News 2019

A symposium ‘From DNA to RNA synthesis, Processing and Cancer’ took place to mark the retirement of Jean Beggs Professor of Molecular Biology in the Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology.

Red deer on a Scottish island are providing scientists with some of the first evidence that wild animals are evolving to give birth earlier in the year as the climate warms.

The School of Biological Sciences has been awarded funding for an innovative science PhD programme by a UK research council.

Rising night-time temperatures are causing woodland birds to build nests and lay eggs earlier in springtime, research shows.

Scientists have revealed how a key component required for healthy cell division, called the centromere, is passed on from one generation of cells to the next.

Staff from the SynthSys Centre for Synthetic and Systems Biology and the School of Biological Sciences hosted two Foundation Apprentices during the summer.

Stephen Wallace, a Lecturer in Biotechnology, is the recipient of a UK government fellowship that supports early career researchers and innovators with outstanding potential.

It is well established that weakened immune systems in old age affect people’s health and fitness, but a study suggests that it is also an issue for wild animals.

The School of Biological Sciences has been awarded funding for two innovative science PhD programmes by a leading research charity.

Heather McQueen, Professor of Biology Education and Associate Director of Teaching for Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in the School of Biological Sciences, is the winner of an Advance HE National Teaching Fellowship (NTF).

Bacteria could be used to produce large quantities of medicines and fuels using a new gene programming technique, research suggests.

Edinburgh Infectious Diseases is delighted to announce that the 2019 Ker Memorial Prize has been awarded to Dr Billy Palmer from the School of Biological Sciences.

A new network has been launched to bring together the world’s leading biofoundries to drive forward synthetic biology research.

A discovery of how stem cells are protected from viruses could inform the development of therapies for use in medicine, research suggests.

Photos of the July 2019 Graduation presentation and reception.

New findings about a fatal form of blood cancer could aid the development of new drugs with significantly less harmful side effects than existing chemotherapy.

On World Malaria Day 2019, a new resource is available for malaria researchers - the Guide to Malaria Pharmacology has been developed in Edinburgh to facilitate identification of new drugs to combat the disease.

Here we highlight some of the groundbreaking researchers, based in the School of Biological Sciences, who are tackling malaria.

An animal’s choice of mate can be influenced by its diet as it reaches sexual maturity, research has shown.

Applications are now open for 2019 entry to the Centre’s four-year training programme at the computational/life science interface.

A smartphone-compatible biosensor could help millions of people avoid drinking water contaminated by arsenic.

Striking traits seen only in males of some species – such as colourful peacock feathers or butterfly wings – are partly explained by gene behaviour, research suggests.

Scientists have shed light on how healthy cells develop by identifying the role of key molecules involved.

Lucas Frungillo, a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences, is the recipient of a BBSRC Discovery fellowship

School of Biological Sciences researchers and biotech firm Scot Bio have won a prestigious Scottish Life Sciences Award for their pioneering collaboration on natural blue colourants.

Efforts to monitor the spread of antibiotic resistance worldwide could be transformed with a map created using data from analysis of sewage samples.

Sarah Reece, Chair of Evolutionary Parasitology, and Donal O’Carroll, Professor of Stem Cell Biology have been elected to join the Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE).

DNA has long been in the spotlight. Faulty genes are responsible for diseases that continue to evade the best that medicine can throw at them. But less attention is paid to problems with its final products, the proteins that are produced in huge numbers after genetic instructions are read and acted on.

When protein production goes wrong, the consequences can be as devastating as faulty genes. To tackle this our cells have a sophisticated quality control process that kicks into action to clear up the mess. Yet we know little about how this works. The answers not only offer insights into one of the most fundamental processes of life, but could help to reveal the connections with a growing list of diseases.

Gardens and allotments in towns and cities are a haven for insects that help plants to flourish, research has shown