10 years at UoB today. The best thing I have ever done career wise. And now just 3 more weeks until the next (and definitely final) big move to @manchester.ac.uk and the amazing @mermanchester.bsky.social as Chair of Microbial genomics
MERMan Research Group (University of Manchester)
@mermanchester.bsky.social
Microbial Evolution Research at The University of Manchester https://sites.manchester.ac.uk/merman/
Just over a month to go for our Microbiology Spotlight event! We can’t wait to bring researchers across @manchester.ac.uk working with microbes together 🧫🦠🔬 Watch your emails for your talk nominations, and remember to submit your research photo for a chance to win some exciting prizes 🏆
Our speakers for our final session from Manchester #meehubs26 #meehubs2026
And our final speaker of the session is Kaitlin Schaal (Liverpool): "Modeling and experimental approaches allow us to parse drivers of community responses to environmental change" #meehubs26 #meehubs2026
Melissa Lawson (Manchester): "Decoding Lung Microbial Interactions: Harnessing a High-Throughput Fly Model to Reveal Pathogen- Microbe Virulence Dynamics in the Lung Environment" #meehubs26 #meehubs2026
Next we have Oliver Meacock (Sheffield): "When cooperation isn't cooperative: resolving the paradox of stable mutualisms in microbial ecosystems" #meehubs26 #meehubs2026
💡If you want to read more about our intitiatives, you can find more details here: www.smbe.org/idea-initiat... 📑 If you want to read about some of the incredible projects we have helped support, you can find them here: www.smbe.org/idea-initiat... ❓Feel free to contact us if you have any queries!
IDEA Initiatives
The Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution (SMBE) is committed to dismantling systemic racism, sexism, colonialism, and all forms of exclusion within our field. Through our IDEA (Inclusion, Diver...
smbe.org
Manchester kicking off today's MEEHubs with keynote speaker Professor Sarah Coulthurst (Dundee): "The bacterial Type VI secretion system – a versatile antimicrobial weapon" #meehubs26 #meehubs2026
🚨 SMBE IDEA 2027 - Call for proposals! Take your chance! ✨ More info at @smbe-idea.bsky.social 👈 #AcademicSky @official-smbe.bsky.social
SMBE IDEA taskforce@smbe-idea.bsky.social · 2mo ago🌍✨ SMBE IDEA 2027 – call for proposals! We have funding to support initiatives tackling inequalities in molecular biology and evolution. Check our websites for previously funded projects, funding details, and the application form: www.smbe.org/idea-initiat... 📅 Deadline: Oct 5, 2026
MEEHubs2026 is underway! We had a great start in the first two sessions with Zurich and Manchester hosting some excellent talks! It's not too late to join us virtually via last-minute registration: meehubs.org #MEEHubs2026
Thanks all for the morning. Looking forward to the afternoon with Chernihiv, Morelia and Montreal! #meehubs26
Finally, we have Sadhbh Dodd from Trinity College Dublin: "Intraspecific variation is key for predicting the outcome of bacterial species interactions in the cystic fibrosis lung" #meehubs26
Our next speaker this morning is down the drain, Greg McCallum from University of Liverpool: "The hospital sink drain microbiome: a melting pot for antimicrobial resistance plasmids" #Meehubs26
Next we return to the ocean with Dr Gretel Waugh: "A metagenomic framework for marine microbial ecotoxicology"
First up in Manchester is our first plenary speaker, Professor Stineke van Houte: "Understanding the role of bacterial anti-phage defences to inform phage therapy" #meehubs26
We’re back! ✨ The next #MeeHubs26 is coming with 7 hubs across the globe and incredible lineups at each. Can’t wait to share more soon! meehubs.org
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meehubs.org
An exciting couple of days of science scheduled at @meehubs.bsky.social this week, and with the UK hub in Manchester I don’t even have to travel! Great job organising it all @mermanchester.bsky.social
Last week we kicked off the ecology & evolution seminar series with a fantastic talk by @taylorlabgroup.bsky.social 🧬 A great start to a diverse series of talks organised by @bexlowrypalms.bsky.social & @matthewjshepherd.bsky.social Come and join us for the next one on 25th June!
We’re at the Universally Manchester Festival today with colonies to count, bacteria to infect with phage & your very own microbes to create! 🧫 @socialresponuom.bsky.social
In our recent seminars we heard from @mbottery.bsky.social about anti fungal resistance evolution 💊 and Dr Irma Vitonytė spoke about endosymbiont evolution (using samples from ponds across Manchester!)🔬 Thanks to @microbesng.bsky.social for the best seminar snacks!
This week’s seminar featured a great talk by PhD student Zhou Chen about engineering phages for biocontainment ⚙️ Shoutout to @microbesng.bsky.social for our fabulous snacks!
In last week’s seminar we heard from @rebeccawallis.bsky.social about her work on the ecology and evolution of pathogens in CF 🫁 And @flanagella.bsky.social taught us about the importance of strain context in antibiotic resistance 💊 Thank you to @microbesng.bsky.social for our snacks!
Why does antibiotic resistance evolution vary between patients? Come to @officialuom.bsky.social @mermanchester.bsky.social to help us find out! 2.5 year @wellcometrust.bsky.social postdoc position in experimental evolution Closing 15 May. Apply here: www.jobs.manchester.ac.uk/Job/JobDetai...
Research Associate in Microbial Evolution:Oxford Road
jobs.manchester.ac.uk
We had two fantastic talks last week: Tom Butterfield talked about tailoring promoter sensitivity for fun and profit, and Deepanshi Kwarwall on understanding the disturbance potential of Bacillus spp. toward soil microbes. Cheers to @microbesng.bsky.social for sponsoring snacks.
In this week’s seminar we heard from Erika Hansson who shared work on the evolution of endosymbiosis 🔬 and our lab reps shared an update on our laboratory sustainability efforts, including a quiz on lab recyclables! 🧪♻️ Thank you to @microbesng.bsky.social for the fantastic snacks!
Two great talks from last week's seminar by Emma Wright: Mutation rates depend on the presence and density of cohabiting species, and Matt Thomas: The elements of mobile elements in microbiomes. Thanks to @microbesng.bsky.social for sponsoring refreshments at our seminars.
Last week's seminar featured excellent talks from @fionapoulter.bsky.social on understanding the evolution of epidemic Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Holly Richardson on why heterogeneity matters: predicting antibiotic resistance in cystic fibrosis. Thanks to @microbesng.bsky.social for the nice snacks!
Two fantastic talks in our latest seminar: Kirsten Lim told us about her work on the effects of IgA on gut phage diversity, and Jeremy Dejardin shared his work mapping chromosome-plasmid interactions in E. coli Thanks to @microbesng.bsky.social for the best seminar snacks!
