New centre represents Norwich's microbiology community

The centre has evolved from the Microbes in Norwich network to drive high-quality research and innovation in the areas of medicine, food, energy and climate change.

A key focus is the fostering of collaboration within and beyond Norwich Research Park that will, in turn, help secure funding for ambitious large-scale interdisciplinary projects, make its collective expertise more readily available to policymakers, and promote Norwich as a premier location for microbiologists to start and develop their careers.

Prof Mark Webber (right) is director of the new Centre for Microbial Interactions at Norwich Research Park (Image: Quadram Institute) Operations are led by director Prof Mark Webber of the Quadram Institute, with input and support from a working group made up of representatives from the six partner organisations at the park - John Innes Centre, The Sainsbury Laboratory, Earlham Institute, Quadram Institute, Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital and the University of East Anglia (UEA).

“We’re really interested in tackling some of the biggest challenges to society that we face globally,” said Prof Webber. “The idea behind the formation of the Centre for Microbial Interactions is to showcase the power of the research we are doing here at Norwich Research Park to the public, stakeholders, funding bodies and other institutions around the world so that we can work together to come up with credible solutions to some of the biggest problems in food security, climate change, medicine and energy.”

Mia Berelson, a PhD student at the Earlham Institute, said: “It’s really exciting to be a part of the Centre for Microbial Interactions. There’s so much expertise here at Norwich Research Park that you are not limited to the institute you work for. The centre will make it a lot easier to collaborate with other researchers and to share findings that should accelerate the creation of solutions.

“As technology develops, there is much more we can learn. And, the more we know about microbes, the better we can protect ourselves and the food that we eat.”

Dr Eleanor Mishra, a consultant respiratory physician at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (Image: Revel Studios) Dr Eleanor Mishra, a consultant respiratory physician at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, said: “There is a really great group of world-class scientists here. The launch of the Centre for Microbial Interactions is going to be fundamental for us, increasing the research we do, innovating and developing new ideas and hopefully commercialising them in the future.”

The Centre for Microbial Interactions is committed to nurturing an interest in the world of microbiology and to help inspire the next generation of microbiologists. To achieve this, it promotes the varied undergraduate degree courses and PhD training programmes available across the park’s campus, as well as supporting outreach activities in partnerships with schools, colleges, festivals and other public-facing events.

It also hosts PhD placements and other professional internships focused on science communication, event co-ordination and project management. The centre’s team will also support researchers with interdisciplinary grant applications that bring together the six partner organisations.

Dr Beth Williams, a lecturer in microbiology at the University of East Anglia (Image: Revel Studios) Dr Beth Williams, a lecturer in microbiology at the University of East Anglia (UEA), said: “Where better to teach microbiology, where the students can see the research being put into practice and use it to help them to grasp its importance and understand it?

“Access to the Centre for Microbial Interactions will inspire them and hopefully create the next generation of brilliant microbiologists.”

Her passion for microbiology comes from its presence in many of the things we encounter in daily life. She explained: “Microbes are everywhere and have hundreds of different capabilities to survive, fight each other and make nutrients. If we can understand what microbes do in their environment, we can explain what happens on a much wider scale, such as with infectious diseases or climate change.

“Some of humanity's biggest advancements have come from utilising microbes, from baking bread with yeast to discovering antibiotics. They have real-world relevance and importance. I hope that by talking about them more we can better understand how microbes can help us to tackle some of the major challenges across the world.”

The Centre for Microbial Interaction’s first annual conference will take place on February 26-27, 2025 at the John Innes Conference Centre, bringing together the microbiology community across the park.

The centre will also have a presence at the very popular Norwich Science Festival 2025 with a city centre poster trail, giving visitors the chance to learn about the fascinating micro-organisms studied in Norwich.

The Centre for Microbial Interactions has launched a new website and a promotional video, will attend conferences, engage with the media and organise its own training workshops and public engagement activities.

Neftaly Cruz Mireles, a postdoctoral scientist at The Sainsbury Laboratory (Image: Revel Studios) Neftaly Cruz Mireles, a postdoctoral scientist at The Sainsbury Laboratory, said: “This large community of microbiologists leads you to important collaborations. We have seen from different research groups that some of this knowledge can be translated into solutions for the real world.”

Luísa Jabbur, a research fellow at the John Innes Centre (Image: Revel Studios) Luísa Jabbur, a research fellow at the John Innes Centre, said: “Having so many microbiologists here really facilitates collaboration. It makes it so much easier to solve problems when you have so many people speaking the same language.”

Roz Bird, CEO of Anglia Innovation Partnership LLP (Image: Chris Ball Photography) Roz Bird, CEO of Anglia Innovation Partnership LLP, the campus management organisation at Norwich Research Park, said: “We are one of the largest research clusters in Europe with around 30,000 people on site every day. Not only are we co-located on one campus, but there are also lots of opportunities to collaborate. We share one vision for the creation of a unique cluster of activity ‘from farm to fork to clinic’.

 “Having one of the world’s largest communities of microbiologists here on the park’s campus is a real asset that will undoubtedly lead to further breakthrough discoveries that will help us address some of the grand challenges we face and provide opportunities to create spin-out businesses to commercialise the findings.”

If you are interested in finding out more about the Centre for Microbial Interactions, visit cmi-norwich.ac.uk