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Sweeteners shown to slow growth of important gut bacteria in lab tests

17 July 2026

MRC Toxicology Unit researchers have shown how commonly-used sweeteners slow the growth of certain gut bacteria. One sweetener in particular – isosteviol – when combined with the anti-depressant duloxetine significantly impaired two important gut bacteria linked to regulating blood sugar and gut health and may affect the...

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Supporting the next generation of toxicologists through the ITTP Summer School

14 July 2026

From 6th–9th July, the MRC Toxicology Unit welcomed students and speakers from across the UK for the annual Integrative Toxicology Training Partnership (ITTP) Summer School. The week was packed with student presentations, expert lectures, career development sessions and networking opportunities, providing an inspiring and...

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Imaging mass spectrometry adds the chemical dimension to cryo-EM

26 May 2026

The Patil lab have collaborated with Tanmay Bharat's group at MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) to combine cryo-EM and mass spectrometry imaging capabilities into a single workflow provides unprecedented spatial and chemical composition detail of biological samples.

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Prof Anne Willis elected as Academy of Medical Sciences Fellow

21 May 2026

Unit Director, Prof Anne Willis, has been elected as a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences. Anne is one of 60 new Fellows announced today. She joins a group of the UK’s leading figures within biomedical and health sciences who have been selected for their outstanding contributions to advancing medical science...

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Prof Kiran Patil recognised as Highly Commended at the Cambridge Independent Science and Technology Awards 2026

13 May 2026

Prof Kiran Patil, Group Leader at the Unit and Co-Founder of Cambiotics, has been recognised as a Highly Commended finalist in the Researcher of the Year category at the 2026 Cambridge Independent Science and Technology Awards.

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MRC Toxicology Unit scientists showcase research at British Toxicology Society Congress 2026

5 May 2026

Researchers from the MRC Toxicology Unit attended last week’s British Toxicology Society (BTS) Congress in Solihull, a key annual event that brings together experts from across toxicology and safety science, spanning academia, industry, and regulatory sectors. The meeting provided an excellent platform for early career...

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Research into the gut-brain axis in early life receives funding

29 April 2026

The Patil group is part of a new collaboration between groups in the US, Japan, Australia, and the UK that aims to understand how changes to our gut microbiome in early life impact neurodevelopment. The project is supported by Wellcome Leap as a part of their Foundation Of a Resilient Microbiome (FORM) initiative. The...

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From one bench to another: Representing early-career scientists at Parliament’s Voice of the Future

24 April 2026

Tyler Myers, an MPhil Candidate in the Patil lab at the Unit, reports back from the Royal Society of Biology’s Voice of the Future event at Parliament, where he served as a guest panelist representing Applied Microbiology International.

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Toxicology research celebrated at Cambridge Festival

2 April 2026

Researchers from the MRC Toxicology Unit returned to the Cambridge Festival 2026 last week to engage school students and families with our research. The Cambridge Festival is an annual event coordinated by the University of Cambridge’s Public Engagement team. It is a multi-disciplinary festival with a mixture of online, on...

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Mass spectrum of amino acids from Kamrad et al.

Bacteria change their behaviour when they have neighbours

31 March 2026

Researchers in the Patil group have found that culturing bacteria together profoundly changes how each species behaves. They performed over a hundred different combinations of two species, observed changes in metabolism and discovered the activation of genetic ‘dark matter’. Our intestine houses a rich community of...

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