In this episode, Ina Sonnen, a researcher at the Hubrecht Institute in the Netherlands, is interviewed by Postdocoral researcher JF Darrigrand. Ina explains which are the big questions studied in her lab, notably how cells can communicate not only via the nature of signals they exchange but also through the dynamics of these signlas. She shares how…

In today’s episode, Prof. Andrew Ewald, Director of the Cell Biology Department at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine is interviewed by Inês Tomás. Prof Ewald explains how he transitionned from a background in physics to the field of cancer biology. He touches upon why cancer is such a specific type of disease, how cancer cells talk to each other…

In today’s episode, Dr. William Roman, a research associate at Stanford University, is interviewed by Dr. Davide Danovi. William explains how he is combining live cell imaging and quantitative approaches to answer fundamental questions in muscle biology. He shares some inspiring mentoring advice on how to let students use their PhDs as platforms to…

In today’s episode, Shalev Itzkovitz, a professor at the Weizman Institute, Israel, is interviewed by Postdocoral researcher Georgina Goss. Shalev shares the discoveries of his lab on the design principles that shape and maintain metabolic organs such as the intestine and the liver. He explains the very advanced techniques used in modern biology, a…

In today’s episode, Prof Xin Chen, a group leader at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, is interviewed by PhD student Daria Belokhvostova. Xin takes us into the world of germline stem cell epigenetics and how its regulation can influence the ability of these cells to divide asymmetrically. She shares her passion for the biology of germ cells an…

In today’s episode, Dr Allison Bardin, a group leader at Institut Curie, is interviewed by PhD student Vassia Salameti. Allison talks about how she got interested in asymmetric cell division while working on budding yeast, followed by her work on fly as a postdoc that derived her into the field to study cell fate acquisitions and stem cell biology.…

In today’s episode, Prof Yukiko Yamashita, a group leader at Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, MIT, is interviewed by PhD student Joshua Reeves. Yukiko talks about how her lab got interested in understanding the possible mechanism of non siter chromatid segregation in germline cells. She talks about how they started looking at the intere…

In today’s episode, Prof Ludo Van Den Bosch a group leader at VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research, is interviewed by PhD student Abigail Isaacson. Ludo talks about his labs goal and how they use different model systems to understand disease as good as possible with goal to develop therapies. He also highlighted the importance of using…

In today’s episode, Prof Elena Ezhkova, a group leader at Icahn School of Medicine, is interviewed by PhD student Vassia Salameti. Elena talks about the potential of stem cells in therapy and how her interest developed towards understanding the role of epigenetic regulators in stem cell reprogramming. She shares about how companies are getting inte…

In today’s episode, Prof Filipe Pereira, a professor at Lund University, Sweden, is interviewed by postdocoral researcher Jean-Francois Darrigrand. Filipe shares how he started his career in the fields of stem cells reprogramming and immunotherapy, as well as his experience working in the US and different european countries. Filipe also discusses a…

In today’s episode, Prof Denis Duboule, a professor of developmental biology at EPFL and Univeristy of Geneva is interviewed by PhD student Abigail Isaacson. Denis talks about how his first interest for mushrooms initiated his whole career in biology. He shares with us his fascination for the encoding of time in the genome, which ensures the proper…

In today’s episode, Prof Dagmar Iber, a professor at ETH, Zurich, is interviewed by PhD student Vasiliki Salameti. Dagmar talks about the similarity between investment banking and academia . She describes her interest in modelling organogenesis and patterning systems. She discusses the importance of collaboration. She also advised students to take …

In today’s episode, Dr Vikas Trivedi, a group leader at EMBL Barcelona, is interviewed by PhD student Prudence Lui. Vikas talks about his scientific journey and his research on using embryonic organoids to study self-organisation of cells. He describes the challenge in this field to use interdisciplinary approaches to study complex biological pheno…

In today’s episode, Dr Emma Rawlins, a senior group leader at the Gurdon Institute in University of Cambridge. She is interviewed by PhD student Elena Drudi. Emma talks about her research on stem cells in mammalian lungs using both mouse and human organoid models. She discusses the pros and cons of the two models. She describes her research interes…

In today’s episode, Dr Vanessa Ribes, a group leader at Jacques Monod Institute, Paris, is interviewed by PhD student Victoria Tsang. Vanessa talks about her research on embryonic development of the spinal cord, its transcriptional regulation, the pathology of related congenital diseases, as well as cancers. She describes her long-time passion for …

In today’s episode, Dr Carla Mulas, a postdoc in Stem Cell Institue at Cambridge University, is interviewed by PhD student Haneen Alsehi. Carla talks about her amazing research using biophysics to understand cell state transition. She discusses her journey in transiting from a biochemistry background to studying stem cells and their fate commitment…

In today’s episode, Dr Kristina Haase, a group leader at EMBL Barcelona, is interviewed by PhD student Prudence Lui. Kristina talks about her amazing research on bioengineered vascular networks and what kept her motivated to work on this for years. She discusses some challenges to be considered when generating advanced vascularised experiment model…

On today’s episode, Dr Dominika Dziedzicka, a postdoc working with Prof Ludovic Vallier from MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute. She is interviewed by Daria Belokhvostova, a PhD student in Centre of Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine in King’s College London. Dominika talks about her PhD and recent postdoc work on human embryonic and induced pluripo…

In today’s episode, Ieva Berzanskyte, our own graduating PhD student at the Centre for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine at King’s College London, is interviewed by PhD student Inês Tomás. Ieva talks about her exciting work on growing stem cells from patient tissues, then turning them into neurons to find a cure for spinal cord injury. She share…

On today’s episode, Prof Michael Levin, a renowned regenerative and developmental biologist of Tufts University and Wyss Institute at Harvard University, is interviewed by Dr Davide Danovi, a group leader in Centre of Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine in King’s College London. Mike talks about his multi-disciplinary work in decoding bioelectrical …

In today’s episode, Prof Ana Pombo, group leader at the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in Berlin, is interviewed by PhD student Vasiliki Salameti. Ana talks about her pioneering work that enabled scientists to dissect how the genome is packaged inside cells and how this method is evolving with new single-cell technologies. She shares he…

On today’s episode, Dr Nicolas Rivron, group leader at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology, Austrian Academy of Science, is interviewed by PhD student Sergi Junyent Espinosa. Nicolas discusses his research building stem-cell based embryo models. He talks about the self-organising nature of tissue development in the embryo and how this can help…

On today’s episode, Dr Vivian Li, group leader of the Stem Cell and Cancer Laboratory at the Francis Crick Institute, is interviewed by PhD student Elena Drudi. Vivian talks about her background in plant biotechnology, colon cancer research and working in Hans Clevers lab and her current research focus using human gut organoids to ask how stem cell…

In today’s episode, Dr Derk ten Berge, an Associate Professor in the department of Cell Biology at Erasmus MC University Medical Center Rotterdam, is interviewed by PhD student Daria Belokhvostova. Derk discusses his research on embryonic development and pluritpotency (the ability of a stem cell to make all the cells of the embryo) and the mechanis…

Ana-Maria Cujba, a PhD student at the Centre for Stem Cell's and Regenerative Medicine at King's College London, is interviewed by PhD student Ella Hubber. Ana-Maria discusses her work using human induced pluripotent stem cells and pancreatic organoids to study a new mechanism in mature onset diabetes of the young (MODY). She dives into the develop…

Professor Muzlifah Haniffa, Professor of Dermatology and Immunology at Newcastle University, is interviewed by researcher Dr Clarisse Ganier. Muzz talks about her pioneering work in the fields of dermatology, immunology and genomics. She discusses her involvement in the human cell atlas, that aims to map all the cells of the human body. Muzz also s…

Prof Francesco Saverio Tedesco, Professor of Neuromuscular Biology and Regenerative Medicine at University College London, is interviewed by researcher Dr Davide Danovi. Francesco talks about his work using stem cells to understand and develop new therapies for muscular diseases such as muscular dystrophy. He speaks about the balance between his pr…

Dr Madeline Lancaster, Group Leader at the Cell Biology Division of the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, is interviewed by PhD student Ella Hubber. Madeline talks about the chance discovery and ongoing development of cerebral organoids and their use in studying human brain development and size differences between human and non-huma…

On today’s episode, Dr Jürgen Knoblich, scientific director at the Institute of Molecular Biology at the Austrian Academy of Sciences, is interviewd by PhD student Sergi Junyen. Jürgen talks about his research journey to studying brains, the benefits of using fruit flies (Drosophila) in research, and the development and future of cerebral organoids…

Randolph Ashton, Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering at University of Wisconsin-Madison, is interviewed by PhD student Ieva Berzanskyte. Randolph discusses his research engineering novel materials and methodologies to direct stem cell behaviour in a reproducible and scalable manner. He talks about how harnessing the natural ability of cel…

Today Ron Weiss, Professor in the Department of Biological Engineering and in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Director of the Synthetic Biology Center at MIT, is interviewed by PhD student Matt Chung. Ron is a pioneer in the field of synthetic biology, using computer eng…

Today, Professor Manuel Serrano from the Institute for Research in Biomedicine in Barcelona is interviewed by PhD student Emily Read. Manuel has produced seminal work in the fields of tumour suppression, senescence, ageing and reprogramming. In this episode he talks about the link between senescence and regeneration, and how this can become disrupt…

Today, Professor Matthias Lütolf, Head of the Laboratory of Stem Cell Bioengineering at The École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne is interviewed by PhD student Emily Read. Matthais talks about how scientists can begin to build human diseases in a dish using organoid technologies. He discusses the importance of understanding how physical factors …

Today, Professor Kevin Eggan from the Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard University, is interviewed by PhD student Peter Harley. Kevin talks about the difficulties of studying neurodegenerative disorders and applying stem cell technologies to study motor neuron disease/ALS. He discusses why highlighting and understanding co…

Prof Salvador Aznar Benitah, ICREA Research Professor at Institut de Recerca Biomèdica, is interviewed by PhD student Victoria Tsang. Salvador talks about his research understanding the molecular pathways that dictate stem cell behaviour, including his recent work on the role of dietary fats, and how this goes wrong in cancer. He talks about recent…

Professor Alfonso Martinez Arias, professor of developmental mechanics in the department of genetics at the University of Cambridge, is interviewed by PhD student Alice Vickers. Alfonso discusses the applications, ethical considerations, legislation, and difficulties of progressing his research using embryonic stem cells as a model system for study…

Professor Xavier Trepat, ICREA Research Professor at Institut de Bioenginyeria de Catalunya, is interviewed by PhD student Sebastiaan Zijl. Xavier talks about his work understanding how physical forces impact how cells grow, move and behave. He discusses the coolest experiment he has ever done and how lockdown has unexpectedly benefited his lab.For…

Professor Peter Zandstra, Director of the Michael Smith Laboratories at The University of British Columbia, is interviewed by Group Leader Dr Davide Danovi. Peter talks about his work understanding blood development from stem cells and how this can be used improve therapeutics for diseases such as leukaemia. He discusses his beginnings as a chemica…

Dr William Grey, a post doctoral researcher in the Haematopoietic Stem Cell Laboratory at the Francis Crick Institute, is interviewed by PhD student Jana Obajdin. William talks about using umbilical cord blood in the treatment of genetic disorders and the future of cancer therapies. He also tells us why the study of proteins is an exciting and expa…

Prof James Briscoe, group leader of the Developmental Dynamics Lab at the Francis Crick Institute, is interviewed by PhD student Ieva Berzanskyte. James talks about his research into the developing spinal cord and thinks about what is currently fascinating him, including understanding the "tempo" of embryonic development.For more information on Jam…

Prof Janet Rossant, Senior Scientist on the Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, Chief of Research Emeritus at the SickKids Research Institute, President and Scientific Director of the Gairdner Foundation and Professor in the Departments of Molecular Genetics and Obstetrics & Gynaecology at the University of Toronto, is interviewed by PhD stu…

"It’s a mindset."Prof Olivier Pourquié, Professor of Pathology and Professor in the Department of Genetics at Harvard Medical School, is interviewed by PhD student Ella Hubber. Olivier breaks down how spinal vertebrae are formed in the embryo through a “segmentation clock” and how understanding this is relevant to human disease. He also talks about…

Prof Cristina Lo Celso, Professor of Stem Cell Biology and group leader at Imperial College London, is interviewed by PhD student Elena Drudi. Cristina discusses her work visualising blood stem cells and determining the factors that control their function, to better understand mechanisms underlying blood based cancers. She also talks about her care…

We return this week to an episode recorded during lockdown.Dr Ivo Lieberam, Senior Lecturer and group leader at the Centre for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine at King's College London, is interviewed by PhD student Eva Hamrud. Ivo discusses his work on generating neuromuscular models in a dish that can be used to understand neuromuscular disea…

We return this week with an episode recorded during lockdown. Dr Francesca Spagnoli, Group Leader at the Centre for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine at King's College London, is interviewed by PhD student Teodora Manea. Francesca discusses her group's research on understanding how pancreatic beta cells communicate with their environment and the…

We return this week with an episode recorded during lockdown.Prof. James Sharpe, the head of EMBL Barcelona, is interviewed by PhD student Sergi Junyent. Prof. Sharpe is one of the key opinion leaders in developmental biology and bioengineering. Here, he talks about the pioneering work done by his group in understanding tissue development and discu…

“Even just to understand the genesis of human being itself... It must be one of the holy grails of modern biology.”We return this week with an episode recorded during lockdown. Professor Jianping Fu, a professor of Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical engineering and Cell and Developmental Biology at the University of Michigan, is interviewed by PhD …

We return this week with an episode recorded during lockdown.Professor Ludovic Vallier, Professor of Regenerative Medicine within the Department of Surgery at Cambridge University and director of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre hIPSCs (human induced pluripotent stem cells) core facility, is int…

We return this week with an episode recorded during lockdown.Professor Peter Jones, Professor of Endocrine Biology and head of the Department of Physiology at King's College London, is interviewed by PhD student Prudence Lui. Peter breaks down the basics of type 1 and type 2 diabetes and discusses his lab's recent research into the phenomenon of mi…

We return this week to an episode recorded during lockdown.Dr Norah Fogarty, a new group leader at the Centre for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine at King's College London, is interviewed by PhD student Geraldine Jowett. Norah discusses her work on the development of the trophectoderm in the human embryo, which is the progenitor of early placen…