University of Strathclyde National Postdoc Appreciation Week

Streptomyces are prolific producers of antimicrobials. Its common for Streptomyces to make one or two under lab conditions. However, study of their genomes tells us they have the capacity to make 10s under the write conditions. Our goal is to understand how to switch them on as a key strategy in the fight against antimicrobial resistance. Using a combination of Long-Term Experimental Evolution and interrogation of industrial strain lineages, we are studying how adaptive mutations shape their genomes to generate a rapid pipeline for the next generation of antimicrobial producing organisms.

Join us as we explore the exciting ways satellite technology is being used to solve real-world problems. We're working on projects that use advanced radar and other satellite data to make life safer and more efficient. From improving navigation in tricky coastal areas to managing offshore wind farms and understanding the impact of climate change on human migration, we're combining cutting-edge tech with creative thinking. These efforts show how satellite data can lead to smarter solutions that truly make a difference in people's lives and help tackle some of today's biggest challenges.

Automated model-based design of experiments (MB-DoE) enhances pharmaceutical crystallisation by reducing material use and labour. This study leverages the Snapdragon platform for automated data collection and experiment planning, using a 2-vessel setup with advanced control and analytical technologies. A 5-point Latin hypercube design explored cooling rate, seed mass, and supersaturation effects on crystallisation of lamivudine. Bayesian optimisation then identified optimal experiments, achieving a ~10% improvement in objectives after one iteration. This data-driven MB-DoE approach streamlines experimental design, offering flexibility and efficiency for future crystallisation process developments.

A brief talk about the emergence of industrial digital technologies such as machine learning, computational modelling, and process optimisation algorithms integrated into robotic-assisted autonomous manufacturing systems for rapid development and design of new drug products.

Paracetamol overdose is very common, with 100,000 cases attending emergency departments in the UK annually. When it does occur, patients are immediately at risk of developing life-threatening liver failure if not treated fast enough. Unfortunately, it is poorly detected in emergency departments, leading to an increase in liver transplants and death. It is therefore vital that a new test which liver injury rapidly and at the point of care is developed.

We have achieved this using lateral flow tests combined with a laser which provides information on how badly the liver has been damaged by the paracetamol overdose, allowing patients to be treated faster, reducing the number of deaths.

Lenses lie at the heart of every optical microscope, controlling and focusing light to reveal the substructure and dynamics of the specimen. However, despite the rapid innovation in microscopy methods over the last several decades, glass lens design and manufacturing still rely on centuries-old subtractive methods of grinding and polishing to produce high-quality lenses at low-throughput. This makes glass lenses for imaging costly, limited in their available forms, and inaccessible for many. We present 3D printing as a viable alternative for the manufacture of glass-like optical elements. We demonstrate a method to print custom lens designs using an off-the-shelf consumer-grade 3D printer and consumables. Lenses were printed using a masked stereolithography-style 3D printer with transparent photopolymerising resins. Printed surfaces were post-processed using an optimised spin coating method, resulting in a thin layer of transparent resin that mitigated micron-scale surface imperfections and layering effects from the printing process, and improved optical transmission and performance. We measured the optical performance of 3D printed lenses using classic optical methods and we profiled the curvature using a high-resolution interference reflection microscopy method. The prescription and curvature of 3D printed lenses was commensurate with their glass counterparts. We also performed optical throughput measurements and we observed that the optical loss of 3D printed optics was comparable to that of commercial N-BK7 glass across the visible spectrum. Our findings showed that 3D printed lenses are a viable substitute for commercial glass lenses, with the advantage of being relatively low-cost, accessible, and suitable for use in optical instruments.