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Researchers from the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences are sharing in £12m of new funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).
Professors Mark Viney and Greg Hurst (IVES) and Dr Lekh Dahal (ISMIB) are among 62 researchers from across the UK who will lead new projects funded by the BBSRC’s Pioneer Awards scheme, which supports visionary bioscience research.
The new projects aim to radically change the way we think about important biological phenomena covering plant, microbial and animal sciences.
The three Liverpool-led projects are:
Do gut immune responses drive evolution of the gut microbiome?
Led by Professor Mark Viney, Head of the Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, this project will test the idea that gut antibody responses that target a sub-set of bacterial cells in the gut microbiome drive the evolution of those bacteria so that they evolve faster than bacteria not targeted by the gut antibody response.
Insect cell culture systems to explore the symbiont-sex determination system interface
Insects commonly carry microbes that kill only male hosts, known as ‘male-killers.’ Led by Professor Greg Hurst from the Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, this project aims to understand how the microbes kill males that carry them while sparing females.
CTLA-4 division of labour: soluble isoform regulates immune tolerance
Led by Dr Lekh Dahal, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, this project will develop novel transgenic models to understand how the different forms (soluble and membrane-bound) of an important immune receptor CTLA-4 operate in the regulation of immune systems.
Professor Guy Poppy, Interim Executive Chair at BBSRC, said: “Understanding the fundamental rules of life, such as the principles governing genetics, evolution and biological processes, is essential for advancing scientific knowledge. It is also imperative to societal progress.
“Many of the challenges faced by today's society, such as global food security, environmental sustainability and healthcare, are deeply rooted in biological processes.
“BBSRC is committed to understanding the rules of life and by investing in cutting-edge discovery research through schemes such as the Pioneer Awards pilot, we are expanding the horizons of human knowledge while helping to unlock innovative bio-based solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges.”