QMUL Centre for Molecular Cell Biology News

UK Annual Bioenergetics Conference

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0100

Location: Arts 2 Lecture Hall and Foyer Join us for the UK Christmas Bioenergetics Meeting on 15th December! Plenary Lecture: Redox Regulation of Photosynthetic Electron Transport by Anja Krieger (CEA, Sacley, France). Have a look at the preliminary programme to find out more. As usual, there is no registration fee. The event is sponsored by the Centre for Biodiversity and Sustainability and the Centre for Molecular Cell Biology at QMUL, as well as the Biochemical Society and PSI. Refreshments and lunch will be provided. To make sure that we order enough food and drink, we'd be grateful if you could fill in registration as soon as possible. Student members of the Biochemical society are welcome to apply for travel support . See you soon!

New Study Reveals Hidden Diversity in How Bacteria Respond to Antibiotics

Wed, 12 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0100

Researchers at the Centre for Molecular Cell Biology and Experimental and Applied Physics together with colleagues at the University of Edinburgh and Imperial College London have uncovered a new mechanism that helps bacteria survive antibiotic treatment. Published in Nature Communications, their research shows that RNA repair in E. coli not only enables survival of ribosome-targeting antibiotics but also creates differences in resistance between individual cells within a population. This discovery highlights the complexity of bacterial survival strategies and opens new avenues for tackling antibiotic resistance. Hindley, H.J., Gong, Z., Moradian, S. et al. Heterogeneity in responses to ribosome-targeting antibiotics mediated by bacterial RNA repair. Nat Commun 16, 9620 (2025). https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-64759-3.

The London Consortium for Cryo-EM (LonCEM) annual symposium

Tue, 02 Sep 2025 23:00:00 +0100

The London Consortium for Cryo-EM (LonCEM) annual symposium When: Wednesday 10th September 2025, from 12:00 - 18:45. Where: Graduate Centre, Mile End campus, QMUL. The programme will feature talks from industry showcasing the use of this technology, a keynote lecture, and presentations from consortium partner institutions, including QMUL. The day will conclude with a panel discussion on "Exploring the Future of Cryo-EM" with leading experts and industry representatives, followed by a networking session with a drinks reception. Registration is free and can be completed using the link below. https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/4th-london-consortium-for-cryo-em-loncem-symposium-tickets-1401633857599?aff=oddtdtcreator We look forward to seeing you at the event.

The Inaugural Symposium of the Centre for Molecular Cell Biology

Thu, 03 Jul 2025 23:00:00 +0100

This week the Centre for Molecular Cell Biology (CMCB), based in the School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences - Queen Mary, Queen Mary University of London held our Inaugural Symposium. We welcomed many guests from within and outside QMUL with a shared interest in understanding the rules of life using cell biology and structural biology across domains of life. Many thanks to our amazing keynote speakers: Prof. Xiaodong Zhang, FRS who took us on a fascinating structural journey into ATPase driven bacterial transcription initiation & Prof. Mark Leake who provided valuable insights into the biophysics of mesoscale bio-liquid droplets in bacteria. Our panelists - Dr Elena de Vita, Dr Caroline Roney, Dr Rosalind Hannen and Prof Angray Kang, engaged us with an exciting panel discussion on Engineering Biology for Cellular Adaptation in a Changing World chaired by Dr Peter Thorpe. We also enjoyed research talks from our Centre members representing various stages of career: Dr Vladimir Volkov, Ms Anum Kursheed, Dr Danylo Gorenkin, Dr Christoph Engl, Dr Moontaha Mahbub, Mr James Rayner, Dr Ivan Kadurin, Dr Natalia Bulgakova and Dr Charalampos Rallis. Our session chairs Dr Francesca Chandler, Dr Lin Su and Dr Vito Manella did a fantastic job keeping the sessions on time. Our heartfelt thanks to all our colleagues who attended and helped make this a dynamic, vibrant day. There were fantastic contributions from academics, postdocs, PhD students and our technical staff during poster sessions and discussions. Congratulations to our Poster prize winners: Dr Alessandro Agnarelli and Ms Charles Clarke. Especially grateful to our Head of School, Prof. Caroline Brennan and our Director of Research, Prof. Isabelle Mareschal for their continuous support and backing. Finally, special thanks to Dr Aravindan Ilangovan who organised this event with support from Dr John Viles, Dr Christoph Engl, Prof Conrad Mullineaux, Dr Mark Van Breugel and Dr Vidya Darbari.