Follow-up: 2nd Annual SYNSENSO Meeting and SynBio UK 2024 Conference
Last month, during the final week of November, the 2nd annual SYNSENSO meeting took place at Imperial College London (ICL). The doctoral candidates (DCs) presented updates on their projects to the network members, including Principal Investigators (PIs) and representatives of the network’s industrial partners. This was a unique opportunity to reconnect, showcase research progress, and receive feedback on the next steps of the projects.
Day 1: The annual meeting began with an introduction and welcome by Professor Karen Polizzi (ICL), followed by a network status update from Professor Heinz Koeppl (TuDa). A first round of DCs, including those from ICL and the industrial-based DCs, then presented their project updates. Following the presentations, feedback, and discussions, participants concluded the first day with a social dinner at an Indian restaurant.
Day 2: The second day primarily focussed on presentations from the remaining DCs. During a full day of presentations and feedback sessions, the lunch break provided an excellent opportunity to discuss the projects, exchange scientific ideas, and network with PIs and representatives.
To close the session, Professor Jason Hallett (ICL) gave a lecture titled “Wider Horizon,” which focussed on professional and industrial opportunities arising from academia. The lecture explored creating start-ups and spin-outs from academia, emphasising key factors to consider. This insightful talk clarified what the industry values and how to translate science into tangible products with defined markets.
The day concluded with a guided tour of the London Biofoundry at the White City campus, led by Dr Marko Storch, head of SynBio and Automation at the Biofoundry. Participants observed the entire Biofoundry workflow—from synthesising genes of interest to characterisation within the same facility, the Biofoundry’s central principle. An especially exciting aspect was the automation of high-throughput experiments and screening, which is critical for rapid prototyping in biologically engineered systems. Dr Storch also demonstrated how cell-free experiments can be integrated into such an automated workflow, which was particularly relevant for the network. The day ended with socialising and dining at a British contemporary pub and dining room.
SYNSENSO Doctoral Candidates in London.
SynBio UK 2024 Conference: After the first two days, the DCs travelled to Cambridge to attend and participate in the SynBio UK 2024 conference. This event was a fantastic opportunity to network and showcase the DCs’ work at a synthetic biology conference.
SynBio UK is an annual conference held in the United Kingdom where PIs, researchers, and students working in synthetic biology gather to discuss advancements and outcomes in the field. Topics covered included synthetic cells, novel therapeutics, plant engineering, control systems, machine learning applications in synthetic biology, and protein and genome design.
This conference also provided an opportunity for some DCs to present their work to the SynBio community. DC1 Jérémie Marlhens presented a poster on his research into cell-free RNA-based logic circuits. Meanwhile, DC8 Jordy Lerma had the unique opportunity to deliver a talk during the control systems session. His presentation, titled “Rational Programming of DNA Transcriptional Timers in Cell-Free Systems,” highlighted his work on temporal control of in vitro transcription reactions using three different timers. He concluded by illustrating potential applications for such controllers as the next steps of his project.
The 2nd Annual SYNSENSO meeting was an excellent opportunity to foster scientific exchange, collaboration, and a strong sense of community among network members. The combination of project presentations, insightful feedback, industrial perspectives, and exposure to advanced technologies provided an invaluable experience for the DCs and all participants. We look forward to seeing how these projects evolve and to reconvening at next year’s meeting to celebrate further achievements and progress!