The new cohort, selected through the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council’s (BBSRC) Fellowships scheme, will undertake pioneering discovery research across a wide range of biological sciences.
This includes a host of novel projects, from exploring how mitochondria orchestrate immune responses to decoding the molecular mechanisms of silk secretion for next-generation biomaterials.
BBSRC’s Fellowships scheme supports early-stage researchers in making the transition to fully independent research leadership.
Fellows conduct their own investigator-led research within host laboratories at some of the UK’s leading universities and research institutes.
Advancing knowledge
Advancing knowledge, or generating new understanding that underpins future innovation and societal benefit, is central to UK Research and Innovation’s mission and this cohort embodies that ambition.
The research projects being supported span BBSRC’s full scientific remit, tackling fundamental questions in cell biology, genetics, neuroscience, microbiology, plant science and beyond.
Shaping future leaders
Professor Anne Ferguson-Smith, BBSRC Executive Chair, said:
Through these projects, many of which offer significant potential for future application in areas ranging from neuroscience and engineering biology to artificial intelligence and pathogen detection, BBSRC is supporting cutting-edge research that addresses some of the most important questions in modern bioscience.
By investing in talented individuals at this pivotal stage of their careers, we are also nurturing independent research leaders whose ideas and innovations will shape our understanding of the living world for decades to come.
The 21 Fellows
Neuroscience
Alexandra Fletcher-Jones, University of Bristol
Project: investigating the therapeutic potential of CB1R trafficking
Tanja Fuchsberger, University of Cambridge
Project: the role of cholinergic modulation on hippocampal protein synthesis dynamics in vivo
Deyana Ivanova, King’s College London
Project: decoding mini-puberty: unravelling the brain’s role in early development
Olivia Pedroncini, The Francis Crick Institute
Project: odour representation in foraging mice
Cell and molecular biology
Ennio d’Amico, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology
Project: suppression and activation: mechanisms of motor rewiring during cell division
Adam Jalal, Imperial College London
Project: coordinating chromatin remodelling with DNA methylation
Bianca Pierattini, University of Cambridge
Project: RNA structure-function mapping in cells through synthetic and multimodal approaches
David Willnow, The Francis Crick Institute
Project: glycosaminoglycan-mediated transport and action of Wnts: from biophysical principles to developmental outcomes
Jason Woodgate, Newcastle University
Project: ribosome inhibition through tRNA interference
Immunology and host-pathogen biology
Jack Collier, King’s College London
Project: how mitochondria orchestrate innate immune responses
Elizabeth Ledger, University of Birmingham
Project: characterising the staphylococcal cell surface under host-mimicking conditions
Robert Mason, University of York
Project: cell type specific and spatial gene regulation in early plant-pathogen interactions
Ben Raymond, The University of Manchester
Project: extracellular vesicles as carriers of apoptotic cargo: uncovering their role as pro-resolving factors secreted by macrophages after efferocytosis
Charlotte Thomas, The University of Edinburgh
Project: development of transformative diagnostic and therapeutic technologies for prion diseases: harnessing RT-QuIC for precision drug discovery
Engineering biology and biotechnology
Stefano Bettinazzi, University College London
Project: foe turned friend: uncovering the adaptive value of intra-individual mitochondrial genetic variation
Micaela Chacon, The University of Manchester
Project: beyond the binary question exploring microbial mixotrophy for carbon-efficient bioproduction
Anthony Devlin, Rosalind Franklin Institute
Project: deciphering complex carbohydrate structures localised in tissue niches
Pierce Mullen, University of St Andrews
Project: branching out: neuro-inspired energy efficiencies in artificial intelligence
Rafael Moreno Tortolero, University of Bristol
Project: decoding silk secretion for scalable biomaterials and precision polymers
Plant science and environmental biology
Charlene Dambire, University of Nottingham
Project: discovering the role of protease triggered protein function in Arabidopsis thaliana
Eva Jimenez Guri, University of Exeter
Project: an integrative analysis of the effects of microplastic leachates on marine embryos