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John Innes Centre researchers selected for bioscience innovation prize final
March 2010
Two research groups from the John Innes Centre have been shortlisted for the finals of a £20,000 national bioscience innovation prize, the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council's (BBSRC) Innovator of the Year Award.
One of the groups is Professor Ian Bancroft's group and the other is that of Dr Michael McArthur who has developed novel technologies to combat drug resistant bacterial infections, such as MRSA. A spin-out company from the JIC, Procarta Biosystems, is now taking this technology through to the marketplace.
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Clostridium difficile bacteriophage endolysin technology
January 2010
Sarum Biosciences Limited ("Sarum") and PBL, the UK technology management company, announced on 22nd February the signing of an exclusive worldwide licence agreement which enables Sarum to develop and exploit therapeutic and diagnostic applications of a bacteriophage endolysin protein for the treatment and detection of Clostridium difficile, a serious healthcare concern both within the UK and the rest of the world.
"Using bacterial endolysins has been of interest to IFR for many years in the food context," said Dr Arjan Narbad of the IFR, an institute of the BBSRC, which funded the study. "Now we have an endolysin that is active specifically against C. difficile we are looking forward to developing it into a potent weapon against this problem."
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Rock-breathing bacteria could generate electricity and clean up oil spills
December 2009
A discovery by scientists at the University of East Anglia could contribute to the development of systems that use domestic or agricultural waste to generate clean electricity.
The findings could be applied to help in the development of new microbe-based technologies such as fuel cells, or 'bio-batteries', powered by animal or human waste, and agents to clean up areas polluted by oil or uranium.
"This is an exciting advance in our understanding of bacterial processes in the Earth’s sub-surfaces," said Prof David Richardson, of UEA's School of Biological Sciences, who is leading the project. |
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Two heads better than one in new antibiotic method
December 2009
An antibiotic that binds to a well-established target in a novel and unexpected way could be the inspiration for designing new, more potent antibacterial drugs.
"A completely new way to beat bacteria is an exciting find at a time when resistance to existing antibiotics is growing," said Professor Tony Maxwell from the John Innes Centre, lead author on the research published in Science.
'A crystal structure of the bifunctional antibiotic, simocyclinone D8, bound to DNA gyrase' by M Edwards (JIC), R Flatman (JIC), L Mitchenall (JIC), C Stevenson (JIC), T Le (JIC), T Clarke (University of East Anglia), A McKay (University College London), H-P Fiedler (Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen), M Buttner (JIC), D Lawson (JIC) and A Maxwell (JIC) Science 4 December 2009: Vol. 326. no. 5958, pp. 1415 - 1418 DOI: 10.1126/science.1179123 |
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A sticky solution for identifying effective probiotics
November 2009
Scientists at the IFR and UEA have crystallised a protein that may help gut bacteria bind to the gastrointestinal tract. The protein could be used by probiotic producers to identify strains that are likely to be of real benefit to people.
"Probiotics need to interact with cells lining the gut to have a beneficial effect, and if they attach to surfaces in the gut they are more likely to stick around long enough to exert their activity," says Dr Nathalie Juge from the Institute of Food Research.
Mucus adhesion has been well studied for pathogenic bacteria, but precisely what enables commensal (our gut bacteria) bacteria to stick is not known. In a paper published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, IFR and UEA scientists have obtained the first crystal structure of a mucus-binding protein. |
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JIF Prize for Excellence in Science Communication
October 2009
At the Annual Science Meeting, Frank Oldfield (Chairman of the John Innes Foundation Trustees) presented the awards for the newly introduced JIF student prizes for Excellence in Science Communication to Jan Claesen, a graduate student in Prof. Mervyn Bibb's group, and Tilly Crumpton-Taylor a student in Alison Smith’s group in Metabolic Biology. |
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Microbes in Norwich Meeting - 27th November 2009
October 2009
The Microbes in Norwich Meeting is to take place on Friday 27th November, 9.45am - 5pm, at the John Innes Conference Centre. This full day event, presents a range of microbial research from across NRP with speakers from IFR, JIC, UEA and TSL. There will also be a poster session run during the coffee and lunch breaks.
Registration for this event is required.
Speakers confirmed are:
Saccha Luccini (IFR) Transcriptional control of environmentally-responsive genes in Salmonella
Ane Sesma (JIC) Unravelling post-transcriptional networks essential for fungal plant infection
Andy Johnston (UEA) The remarkable diversity of the genes, the pathways and the microbes that make the smell of the seas
Tony Maxwell (JIC) Simocyclinone: a "double-headed" antibiotic with a novel mode of action
Nick LeBrun (UEA) Making and breaking disulfide bonds in the cell envelope of Gram-positive bacteria
Mike Peck (IFR) Clostridium botulinum: biology of a dangerous pathogen
Martin Howard (JIC) How are low copy number plasmids segregated inbacteria?
Matt Hutchings (UEA) Ant pharming: a search for novel antifungals in an unusual niche
Jonathan Jones (SL) Using obligate pathogen effectors to investigate host resistance mechanisms
Register for this event. |
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JIC Runners-up in Young Microbiologist of the Year Competition
September 2009
Lucy Foulston and Jan Claesen, graduate students in Prof. Mervyn Bibb's group in Molecular Microbiology, were both recent contestants in the SGM's Young Microbiologist of the Year Competition in Edinburgh. They were chosen to present their research along with just four other finalists chosen from graduate students across the UK. Their talks on antibiotic biosynthesis were both very well received, with Lucy claiming third place in the competition. |
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Honorary Position for Molecular Microbiology Department Head
September 2009
Mervyn Bibb, Head of the Department of Molecular Microbiology at JIC, was recently appointed Honorary Professor at the Institute of Microbiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He was presented with his award by Professor Li Huang, Director General of the Institute of Microbiology, in a recent visit to Beijing. |
