Spring/Summer 2017 BusinessConnecting our science with industry, policymakers and society Lasers reveal the secrets of photosynthesis Pages 10-11 Finding new cancer drugs Egg-free surrogate chickens Innovator of the Year About BBSRC BBSRC invests in world- Our aim is to further scientific knowledge to meet major challenges, including food to promote economic growth, wealth and security, green energy and healthier, class bioscience research job creation, and to improve quality of life longer lives. Our investments underpin and training on behalf in the UK and beyond. important UK economic sectors, such as farming, food, industrial biotechnology of the UK public. Funded by Government, BBSRC invested and pharmaceuticals. over £473 million in world-class bioscience in 2015-2016. We support research and Further details about BBSRC, our training in universities and strategically science and our impact can be found funded institutes. BBSRC research and at www.bbsrc.ac.uk the people we fund are helping society Strategically funded institutes Babraham Institute The Pirbright Institute Institute for Biological, Institute of www.babraham.ac.uk www.pirbright.ac.uk Environmental and Rural Studies Food Research (Aberystwyth University) www.ifr.ac.uk www.aber.ac.uk/en/ibers John Innes Centre Roslin Institute Rothamsted Research Earlham Institute www.jic.ac.uk (University of Edinburgh) www.rothamsted.ac.uk www.earlham.ac.uk BBSRC is part of the Research www.roslin.ac.uk Councils UK partnership About Contacts BBSRC Business Plant health and agriculture [email protected] BBSRC Business is a controlled circulation magazine which is Animal health [email protected] distributed free of charge to Bioenergy [email protected] end users of research and to individuals with an interest Food [email protected] in BBSRC. Human health [email protected] For enquiries about Business contact the News Team: Industrial biotechnology [email protected] BBSRC Polaris House, North Star Avenue, International [email protected] Swindon, SN2 1UH. Tel: 01793 442810 Research technologies [email protected] Email: [email protected] Skills and training [email protected] For regular news about BBSRC and the outcomes and impacts of BBSRC- Innovation and business [email protected] funded research visit www.bbsrc.ac.uk/news 2 BBSRC Business Spring/Summer 2017 In this issue Chief Executive Professor Melanie Welham emphasises how important it is for the Research Councils to collect the impacts and outcomes of research. As you may well know, as a public body, A vision for UK research and (in that instance a meeting with Bill Gates) we’ve been restricted on our communications innovation detailed their work with partners and in the run-up to the election, and so our latest Professor Sir Mark Walport, Chief Executive policy-makers. In this issue on page 27 I’d version of Business magazine is a hybrid of Designate of UK Research and Innovation, particularly like to highlight BBSRC’s role in both spring and summer. We are now clear of has given a speech outlining the vision, supporting technicians, technical specialists so-called ‘purdah’, and a lot has happened in objectives and next steps in development and postdocs. bioscience in the last several weeks. for the organisation on 4 July. Sir Mark And, after our 8-page image-led Frontier In May, BBSRC held our annual Innovator explained that the success of UK Research Bioscience special last issue, it’s great to see of the Year awards and once again we and Innovation will ultimately be measured more but with a person-centric twist. I loved had a fantastic set of finalists. This year through the impact it delivers: through the colourful cells, organisms and microscope we introduced two new categories – one pushing the frontiers of human knowledge, images from the last issue, but behind every for International Impact and the other for delivering economic impact and creating picture there are often several people! So on Early Career Researchers. It was a very hard- better jobs and by supporting society to pages 20 to 23 you can see more human- fought competition – with the selection become stronger, healthier and more centric examples of world-class frontier panel decision arriving minutes before the resilient. bioscience. event began – but the overall winner’s More policy briefs and frontiers crown went to Shelby Temple. He turned We were very pleased to see a positive his work studying the eyes of various sea sentiment online (“BBSRC rocks!”) in response creatures into a fast, simple and affordable to our new policy pages, where colleagues way to assess a risk factor for age-related macular degeneration – the leading cause of incurable blindness in the developed world. What’s so great about Shelby’s innovation is “I want to thank all researchers and students that it is built directly on frontier bioscience discoveries, and Shelby very much deserved who are providing outcomes data for the to win for recognising the potential for his Research Councils to use via Researchfish.” work to improve lives. You can see more on the event on pages 16 and 17. BBSRC Business Spring/Summer 2017 3 Headlines BBSRC researchers BBSRC welcomes extension of Professor recognised in the Queen's Melanie Welham’s role as Chief Executive Birthday Honours list 2017 The Minister for Universities and Science, Jo Johnson, has announced the extension of the appointment of Professor Melanie Welham as interim Chief Executive of BBSRC until the creation of UKRI (subject to Parliament), which is planned for 31 March 2018. Professor Welham has held the role for just over two years. Professor Sir Gordon Duff, Chairman of BBSRC, says it’s a great vote of confidence Twice a year, the Queen awards honours Professor Claire Alice Mary Domoney, in Melanie’s superb leadership and the to recognise individuals for their service Head of Department, Metabolic Biology, at work of everyone within BBSRC. “It means to the UK. A number of members of the the BBSRC strategically funded John Innes stable leadership during the coming year scientific and research community have been Centre, was awarded an MBE for services to while moving towards UKRI. The extension recognised in the 2017 Birthday Honours list, crop science and improvement of the pea of Melanie’s appointment ensures we reflecting the importance of discovery and crop in the UK. contribute in full to delivering on major innovation to the UK. Professor Laura Green, Head of the School activities, such as the Industrial Strategy Amongst those honoured this year is of Life Sciences, The University of Warwick, Challenge Fund and the Global Challenges Professor Christopher Trevor Elliott, Pro- received an OBE for services to the Health Research Fund.” Vice Chancellor, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Welfare of Farmed Livestock. Earlier in her career, Professor Welham was and Life Sciences, Queen's University, Belfast. Roy Stephen, Assistant Peer Review Officer, a BBSRC Research Development Fellow, Professor Elliott was awarded Officer of the Science Group, BBSRC, received a BEM for then co-director of the interdisciplinary Order of the British Empire, OBE, for services services to the Malayalee Association, UK Bath Centre for Regenerative Medicine. to the Agri-Food Supply Chain. Knanaya Catholic Association and to the She says she’s honoured to continue as Charles Godfray, Hope Professor of Zoology, community in Swindon, Wiltshire. BBSRC’s Chief Executive. “The past year University of Oxford. Professor Godfray was British honours are awarded on merit, for has been one of great achievements and knighted for services to scientific research exceptional achievement or service and are change and I look forward to contributing and for scientific advice to the government. published twice a year – at New Year, and in further to support excellent bioscience – He has strong links with both BBSRC and mid-June on the date of the Queen's official vital to building the UK bioeconomy – and NERC. birthday. the creation of UKRI.” Defra approves new GM wheat trial Rothamsted Research granted permission to carry out new field experiments. Scientists at Rothamsted Research, in The risk assessment was reviewed by the collaboration with researchers at the University independent Advisory Committee on Releases of Essex and Lancaster University, have to the Environment (ACRE), and a 48-day developed wheat plants that convert light public consultation was carried out by Defra. energy into plant biomass more efficiently, In addition to the formal consultation run by potentially leading to higher-yielding plants. ACRE, Rothamsted scientists have answered The new trial is set to test whether these GM questions directly from the public and special wheat plants photosynthesise more efficiently interest groups that have been interested in in the field for a higher-yielding crop. Chris-Combe-Flickr_CC the research project and the trial. 4 BBSRC Business Spring/Summer 2017 Headlines UK’s bioeconomy benefits from Diamond’s infrared £319 million beamline steps up to investment living cells research Substantial funding keeps UK at the forefront of meeting global Upgrade could help chemotherapy studies challenges in feeding a growing population, replacing fossil fuels and healthy ageing. A substantial £319 million investment provided by the government is to ensure the UK’s bioscience research base remains internationally competitive. “Through our modern Industrial Strategy, we will use all the tools at our disposal to stimulate growth in every part of the country, ensuring that prosperity is more evenly spread,” said Business and Energy Secretary Greg Clark. “Science, research and innovation are at the heart of the Industrial Strategy which is why we’re providing more than £4.7 billion of additional funding over the next five years, including the £319 million for bioscience research.” The investments, from the Department for Diamond’s Multimode Infrared Imaging and healthcare,” said Professor Welham.