iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

We caught up with Gil in Cohort 1, regarding a poster he presented at the European Meeting on Complement in Human Diseases in Cardiff. Gil attended with The Sharp lab alongside many other European researchers working on complement, part of the innate immune system.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

This week’s been an exciting one as we’ve welcomed our third cohort of Engineering Biology students! ✨ We have another brilliant group of students on the programme and we’re looking forward to supporting their EngBio research journeys.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

A new academic year is about to begin for the Engineering Biology CDT! Cohort 1 is heading into year two, Cohort 2 is starting their DPhils/PhDs, and Cohort 3 joins us in Bristol next week. Here’s to another year of ambitious research, collaboration and discovery!

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Earlier in the year, Cohort 1's Yige Chen attended the 9th IEEE International Conference on #SoftRobotics RoboSoft 2026 in Kanazawa, Japan. Yige presented her research group's paper and poster on 3D-Printed Highly Entangled Hydrogels for Strong, Fast, and Fatigue-resistant Soft Hydraulic Actuators.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

🚨NEW OPPORTUNITY We are looking to recruit a Research Associate/Senior Research Associate in Intracellular Transport and Protein Design at University of Bristol. The project will involve engineering proteins to control intracellular transport, combining protein design, biophysics and cell biology.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

Congratulations are in order for Cohort 2’s Laila-Marie Latin Vicente who was recently awarded the People’s Choice Poster Prize at a University of Bristol EngBio Early Career Researchers’ Symposium. 👏

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

We’re getting ready to welcome the next cohort of students to the EngBio CDT! 🎉 In just over a month, we’ll be welcoming our third cohort onto the course. We’ll kick things off with a week in Bristol, followed by an induction week in Oxford, before the foundation courses in Maths and Biology begin.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Recently we caught up with Cohort 2’s Alfie Wingfield who is wrapping up his second rotation in Oxford, using a multi-stress reporter strain of E. coli to investigate how microbial cell factories respond to chemical stresses found in industrial bioreactors (1/2)

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

Congratulations to Cohort 2’s Marjorie Watts who won the Best Poster Award at ECMTB 2026 (European Conference on Mathematical and Theoretical Biology) in Austria earlier this month. 👏

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

Our Cohort 1 student Robin Henry's US conference trip didn't stop at SEED! Robin also presented his research at the International Workshop on Bio-Design Automation (IWBDA), where he shared a talk on Myriad, his GPU-accelerated platform for closed-loop single-cell experiments.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

In June Cohort 1 student, Robin Henry, attended the Synthetic Biology: Engineering, Evolution, & Design (SEED) conference at the Colorado Convention Centre in Denver. SEED is the world's largest academic synthetic biology conference. This year's programme covered everything from cell-free systems

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

This week, we welcomed Saif Ur-Rehman to Bristol. Saif talked about the data foundations behind biological foundation models and about the lab-in-the-loop platform they are building at Outpost Bio to predict how the gut microbiome shapes drug response.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

A few weeks ago, cohort 2 student Aoife attended London Protein Design Day at Imperial College London. The conference showcased new research, platforming master’s students to principal investigators working in immunoinformatics, generative model development, and enzyme and biosensor engineering.

A picture of presentation slides at the London Protein Design Day

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

This week, we caught up with Maria Tasca from Cohort 1 in Bristol, to learn about the Data Hazards workshop she ran at the AIBIO conference in Aberdeen. ⚠️ Maria introduced the concept of hazard labels for data science; what they are, how they are used, and their importance in data science projects.

A picture of Maria Tasca presenting the Data Hazards workshop

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Congratulations to Cohort 2 student Alfie Wingfield, who has spent the last few months co-organising a conference on process scale-up in biology and chemistry, one of very few events of its kind in the UK. Bringing together speakers from academia and industry, the event explored the challenges...

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

Congratulations to Robin Henry on being a co-author of a paper published in Nature earlier this year! As part of his 2nd project supervised by Harrison Steel, Robin contributed to sample preparation, microscopy experiments, & data analysis, earning fourth authorship on this exciting publication.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

In the first year, EngBio CDT students work on two 11-week projects.These projects are inter-disciplinary & aligned with the four major Engineering Biology research areas: -Robust methods for bioengineering -Rational biomolecular & biosystems design -Evolution-guided biodesign -Digital cells & AI

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

Earlier this week, we were delighted to welcome Rob Nunan from IQVIA Laboratories to Bristol. Rob delivered a seminar reflecting on his career journey - from PhD studies and postdoc research to roles within industry - providing advice about the challenges and opportunities along the way.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

As part of their Innovation training, last Friday, Cohort 2 took part in a ‘Pitch and Presentation’ session led by Dave Jarman, @bristoluni.bsky.social Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Last week, the EngBio CDT attended the Festival of Nature in Bristol as part of their RRI training. Working with the Bristol Children's Scrapstore, they created interactive displays to educate the public about Engineering Biology and its potential place in nature and society.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

2026’s EngBio CDT Summer School has come to a close! A huge thank you to all involved in making this year’s Summer School possible. From speakers to session leads, from students to organisers, it’s been a pleasure to host everyone and participate in such an enjoyable and inspiring few days.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

It’s the last day of our EngBio Summer School! We’re starting this am with a workshop from Dr. Katy R Mahoney exploring strategies & techniques to reduce that familiar feeling of imposter syndrome. Then we’ll look at how to get our point across & communicate effectively in different PhD settings.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

We’ve been joined by Julie Castleman from the The Charlie Waller Trust to explore how we can protect our wellbeing in an often demanding and challenging research world. We’ve been exploring how to identify our personal stressors, the coping strategies we can use, and who to lean on for help.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

Day 2 of the EngBio CDT Summer School has commenced! This morning, we’re thrilled to welcome our very own Jack Dalton and Vivenne Kuh who are leading a session on Responsible Research in Practice: tackling biosecurity challenges.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Over lunch, our Cohort 2 students showcased their recent short projects through poster sessions and this afternoon, we continued our programme of inspiring Engineering Biology talks:

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

We’ve had a brilliant morning at our second CDT Summer School with talks from guest speakers and our students. We welcomed Joshua Rees-Garbutt, who shared his journey from PhD to launching an EngBio startup, offering valuable tips for entrepreneurship in the sector.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

We’re excited to kick off our annual Summer School this week at St Cross College in Oxford. Over the next three days, we’ll be bringing together a fantastic community of EngBio enthusiasts for a programme of talks, discussions, and training.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Meet our student representatives!👋 Our student reps have an important role in positively influencing the student experience in the EngBio CDT, by speaking with their fellow cohorts and providing feedback to the CDT team. We would like to thank our student reps for all of their hard work! 🌟

A picture of the Engineering Biology CDT student representatives, with text reading "Meet our EngBio CDT reps".

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

We caught up with Jack Dalton, a Cohort 1 student at @ox.ac.uk about his work in the Steel Lab: using automated evolution machines + AI co-scientists to steer bacterial evolution faster and more predictably for biomanufacturing, food, drugs, and even future space applications.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

Cohort 2 attended RRI training last week at Belmont Estate. BE’s mission focuses on environmental restoration, sustainable food production, climate action & reconnecting people with nature. Our students took time to consider how their research impacts nature & how we can all become better ancestors.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Yesterday, the EngBio CDT's cohort 2 students finished their first short research project! Well done everyone for submitting your posters!🎉

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

This morning, Oxford celebrated May Morning 🌅 Oxford's May Morning celebrations date back more than 500 years. The tradition sees thousands of people gather along the High Street and Magdalen Bridge at 6am on 1st May to hear Magdalen College Choir herald the arrival of spring 🌿

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

Reminder: The deadline for this exciting Lecturer in Engineering Biology role at University of Bristol is this Sunday 26th April More information 👇

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

In March, student Marj Watts attended the British Applied Maths Colloquium (BAMC) at the University of East Anglia. Marj presented her masters dissertation via a poster. The poster was on modelling heterogeneous cell migration of chemotactic cells that generate the chemotactic gradient locally

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

In December, Robin Henry attended the CDC conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil! A fantastic opportunity to engage with leading researchers and explore cutting-edge developments in control theory and its applications. Robin said: I mostly attended talks from the "Control theory and Methods for...

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

🚨 New opportunity! 🚨 We’re looking to recruit a Lecturer in Engineering Biology at the University of Bristol Faculty of Science and Engineering. This is an exciting opportunity to join a vibrant, interdisciplinary research environment at a time of significant institutional investment and growth.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 25/03/2026

The latest Innovation Training session for our Cohort 2 students focused on Market Research and how to build something people actually want. On Monday, students explored different aspects such as research design and methodologies, and how to gather and analyse information on customer needs,...

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

Last week, Kerstin participated in a panel discussion at the Advanced Therapies Congress, exploring what skills we need to efficiently deliver impactful therapeutics and diagnostics in the advanced therapy space.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

In February, Alfie in Cohort 2 co-organised the Scale-Up Workshop! This was an interdisciplinary event, featuring a wide range of expert guest speakers, focused on challenges faced in process scale-up, which is a crucial step in bringing process innovations out of the lab. Alfie reflected;

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

Last Friday, our Cohort 2 students participated in a Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI). Here's Belinda's reflections: This Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) session was focused on prototyping several ideas for our exhibition in Bristol's Festival of Nature in June. We started the...

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

Yesterday was International Women’s Day (8th March). Women continue to be underrepresented in scientific research worldwide. In 2022, just 31.1% of researchers were women, highlighting persistent gender gaps in the field.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

Yesterday was World Engineering Day for Sustainable Development 🌍 At the Engineering Biology CDT at Oxford, students explore a wide range of topics during their first year through short interdisciplinary research projects before developing one into their main PhD/DPhil.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

In February, Bristol held their annual Light Festival which showcases the city’s vibrancy and creativity. Just another reason why we love being in Bristol! Our CDT manager, Joanna, took this photo when visiting the balloon installation last week. 🎈

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

Last Friday, students from all cohorts met in Oxford for training with Jean-Baptiste Lugagne on managing and documenting computational projects This was followed by a session on seminars and the summer school, then a social! Some headed to Junkyard Golf and others to Thirsty Meeples (board games)

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

Tomorrow is International Mother Language Day (21st Feb)! 🗺️https://lnkd.in/fwpdtSE Our staff and students speak so many different languages. Take a look at the video below of our students last year talking about their research ⬇️

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

Happy Friday from the EngBio CDT! 👋 Cohort 2 students are in the midst of their 4-week group innovation projects. We caught up with Oxford student Max, to hear about his project, which revolves around the testing of collagen-based materials for wound healing.

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

Our next student-led seminar is coming up! Organised by James Bridson (Oxford) & Sam Kemery (Bristol), we’re excited to welcome Assistant Professor Jennifer Brophy as our speaker. Jenn is a plant synthetic biologist at Stanford University. The lab's work explores how the form of a plant affects...

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Reposted by EngBio CDT

LondonSynbioNetwork @londonsynbio.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

Happy New Year! Join us Jan. 29 at UCL 🌟 🦠 Breaking Bud: There and Back Again — A Scientist’s Journey in Engineering Living Systems Jason Yu (Bezos Center Sust. Protein) 🌱 Using synbio and pathway engineering to decode plant terpene biosynthesis Edith Forestier (Imperial) tinyurl.com/4dw57vnv

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London SynBio Network 13

London SynBio afterwork talks and networking event on Thursday 29th of January

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

The Bristol deadline for the EngBio CDT is nearly upon us! Don't forget to submit your application on 13th January. To complete your application, visit the University of Bristol website: www.bristol.ac.uk/study/postgr...

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EngBio CDT @engbiocdt.bsky.social · 05/01/2026

Happy new year! 🥳 We hope you have a great 2026! As the festive season draws to a close, why not send in that application to the EngBio CDT?! As a reminder: ◾University of Oxford deadline: 8th January 2026, midday UK time ◾University of Bristol deadline: 13th January 2026, 23:59 UK time

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Engineering Biology (EPSRC and BBSRC CDT) | University of Oxford

About the courseThe Engineering Biology CDT is a research-based course combining synthetic biology, engineering, and computing to develop real-world biotechnological solutions, with training in

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