Molecular Battlefield: Microbes, Mutations & Medical Frontiers

The rise of the superbugs. Bacteria are evolving to overcome the treatments we use in modern medicine, and without innovation and discovery, these superbugs threaten the survivability of common infections. As a microbiologist and doctoral researcher, I have been fascinated by this battle between bacteria and humans, and I spend my days in the lab on the front line of antibiotic discovery. In this talk, I’ll share with you the secret weapons bacteria use to resist our drugs, and explain how us, as scientists, are striking back against this formidable enemy. The fight is on.

Every living organism can be seen as a stream of information—an evolving genetic program shaped by the rules of natural selection. But what happens when this code is hijacked? Cancer behaves like a biological hacker, manipulating life’s original instructions to evolve, adapt, and ultimately subvert the very system that created it.
Thanks to cutting-edge sequencing technologies, artificial intelligence, and advances in cancer research, we are beginning to peer into the mind of this powerful—but not infallible—intruder.
Drawing from information theory, this talk explores how cancer rewrites the code of life, revealing the cryptic logic behind its evolution. By blending science, philosophy, and technology, The Cancer Algorithm offers a new perspective on one of the greatest biomedical challenges of our time—and a deeper reflection on life’s resilience, fragility, and complexity.

I investigated how fucosidases (enzyme) produced by Bifidobacteria longum subspecies infantis breakdown human milk oligosaccharides by monitoring their action on specific glycans and using thin layer chromatography to assess hydrolysis. We assessed both characterised and uncharacterised proteins to determine their specificities. It was carried out in the Crouch Lab apart of a bigger project to close the gap between formula fed and breastfed infant gut microbiomes.