Synthetic Cell-to-Cell Communication

Synthetic cells as immunotherapeutics to remodel the tumour microenviroment

Diseases generate microenvironments with differing physical, chemical, and biological properties compared to healthy tissues. In cancer, the tumour microenvironment (TME) promotes progression and therapy resistance of the most advanced therapeutics including ‘smart’ nanomedicines and engineered cell-based therapies. While nanomedicines are limited in tunability of function, cell-based therapies can be engineered to modify their microenvironments (e.g….

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A synthetic cell strategy to remodel the fibrotic disease microenvironment

Fibrosis is the pathological end-product of a tissue’s response to chronic damage/inflammation including cancer, thus can affect most organ systems and represents a major medical problem. It is defined by dramatic changes in tissue composition and organisation, often including local and global alignment of the extracellular matrix (ECM) that affects the tissue’s material properties and…

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Engineering Artificial Synaptic Cells for Next-Generation Brain-Computer Interfaces

Understanding how human neurons transition from axonal elongation to synaptic establishment is critical for modelling neurodegenerative diseases like ALS. This project combines Biomolecular Engineering (synthetic membrane channels and synaptogenic proteins) with Biomaterial Engineering (micropatterned growth substrates) to address the Programmable Microenvironments challenge area. We will engineer Artificial Synaptic Cells (ASCs) incorporating synthetic membrane channels and…

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Structure-function relationships of XNAzymes and XNA aptamers investigated by nanopore-enhanced native mass spectrometry

Engineered nucleic acids (xeno nucleic acids, XNAs) use chemical configurations not found in nature to extend their structural and functional scope, and are increasingly a source of novel nanostructures, -devices and drugs. In this project, you will study XNAs designed with specific enzymatic and high-affinity binding functionalities and elucidate structure-function relationships. You will develop and…

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De Novo Protein Design to Probe Neural Development

Receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are key regulators of neuronal development, controlling processes such as proliferation, differentiation, and migration. Despite their importance, the precise timing and spatial dynamics of RTK signalling remain poorly understood, partly due to limitations of genetic and pharmacological tools. This project will apply cutting-edge engineering biology approaches to design synthetic RTK agonists…

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Decoding and recoding cellular signalling by protein loop replacement

Cells communicate with each other via complex chains of signalling events in which individual post-translational modifications of one protein stimulate modification of the next protein in a chain. Individual proteins can be modified combinatorially leading to an exquisite variety to subtly different responses. Understanding and reengineering these responses requires us to understand how each combination…

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Saidul Islam

Our research seeks to uncover the chemical origins of life on early Earth. We aim to understand the prebiotic chemistries that occurred without enzyme catalysis, how they avoided chaotic mixtures and uncontrolled reactions from energetic molecules, and whether life’s core biological structures emerged because they were inherently favoured as soon as organic chemistry became possible…

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Riki Eggert

Lipids are essential to numerous cellular processes, yet are understudied. Lipids’ therapeutic potential has not been fully realised, partly due to poor understanding of their metabolism and functions. Our primary interest is to study the cell biology of lipids in processes including cell division, cell-cell interactions and organelle structure. We use lipidomics, imaging, chemical biology…

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Michael Webb

Research in the group is focussed on creating new methods to precisely engineer proteins. O These methods are then applied to challenges across engineering biology including precision formation of biopharmaceuticals such as antibody-drug conjugates and vaccines, and the reengineering of cells. Current major projects include IMProGlyco, an EIC-funded project, to reprogramme cellular glycosylation and ACROPATH,…

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Frank Sobott

Our research uses biophysical &analytical approaches to characterize supramolecular structure and biological assemblies, based on mass spectrometry (MS) and allied techniques. We develop structural MS methods for challenging questions such as structural heterogeneity, conformational dynamics and (self-)assembly, to gain unique insights into e.g. membrane protein/lipid &drug interactions, amyloid assembly and oligonucleotide higher-order structure.

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