of cardio and strength exercise too! www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...

New preprint this time through a fantastic collaboration with @jorgebarriuso.bsky.social and team. We have discovered the genetic basis behind the remarkable ability of Pseudomonas putida JM37 to use the PET #plastic monomer ethylene glycol as a growth substrate! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Metabolic interplay drives population cycles in a cross-feeding microbial community @natcomms.nature.com from @oventurelli2.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Independent research fellowships leading to tenured positions at the John Innes Centre. Repost = nice. Thank you very much!!!

Mapping the evolution of computationally designed protein binders [new] Evolve comp. mini-protein binders *in vivo*. Maps seq-affinity.

PhD positions available in our group! Please share! www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

Microbial stem cells support productivity in dedicated factory cells in an asymmetrically dividing E. coli system doi.org/10.1101/2025...

Preprint alert!! Delighted to share Eve Nery's work exploring the evolutionary landscape of light-harvesting complexes. She found a new variant shifted to the red that allows purple bacteria to grow faster under high intensity light www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Genetic controllers for enhancing the evolutionary longevity of synthetic gene circuits in bacteria doi.org/10.1038/s414...

I am looking for a motivated #Postdoctoral #Researcher to join my group at Imperial @imperialcollegeldn.bsky.social @imperiallifesci.bsky.social. The project focuses on #Antimicrobial #Materials & #Biomimetic #Interfaces Please repost! @imperialsci.bsky.social www.imperial.ac.uk/jobs/search-...

A bit of an awkward request but hoping that someone can help. We are desperately looking for a vial of CHO-S cells that we could use. Ideally in the London area. Thanks!

Ok, to be precise (thanks @marcsdionne.bsky.social), they are considering implementing triage

BBSRC to implement triage of proposals pre-panel and rolling deadlines to reduce assessment burden. Interesting times ahead!

Please re-post: Interested in chromatin and its evolution? Good news! There's still time to join us in beautiful Catalonia (9-12 Dec) to discuss eukaryotic, bacterial, archaeal, and viral chromatin and how it all hangs together meetings.embo.org/event/24-evo... Abstract deadline: 30 September

Slightly diminish a band: Joy Subtraction

I am excited to announce that the position of a senior postdoc (3 +3 years) in the field of theoretical biology is available in my group. The position provides the opportunity to closely interact with experimentalists and develop own research projects. Please RT. Details 👇: shorturl.at/iiiOv

Excited to be at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) for the first time to present at the Life Sciences Students Symposium. Such impressive venue. No pressure!

Appealing to the wisdom of the crowd: Let's say molecule X produced by microbe Y is used as an 'organic' fertiliser. If molecule X is produced recombinantly in microbe Z, purified and used as a fertiliser, could this process receive 'organic certification'?

The best part of my job is spending my days with this wonderful group of very talented people! @imperialcollegeldn.bsky.social @imperiallifesci.bsky.social

We're hiring for 2 postdocs to work in our lab in London on the newly announced Wellcome Trust SynHG project. If you know people looking to work on big-scale ambitious science like this, please RT and share this with them. Apply by 7/20, interviews in Aug. imperial.ac.uk/jobs/search-...

#OliviaRodrigo just won a few die hard fans at home. #TheCure #Glastonbury

An island of strang... wait!

Reposting this advert. Only a few days left to apply to this position. Come join us!!

Question for the Pseudomonas putida aficionados. Is there an application of P. putida different from PHA biosynthesis being used at an industrial scale? Maybe muconate production? If so, does it involve recombinant protein production from plasmids? @vdlorenzo.bsky.social @pabnik.bsky.social

Delighted to share good news after a long embargo! We'll be part of C-Loop an EPSRC Bio-manufacturing Hub focusing on making value out of waste!! Looking forward to this project led by Stephen Wallace at Edinburgh #circulareconomy @imperiallifesci.bsky.social www.ukri.org/news/new-res...

"Breathe it in" by Sarah Jane Brown, contemporary Welsh land and seascape painter #WomensArt

And yet another publication, this time showcasing Harman Mehta's PhD project investigating artificial labour division in biosynthetic pathways in collaboration with Rodrigo Ledesma and @gbstan.bsky.social @imperiallifesci.bsky.social pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

Hot from the oven!! New publication joining forces with Leo Rios' group at @UCL reviewing the potential of Halomonas for #synbio @imperialcollegeldn.bsky.social @imperiallifesci.bsky.social microbialcellfactories.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....