Durham & Newcastle, May 26–27, 2026 - The Centre for Programmable Biological Matter held its annual Research Away Days across two fantastic venues, bringing together our PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, and PIs for two days of scientific exchange, robust discussion and professional development. Day 1: Research in Focus at Durham University The first day, hosted at…
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Earlier this year, members of the Centre for Programmable Biological Matter attended the annual Astbury Conversation conference in Leeds. Dr. Ting-Yu Lin and Prof Jonathan Heddle attended, alongside 2nd year CPBM PhD student Will Hall, who was awarded a travel grant from the Astbury Conversation organisers to attend this year’s conference. Will presented his research…
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At this year’s Department of Biosciences Postgraduate Conference and Away Day, the Centre for Programmable Biological Matter was well-represented, from posters to session chairs to research talks. CPBM post-doctoral research associate Dr Olivia Gittins delivered a talk on her research into using time-resolved cryo-EM to further our understanding of DNA gyrases. Sessions at the conference…
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In his recent trip to Japan, CPBM Director Prof Jonathan Heddle visited colleagues across several universities, to share ideas, opportunities for collaboration and the research taking place at the Centre for Programmable Biological Matter and Durham University. Over the course of the 7-day visit, Prof Heddle was hosted by researchers at Science Tokyo KEIO, Waseda…
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A new review article published in ACS Nano by a research team at the Durham’s Centre for Programmable Biological matter (CPBM) maps the rapidly advancing toolkit that could help scientists design and build artificial biological nanostructures — tiny systems made from the same kinds of molecules that constitute life itself. The review, “Tools For Building…
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The Centre for Programmable Biological Matter is proud to be hosting the first ever Biomeccano Protein Design Competition this summer. Aimed at PhD students studying in the Department of Biosciences at Durham University with an interest in biochemistry and computational design, the competition provides a unique learning opportunity. The Biomeccano Protein Design Competition will run for 16 weeks throughout Summer 2026, giving every student involved access…
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About the Conference We are holding our sixth biennial BIONANO Meeting at Durham University. BIONANO 2026 follows the previous highly successful meeting held at the Centre for Programmable Biological Matter in Durham in 2024. This year we will be meeting to discuss new ideas and share our progress in the latest research in designing, building and testing artificial biological nanomachines. This year’s conference will be held…
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Earlier this year, the group of researchers at the Centre for Programmable Biological Matter working on RNA attended the annual RNA UK conference hosted in Windermere. Dr. Ting-Yu Lin delivered a fantastic talk on the context-dependent effects of pseudouridylation on tRNA structural integrity and stability. CPBM PhD students Yasmin and Ethan, and our visiting student…
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During the last week of March, CPBM members had the privilege of taking part in Durham University’s annual Schools Science Festival. The festival invites groups of schoolchildren from across Durham and the wider region to take part in interactive activities explaining the research conducted by scientists at the university. Over the three days, this year’s…
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Everyone at the CPBM is very pleased to share that we have been awarded a platinum certification from My Green Lab for our efforts to be as sustainable as possible! My Green Lab is the industry’s most widely recognized lab sustainability certification program, and platinum is the second-highest degree of certification. My Green Lab measures sustainability for labs across 14 different categories, taking…
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