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Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute Prospectus 2020/2021 25 YEARS

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Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute Prospectus 2020/2021 25 YEARS The Wellcome/ Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute Prospectus 2020/2021 25 YEARS The Wellcome/ Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute Studying Prospectus 2020/2021 E development to C U G E N D E R E R understand disease C HA R T The Gurdon Institute 3 Contents Welcome Welcome to our new Prospectus, where we highlight our Watermark, the first such award in the University. Special activities for - unusually - two years: 2019 and 2020. The thanks for this achievement go to Hélène Doerflinger, COVID-19 pandemic has made it an extraordinary time Phil Zegerman and Emma Rawlins. Director’s welcome 3 Emma Rawlins 38 for everyone. I want to express my pride and gratitude for the exceptional efforts of Institute members, After incubating Steve Jackson's company Adrestia in About the Institute 4 Daniel St Johnston 40 who have kept our building safe and our research the Institute for two years, we wished them well as they progressing; this applies especially to our core team, moved to the Babraham Research Campus. We also sent COVID stories 6 Ben Simons 42 whose dedication has been key to our best wishes to Meri Huch and our continued progress. As you will Rick Livesey and their labs, as they Highlights in 2019/2020 8 Azim Surani 44 see, there is much to be excited embarked on their new positions in about in our research and activities. Dresden and London, respectively. Focus on research Iva Tchasovnikarova 46 It was terrific to see Gurdon I'm delighted that Emma Rawlins Group leaders Fengzhu Xiong 48 members receive recognition for was promoted to Senior Group their achievements. Steve Jackson Leader and that two new Group Julie Ahringer 20 Philip Zegerman 50 received the Leopold Griffuel Leaders joined us in Autumn Award in Translational and Clinical 2020. Iva Tchasovnikarova studies Andrea Brand 22 Associate group leaders Research, and the Royal Society epigenetic pathway mechanisms Mullard Award. Hansong Ma was and how they are disrupted in David Fernandez-Antoran 24 Martin Howard 52 awarded a Philip Leverhulme disease, while David Fernandez- Jenny Gallop 26 John Perry 54 Prize and selected as an EMBO Antoran's research is focused on Young Investigator, I received the cell competition and the impact of John Gurdon 28 Facilities 56 Genetics Society of America's ionising radiation on selection. George W. Beadle Award, and Office Manager Lynda Steve Jackson 30 Support staff 58 Lockey was named the Unsung Heroine of Professional Finally, I'm pleased to welcome two new Associate Group Services. We are also excited that a major component of Leaders. John Perry (MRC Epidemiology Unit) uses Tony Kouzarides 32 Seminars, events and the Wellcome-funded Human Developmental Biology human genetics to understand disease mechanisms, and publications in 2019/2020 60 Initiative is based in the Institute, led by Emma Rawlins, Martin Howard (John Innes Centre) builds mathematical Hansong Ma 34 Ben Simons and Azim Surani. models of biological processes. We look forward to Acknowledgements 77 exciting and productive interactions with them. Eric Miska 36 I'm especially proud that our exceptional Public Engagement was recognised by a Silver Engage Director February 2021 4 About the Institute About the Institute The Wellcome/ Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute is a world-leading centre for research at the interface between developmental biology and cancer biology. Our research is focussed in four overlapping areas: our focus Cell division, Function and regulation Mechanisms of cell Cell biological proliferation and of the genome and fate determination, processes underlying genome maintenance epigenome multipotency and organ development plasticity and function and interactions across Cambridge’s • A wealth of stimulating Join us vibrant research environment, seminars and masterclasses, We have a thriving community of including through department an annual Institute retreat, graduate students and postdocs affiliations and teaching. and Institute postdoc and PhD who contribute to and benefit from student groups (pp. 62–65) our exciting research environment. We investigate these areas in both findings have been successfully sources including national and We benefit from: • Award-winning public We welcome enquiries from those normal development and cancer translated to drug discovery international governmental and • Core facilities with state-of- engagement between our interested in joining us, which can using multiple model systems, from through spinout companies. charitable grants. Scientific progress the-art equipment and support scientists and the wider public be done by writing to the relevant yeast to human organoids (pp. and future plans are assessed at including super-resolution (pp. 16–17). group leader. 20–50). The Gurdon Institute’s principal regular intervals by our International microscopy, next-generation • An on-site canteen, social sponsors are Wellcome and Cancer Scientific Advisory Board (p. 77) . sequencing and bioinformatics events and sports groups, which Find out about the latest Since our formation in 1991, our Research UK, who support our (pp. 56–57) enhance our welcoming and opportunities on our website. research has led to major insights excellent infrastructure through core The Institute is embedded within • Central services providing inclusive environment. into the molecular and cellular grants, and our research through the University of Cambridge, administration, computing and • An Athena SWAN Bronze Award defects that give rise to cancer direct grants to group leaders. Our providing unparalleled IT, stores, media preparation for promoting equality and and other diseases of ageing, and research is also funded by other opportunities for collaborations and glass-washing. diversity across our workforce. 6 COVID stories The Gurdon Institute 7 quickly increased, with home tests “Then, of course, there was the arriving from all over the country, wider shortage across the country, we were pushed to the limit and at so Charles and I looked at what we COVID stories one point caused a bottleneck of could do.” the whole pipeline. The solidarity Once our building opened again and sense of responsibility of on 15th June under University everyone in the team meant that we What did we do during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020? guidance, the two set up a no-touch would ensure all the samples were log-in log-out system allowing the processed each day, and Along with institutions and Some of our scientists paediatrician at Addenbrooke’s The roles taken by Weronika Fic, we know Institute to track numbers of people businesses across England, the re-focussed their research Hospital from March to September. Dmitry Nashchekin, Helen Zenner we played an important part in on site in real time, ensuring we Institute shut its doors at 5pm on Omer Ziv with Miska lab colleagues It was actually quite nice to have and Mihoko Tame (St Johnston lab) helping contain the first COVID-19 stuck to the strict rules on numbers .” 20th March for Lockdown 1.0. Only and collaborators at Justus Liebig something to do during that first and Paolo Amaral (Kouzarides lab) wave in different lab spaces. minimal maintenance and technical University worked to produce a lockdown, although being coughed were in sample preparation, RT-PCR staff remained, regularly checking map and database of the short on by feverish children all day wasn’t tests and data analysis, the full team the building and the fly stocks, and long-range interactions of ideal!” eventually processing over 8000 while researchers could no longer the SARS-CoV-2 RNA genome nasopharyngeal swab samples daily. access their benches and had to (details in ‘Research highlights call a sudden halt to hundreds of 2020’). Ben Simons was involved in experiments. Administrative staff epidemiological modelling. took computers and files home. And that’s how it remained until 15th June when we re-opened at one quarter occupancy, slowly moving up to 50% occupancy by September. Many different staff, and especially researchers, were delighted to return once more to the building. Lockdown 2.0 in Core staff made Personal November sent some more staff Protective Equipment: Alex back home again. Sossick and Charles Bradshaw of the Imaging and Bioinformatics Family members sewed face The core staff have done an teams each took home a 3D printer. coverings: The mother of a staff incredible job to keep as much of The machines were set up to run member sent about 600 of her the Institute open and functioning 24-hours a day, making in total hand-sewn, eco-friendly and as possible (and legal) at all times, Five researchers worked shifts 500 visor headbands, which were washable face coverings all the way in terms of maintenance and safety distributed locally to key workers from her village in Italy, enough for in the building, supplying media, as volunteers at the Cambridge that ran seven days in GP surgeries, hospitals and care everyone to have two each. and enabling computing services for Others intermitted from research Testing Centre Ben a week from 6am to midnight to homes. “The Institute had given a remote working. Meanwhile, other and returned to the clinic: Paolo recalls: “Volunteering at the Fisher (Miska lab) says “I returned support the national effort to boost lot of our own PPE, especially visors, Institute members have contributed centre felt like a call of duty. As the to full-time clinical work as a COVID-19 testing capacity. to Addenbrookes,” says Alex. directly to fighting the pandemic: number of samples to be processed 8 About the Institute The Gurdon Institute 9 Highlights in 2019/2020 10 Awards The Gurdon Institute 11 Awards Feb '19: Steve Jackson receives Three of the Institute’s labs are November and Steve Jackson is cancer research prize among more than a dozen across among them, awarded funding the UK working together to for a project on the DNA damage The 47th ARC Foundation generate data, develop new tools response in collaboration with Léopold Griffuel Award in and build a ‘family tree’ of cell partners in Switzerland and Austria.
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