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Rose Bunker

International Women’s Day 2025

On International Women’s Day 2025, we celebrate the achievements, resilience, and leadership of women in science. The Kawamura Research Group are proud to be a part of this global movement and this year’s theme, “Inspire Inclusion”, resonates deeply with our group’s ethos.  Chemical biology thrives on collaboration across disciplines, cultures, and perspectives. We’re fortunate to work in an environment where diverse voices shape our scientific work and team activities.  “Science is a collective effort, and inclusion is critical for progress. I’m proud of the brilliant women in our group who lead with curiosity and creativity.” (Prof Akane Kawamura)  Looking ahead, we’re excited for the launch of the Inspiring Women in… Read More »International Women’s Day 2025

Newcastle Chemical Biology Workshop 2025

On 14th February, Newcastle University hosted a half-day Chemical Biology Workshop, in conjunction with the Babraham Institute in Cambridge.    The workshop featured two guest speakers from the Babraham: Dr Maria Christophorou who spoke about protein citrullination, and Dr Jonathan Clark who spoke about the chemistry of tendon collagen.    The other speakers included: Prof Paula Salgado (Professor of Structural Microbiology, Newcastle University); Dr Will Stanley (Associate Principal Scientist; Iksuda Therapeutics); Dr Jem Stach (Senior Lecturer, Newcastle University); and, Dr Katherine Duncan (Senior Lecturer, Newcastle University).    Thanks to the CONNECT fund, a Flexible Talent and Mobility award (FTMA) from UKRI’s Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), which supported… Read More »Newcastle Chemical Biology Workshop 2025

IDWGS 2025

This February, we celebrated International Women and Girls in Science Day!   Within Newcastle University’s chemical biology research groups, we are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive and make a difference. A special thanks to all the women in the Kawamura Research Group and McAllister Lab for their incredible contributions to the field of science!  International Women and Girls in Science Day (IDWGS) was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 2015 to promote full and equal access to and participation in science for women and girls. Celebrated annually on February 11th, this day highlights the critical role women and girls play in science and technology… Read More »IDWGS 2025

EFMC-ISCB 2025, Basel

In January, Prof Akane Kawamura delivered a plenary talk on histone demethylases shaping the epigenetic landscape at the 2nd EFMC International Symposium on Chemical Biology in Basel, Switzerland.  We’re also delighted that our team members presented posters on their work, on the different approaches to mRNA display to find cyclic peptides with the desired selectivity to a model family of proteins (Tom Smith, PhD Student), and chemical tool development for histone methyllysine readers (Dr Roman Belle, PDRA).  On the second conference day, Akane participated in a panel discussion about career development in chemical biology for early career researchers, alongside Dr Christopher Dumelin (Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research), Dr Thais Gazzi (F.Hoffmann-La… Read More »EFMC-ISCB 2025, Basel

Chemical Biology Winter Symposium 2024

The Kawamura and McAllister Lab research groups hosted their annual Chemical Biology Winter Symposium, blending festive cheer with intellectual stimulation!   This event provided a platform for researchers to present their work through a series of short presentations. These presentations showcased the depth and breadth of research activities, whilst facilitating knowledge sharing and collaboration.  Amidst the scientific discussions, the event also included some festive fun. Participants enjoyed a Secret Santa gift exchange, and the Christmas quiz, complete with the exciting “Sink or Float” challenge, brought an element of playful competition and camaraderie among the attendees.  The day concluded with a dinner at Victor’s to celebrate the Chem Bio teams’ achievements.  Special… Read More »Chemical Biology Winter Symposium 2024

Roman, Rob & Emma Complete GNR 2024!

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Roman Belle, Rob Dawber and Emma Wadforth (aka TEAM TGIF) for their incredible achievement in completing the Great North Run 2024 to raise funds for Cancer Research UK. Their research activities are funded by CRUK so this has been a great opportunity to further support cancer research.  The Great North Run is the world’s largest half marathon. This year, a record-breaking 60,000 runners competed in this annual event, running from Newcastle to South Shields.  Roman: “We’re thrilled to be part of this event, pushing ourselves to the limit and raising vital funds to help CRUK continue our ground breaking research.”  Our team members were… Read More »Roman, Rob & Emma Complete GNR 2024!

Attending the RICT2024 in Bordeaux

Akane Kawamura, Siddique Amin and Filomena Saulino attended the RICT2024 (the 58th International Conference on Medicinal Chemistry) held in Bordeaux this July – a conference focused on the intersection of chemical biology and drug discovery.  Akane Kawamura gave a talk on cyclic peptides as chemical tools to probe biology, and our PhD Students presented their posters relating to work on cyclic peptides (Siddique), and inhibitor development against epigenetic reader domains (Filomena).   The event was a fantastic experience, with plenty of discussions with other medicinal chemists and chemical biologists from around the globe.  

Congratulations to Harriet on Her 1851 Research Fellowship!

We’re thrilled to congratulate Dr Harriet Stanway-Gordon on being awarded a prestigious Research Fellowship from the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851!  Harriet’s project, CyPeMs: New Modalities for Targeting AMR and NDD, explores innovative approaches to tackling antimicrobial resistance and neurodegenerative diseases using cyclic peptide-small molecule hybrids and DNA-encoded libraries. Her work holds exciting potential for the development of novel therapeutic candidates.  This is a fantastic recognition of Harriet’s talent and dedication, and we wish her every success in this next chapter of her research career.  Well done, Harriet!

Team Building in Durham

On 7 June, chemical biologists from the Kawamura Research Group and McAllister Lab ventured to Durham for a team away day, supported by the Newcastle University SAgE Faculty’s People Fund.  Enhancing the skills that Chem-Bio researchers need to be successful, the team day-out included interactive workshops focused on how to create effective PowerPoint presentations and conduct data analysis (for example, for IC50 which is a measure of the potency of a substance in inhibiting a specific biological or biochemical function), as well as building teamworking and communication skills.   The day also included dragon-boat racing down the River Wear (courtesy of Adventure Access), and a surprise encounter with TV presenter Matt… Read More »Team Building in Durham

Ethan Ling Completes His MChem

A huge congratulations to Ethan Ling for completing is Masters in Chemistry!  Ethan’s dissertation/research project focused on click chemistry optimisation on peptides.  We wish Ethan all the best in the next stages of his career, and we’re delighted that he was a part of the Kawamura Research Group.