News
Latest EngBio CDT News
Journal Publication – A Decade of SBOL Visual: Growing Adoption of a Diagram Standard for Engineering Biology
We’re delighted to share that Felipe Xavier Buson, our cohort 1 student, has published a new journal article in ACS Synthetic Biology! 🎉
📝 A Decade of SBOL Visual: Growing Adoption of a Diagram Standard for Engineering Biology
In this publication, Felipe and co-authors looked back on ten years of SBOL Visual, a key standard for representing genetic design diagrams. First introduced in 2013, SBOL Visual has become an important tool for enabling clear, consistent, and reproducible communication in synthetic biology. The article explores how the standard has been adopted across ACS Synthetic Biology publications, highlights common compliance challenges and best practices, and looks ahead to how SBOL Visual can continue to evolve to meet the needs of the field over the next decade.
For Felipe, this work marks a significant step in a growing career in engineering biology standards:
“I will continue to work on standards for engineering biology, including SBOL and SBOL Visual, and apply them in my other work. The use of these standards is important for unambiguous communication and reproducibility during engineering practice.”
A huge congratulations to Felipe on this achievement – we’re excited to see what comes next! 🚀
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acssynbio.5c00417
Webinar for 2026 entry
Interested in applying to the Engineering Biology CDT? 🌟
Come and join us at our upcoming webinar! A perfect opportunity to learn more about the CDT and to ask questions about applying for 2026 entry.
🗓 Date: Friday 14th November
🕧 Time: 12:30 PM (GMT)
📍 Location: Online
During the session, EngBio CDT Directors Lucia (University of Bristol) and Bob (University of Oxford) will introduce the course and its training components. They’ll be followed by CDT Administrators Joanna (Bristol) and Emma (Oxford), who will guide you through the application process, before we open the floor for a live Q&A.
Jack Dalton wins poster prize at TechBio UK Conference
Congratulations to student Jack from Cohort 1 for winning Best Poster at the Future Talent Competition during the TechBio UK Conference, organised by the BioIndustry Association (BIA)! 🏆
Jack presented a fantastic poster showcasing his work, impressing both judges and attendees. It was also a great opportunity for Jack to make meaningful connections with biomanufacturing companies, VCs, and consultants.
Well done Jack! 🥳
James Bridson wins poster prize at the 16th European Nitrogen Fixation Conference
Congratulations to James Bridson (Cohort 1) for winning a poster prize at the 16th European Nitrogen Fixation Conference on 26th August 2025!
James presented his research and engaged with a wide range of researchers and industry representatives. Reflecting on the experience, he said: “I got some really constructive feedback from researchers and industry representatives about the challenges of my work, the major roadblocks to implementation of this science in the field, as well as potential future directions, which has all been very valuable as I move forward and define the direction of my DPhil project.”
Well done, James! We’re excited to see where your project goes next!
Welcoming Cohort 2 Students!
On Monday 15th September, cohort 2 students arrived in Bristol for their first of two Welcome Weeks. After their Welcome Week in Bristol, students moved over to Oxford for their second Welcome Week. Each week is aimed to settle students in, organise access to various university buildings, and meeting new researchers.
Summer School, June 2025
From Monday 23rd to Wednesday 25th June, the first EngBio CDT Summer School took place at Bristol’s Engine Shed.
Training Day, Wednesday 11th June
On Wednesday 11th June, the CDT students came together in Oxford for a training day.
International Day for Biological Diversity
Biological diversity underpins our whole world. We caught up with Jack, one of our CDT students based in Oxford and asked him what he was currently researching and why he was interested in Biological Diversity
Cohort 1 Begins Their Short Research Project 2
After having a well-earnt break, Cohort 1 will be starting their second short research project this week.
Cohort 1 Begins Their Short Research Project 1
On Monday 17th February 2025, students began their first of two individual short research projects. These projects are 11 weeks long, giving students the opportunity to work with a supervisor to develop their ideas.
EPSRC & BBSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Engineering Biology (EngBio CDT)
University of Bristol
School of Engineering Mathematics and Technology
Tankard’s Close
Bristol, BS8 1TW
University of Oxford
Department of Engineering Science, Botnar Research Centre, Old Road, Headington, Oxford, OX3 7LD
