Queen Mary University of London

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2025 · 2025-02

South Africa (SA) primarily relies on coal-fired power plants for its electricity supply. At least 12% of the population does not have access to power and roughly 10% cannot adequately afford electricity, particularly in rural areas. There is a particular challenge with reliable electricity supply in SA, as currently there is inability to deliver sufficient power according to the country’s demand. This has led to the implementation of rolling blackout  load shedding events across the country. Load shedding has marked deleterious societal effects. In 2021, the citizens and industries of SA were afflicted by a lack of power and periodic load shedding for over 48 days of the year. There are also unplanned outages (known as non-technical losses) for parts of the network.  During electricity outages, people and households typically use Diesel generators (if they can afford them), others simply remain without power. The use of Diesel generators during load shedding periods has severe detrimental effects, in financial, environmental, and health terms. Diesel generators are also frequently used in other African countries if there is no reliable connection to the power grid. Our project aims to better understand, model, and mitigate the above load shedding situations in SA, working towards sustainable solutions (alternatives to Diesel generators) with no Carbon emissions that can be afforded by all. The overall aim is to model, understand and improve the stability of the African power grid using methods from statistical physics. To model the South African power grid as a whole, we will be using cutting-edge research methods in statistical physics modelling of complex systems, data-driven analysis and machine learning. A central aspect of our work plan will be the analysis of frequency fluctuations in the main grid, the control of microgrids, and the analysis of wind energy statistics, working towards future implementation of zero-emission generators based on wind power, solar panels, and batteries. We will model and analyse the overall demand patterns of electricity consumers in SA in a data-driven way, to finally arrive at practical solutions and concrete mitigation strategies. We aim at solutions that are particularly suited for the poorest in SA. At the same time our approach will contribute to lowering the Carbon footprint of SA in the long-term. The main general objectives of our proposal are as follows: Model and forecast the stability of the SA power grid. Model the fluctuating electricity demand of individual households in a data-driven statistical-physics inspired way. From a complex system point of view, take up the challenge of modelling a system where demand and supply don’t match. Model microgrids that use Diesel generators and/or zero-emission generators during load shedding periods. Measure frequency fluctuations in the grid and feed the data into theoretical statistical-physics based models. Develop statistical physics models that capture the essential features of the dynamics.  Using neural nets, predict wind power fluctuations in SA. Prepare the ground for long-term mitigation strategies and a reliable electricity supply for all (in particular the poorest communities in SA) during load shedding periods and beyond, based on wind power, photovoltaic systems, and batteries.  Foster new scientific collaborations between SA and the UK, dealing with statistical physics-based modelling of power grids. Work together towards a long-term strategy where power is provided in a reliable way, at the same time reducing the Carbon footprint of SA.   

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2025 · 2025-01

This is a research project to establish algebraic and geometric results inspired by a duality originally from string theory. Right before the turn of the century, theoretical physics provided an insight to geometry that led to many modern successes in geometric research. They discovered a duality in string theory had implications and applications to the study of higher dimensional geometry, making answers to classical questions about the geometry of certain six-dimensional spaces accessible. Roughly speaking, for (classical) string theory to provide a potential physical theory for the universe, it requires the universe to be 10-dimensional. Four of these dimensions are the standard 3 space dimensions and one time dimension we experience in our lives, and the other six are a so-called Calabi-Yau manifold. It is still unclear how many Calabi-Yau manifolds there are, and we study them in many different ways, but string theory has given us a deep connection between geometric research disciplines. In particular, a duality in string theory states that each Calabi-Yau manifold has a "mirror" which is another Calabi-Yau manifold so that various geometric and physical properties of one are encapsulated in other geometric and physical properties of its mirror. This phenomenon in mathematics is now known as mirror symmetry. In particular, hard computations and computational open questions in symplectic geometry associated to a Calabi-Yau manifold were now encoded in the algebraic geometry of its mirror. At the onset of mirror symmetry, these algebro-geometric computations were much easier and then they were then used as a guiding principle for what we aim to prove in symplectic geometry. This made century-old problems in enumerative geometry achievable. In 1994, the Fields Medallist Kontsevich provided a conjectural but fully mathematical version of mirror symmetry, encoding the symplectic geometry in what is called a Fukaya category and the algebraic geometry in a derived category of coherent sheaves. This provided a robust formulation in algebra of this physical and geometric phenomenon. Throughout the past three decades, mirror symmetry has expanded and it is now seen that mirror symmetry is not just a relationship amongst Calabi-Yau manifolds, but many more geometric spaces (e.g., Fano manifolds, log Calabi-Yau varieties). However, it has also been extended to the study of singularities. Interestingly, one can model the geometry of certain spaces by constructing a function so that the function is singular along the original space. Then one can deform this model and still obtain a physical model for string theory. This is an example of a Landau-Ginzburg model. Mirror symmetry has been established for Landau-Ginzburg models in a few cases, and it has been shown to be powerful in the study of classical higher-dimensional shapes such as Calabi-Yau manifolds. However, there are still foundational issues to be handled in the study of mirror symmetry for Landau-Ginzburg models. Ideally, we would like to prove a form of Kontsevich's conjecture for Landau-Ginzburg models, but before we do so in general, we will need to understand the algebro-geometric aspects of Landau-Ginzburg models. This project aims to better understand this categorical point of view for Landau-Ginzburg models, proving various structural results on their analogue of the derived category of coherent sheaves above, known as the (matrix) factorisation category.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2025 · 2025-01

Viruses constitute a constant threat for humans as illustrated by the recent pandemic of COVID-19 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV 2). There is therefore an urgent need to understand the defence mechanisms that mammals have at their disposal to combat virus infections so that we can develop new antiviral therapies. In plants, insects and worms, one major defence mechanism is called antiviral RNA interference (RNAi). Viruses can only reproduce after infecting a living cell. Once inside the cell, viruses hijack the cell's machinery to make new copies of their viral genome, which in many cases, are made of ribonucleic acid (RNA). The antiviral RNAi system uses a succession of molecular scissors to destroy viruses within the cells. First a protein from the cell, called Dicer, chops the viral genome when it is being copied into small inhibitory fragments. These small molecules of RNA stick to all the copies of the viral genome and act as tell-tale signs for another protein called Argonaute 2 (Ago2) to cleave these viral RNA copies. In mammals, cells are equipped with another defence mechanism called the interferon (IFN) system, which was long thought to have completely replaced the more ancestral RNAi-based system. However, recent data generated by myself and other labs have demonstrated that this antiviral RNAi is also active in mammals. I further uncovered that the IFN system acts as a brake on antiviral RNAi in certain cell types. These studies were carried out using in vitro cell culture and it is now important to test how much RNAi helps to protect living animals from infections. Firstly, I will address how important this ancestral defence mechanism is by testing how much adult animals cope with infections if their molecular scissors, Ago2, is rendered defective. Secondly, I will assess the full antiviral potential of this RNAi-based defence by releasing the brake imposed by the IFN system and thereby unleashing its activity. For this, we will test how efficient RNAi is at protecting animals from virus infections in mice that lack the IFN system. Thirdly, I will test whether Ago2 cuts not only RNA molecules coming from viruses but also RNA molecules produced by the cells. RNAi activity is particularly high in stem cells, which are cells that are not yet completely specialised for a specific function and therefore can give rise to a number of different cell types. These stem cells are found either in the early embryo (embryonic stem cells, ESCs) or in various tissues of the body (tissue stem cells). Previous work in ESCs as well as in immature eggs (oocytes), both known to have potent RNAi activity, hints toward a possible mechanism by which Ago2 regulates expression of some genes by cleaving so-called messenger RNAs that are essential to relay the genetic information from genes to proteins. Some of these genes are transposons, which are ancient viruses that have invaded mammalian genomes over the course of evolution. These transposons are tightly regulated because they can jump from one part of the genome to another, which can have dramatic consequences if they land in and disrupt cellular genes. We will therefore test the exciting possibility that Ago2 acts as a molecular scissors to regulate gene expression and control transposons in cells endowed with high RNAi activity, i.e. in stem cells. We will examine ESCs and tissue stem cells from animals in which Ago2 scissors activity can be switched off and test the impact on expression of genes and transposons. This research programme tackles fundamental and important questions to elucidate the functional role of this ancestral mode of defence in mammalian immunology. Knowledge generated will improve our understanding and ability to boost natural antiviral mechanisms. Moreover, the results will also be relevant to deciphering the fundamental biology of stem cells.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2025 · 2025-01

New emerging applications demand performance requirements that exceed the capabilities of 5G networks, requiring a rapid evolution towards 6G networks. 6G is expected to offer data rates of the order of Tbps, time responses of the order of submilliseconds, and localization accuracies of the order of sub-centimeter, while meeting united nations’ sustainable development goals. This calls for the deployment of paradigm shifting technologies and design methods, and the use of new frequency bands, including the deployment of reconfigurable metamaterial transceivers, the integration of communication and sensing functionalities, and the migration towards the sub-terahertz spectrum. This will make 6G an extremely complex system to model and optimize. Digital twins (DTs) and machine learning (ML) are two vital technologies to tackle the modeling and optimization complexity of 6G. A DT is a virtual replica of the 6G physical network. DTs are essential to model complex systems in real time, providing valuable insights into their behavior and performance, as well as for generating enormous amounts of training data. ML provides advanced analytics and decision-making capabilities, enabling 6G communication systems to self-optimize, self-configure, and self-heal. The integration of DTs and ML offers a powerful approach for modeling, simulating, and optimizing 6G communication networks. It is expected to lead to the creation of a highly intelligent and dynamic network environment, where physical and virtual objects interact seamlessly, and where decisions are made and executed in real time. TWIN6G is the first-of-its-kind staff exchange research and transfer-of-knowledge program whose aim is to build the world’s first open-access and open-source digital twin emulator to design 6G networks, integrating accurate physical models for emerging technologies and physics-based ML designs for dynamic and real-time network optimization.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2025 · 2025-01

This fellowship researches geometric problems made accessible by string theory. In string theory, one views subatomic particles as strings, not points, requiring the universe to have six extra small dimensions in the form of what is known as a Calabi-Yau shape. If we trace the string as it moves through time, it creates a (Riemann) surface. String theory has pointed out mathematical structure that we initially did not see. Now, mathematics informed by string theory has created great advances that has pushed the boundaries of geometry, algebra and even string theory itself. The most clear way in which string theory has revolutionised modern geometry is in enumerative geometry. An example of an enumerative problem is "How many lines in the cartesian plane go through two given points?" The answer is something we have known since secondary school: there's a unique straight line between two points. We now ask: "How many Riemann surfaces / strings (of a given degree or genus) are in a Calabi-Yau shape?" This is a classical problem in geometry, going back in some form to the 19th century. Such questions were the basis to Hilbert's 15th problem posed in 1900. Answering enumerative problems like this one helps us understand higher-dimensional spaces, a key problem for geometers. Here, we use modern ideas to tackle problems over a century old, while also studying contemporary variants. Today, we count Riemann surfaces by using dualities in string theory to encode the counts into multivariate integration. Such a relation is the manifestation of a field called mirror symmetry. This duality exchanges the data of two different Calabi-Yau shapes using different types of geometry: (1) the enumerative geometry that sits squarely in the field of symplectic geometry and (2) the multivariate integration which is placed in the field of algebraic geometry. The two Calabi-Yau shapes that have this exchange of data are called mirrors. Mirror symmetry has been one of the key catalysts of modern geometry for the past thirty years, and is only gaining momentum. A key question in mirror symmetry is: given a Calabi-Yau shape, how do I construct the mirror? More broadly, one can ask how to construct the mirror for any symplectic manifold and its deformations. In the past 10 years, there has been work in trying to understand how mirror symmetry works for all deformations of a given Calabi-Yau shape. Roughly speaking, when one deforms a Calabi-Yau shape too hard, one ends up with not a space anymore, but a complex-valued function known as a Landau-Ginzburg model. The geometry of the Calabi-Yau shape is now encapsulated in this function, where it is easier to compute. The analogous theory for counting Riemann surfaces for Landau-Ginzburg models, known as FJRW theory or quantum singularity theory, was developed in 2013; however, there is no systematic way in any large generality for how one can construct the mirror to a Landau-Ginzburg model. This fellowship aims to solve the key question above for Landau-Ginzburg models, providing a way to construct the mirror to a Landau-Ginzburg model directly. In effect, this will provide a more 'global' approach to constructing mirrors, allowing for one to study deformations of symplectic spaces more effectively.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2025 · 2025-01

In an era of eroding democratic freedoms and withering trust in electoral democracy, innovations in political participation are pivotal to democracy's survival in the 21st century. Cities have been a key source of urban participatory innovations (UPIs): new practices and mechanisms through which citizens inform and reshape democratic institutions. UPIs include both grassroots attempts to use physical (e.g. public squares) and digital (e.g. social media) urban spaces to build trust and reshape democracy, as well as institutional reforms such as open government and participatory design of institutions. Yet cities are also sites of political conflict and deep inequalities that express the failures of the democratic project. PAR-CITY brings together, for the first time, a unique interdisciplinary set of 25 researchers to examine how and why cities respond to the key democratic challenges of our times. PAR-CITY will undertake a relational comparison of 7 major cities (covering 4 regions across the global south and north): where we have existing empirical research and established teams. Each city has been chosen due to its promotion of one or more UPIs in recent years and will address the same central research questions in order to achieve three objectives. First, PAR-CITY will establish the empirical significance of cities for responding to the global challenges of democracy, governance and trust (DGT). Second, the project will examine the role of digital media, tools and technologies in eroding or strengthening DGT in large cities. Third, the project will advance concepts, models and theories of DGT through the central notion of UPI. At the end of the three-year period, the team will have shifted disciplinary landscapes by centering the role of cities and UPIs in studies of DGT, drawing new relations between disciplines and geographical contexts, producing a co-authored book, several journal articles and a digital platform.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2025 · 2025-01

The world's largest militaries are finally acknowledging a threat to all peoples and nations, which has no regard for borders or territories, economic or political interests: the climate crisis. Militaries contribute to the deepening crisis through their intensive use of fossil fuels and energy. Several global militaries and the wider defence sector have recently pledged to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to support governments to achieve net zero. These militaries aim to adopt low-carbon technologies, for example, to support the electrification of military bases. However, a shift to decarbonised militaries on this scale, will have knock-on environmental effects, often overlooked in national climate change policies. It will lead to increased demand for critical minerals used in low-carbon technologies, adding to geopolitical tensions over supply. It is vital that we are properly informed about the impacts of critical mineral extraction, so that we can consider how to minimise negative consequences and increase the positive outcomes. While emerging research has helped us understand the multi-layered issues that critical mineral extraction plays in other industrial sectors, such as energy and mobile technology, we still know very little about military use of critical minerals. We know even less about the unintended social and environmental consequences of their extensive global supply chains. This research is designed to change that. We will examine the social and environmental footprint of critical mineral extraction for defence purposes, so that companies, policymakers and local communities have the information to consider different approaches to decarbonisation. Our aim is to explore the socio-environmental trade-offs of different supply chains and the unique climate-security and geopolitical challenges facing the defence sector. In this project, we will examine the UK Ministry of Defence's (MoD) use of critical minerals, and different sourcing options. Specifically, we will analyse the geopolitical, economic, and socio-environmental trade-offs in military extraction of lithium and graphite. We will examine impacts at three sites: an offshore Graphite mine sites, Vatomina and Sahamamy, in Madagascar; a domestic lithium mine in Penryn, Cornwall, UK; and a critical mineral recycling company in Tavistock, Devon, UK. These sites are in areas of high biodiversity, with local populations that rely on local natural resources. They will enable us to compare different approaches to mineral sourcing in the UK and abroad. We will work directly with the MoD, mineral companies, civil society groups, policymakers and local communities, using a mix of research methods. We will develop new ways of understanding the environmental impacts of military operations. This includes a novel Material Flow Analysis and Social Life Cycle Analysis, which will enable us to follow the critical minerals from their source to their finished military products, tracing their social and environmental impacts along the way. We will use these findings to pinpoint 'hotspots' of carbon emissions and social and environmental impacts, such as water pollution, deforestation and population displacement. We will also interview mine operators, workers and local community members to deepen our understanding of socio-environmental impacts. Throughout the research, policymakers and defence officials will be able to access our emerging findings on a user-friendly, open-source datalab. This will show where critical minerals are sourced, and their environmental and social footprints. We will ensure that insights from the datalab inform decarbonisation policy by engaging with the MoD and policymakers to review the significance of data for defence procurement strategy.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-12

Providing world-class support and creating a world-class research environment for our researchers are key components of three pillars that inform Queen Mary's 2030 Research and Innovation Strategy. Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) continues to make significant capital investment to support researchers within the EPSRC remit and to enable access to state-of-the-art research infrastructure and equipment. We intend to use this grant to upgrade or add to the supporting infrastructure of a number of key pieces of core equipment within Queen Mary. These invest to save activities will maximise usage, increasing capability and expanding the lifespan of four key pieces of equipment; 1. Upgrade of manipulator within FIB instrument for improved sample preparation. The investment in this supporting infrastructure will ensure we maximise our use of a new Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) microscope. TEM facilities are used by over 50 academics across the School of Engineering Material Science (SEMS), School of Physical and Chemical Science (SPCS), School of Biological and Behavioural Science (SBBS) and School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) in the Faculty of Science and Engineering (S&E). Research teams are currently using a sub-optimal manipulator which is producing sub-optimal lamella preparations or is resulting in academics needing to repeat testing.  This investment will lead to significant improvements in sample preparation.  In particular, the ability to measure the nanoscale structure and properties of matter will enhance the excellent materials science research undertaken at QMUL in areas from Green Energy materials to Fundamental Science. 2. Upgrade of existing particle image velocimetry system to include installation of laser safety system. The investment in this upgrade will allow us to measure the velocity of the air flow around a test object, a capability that the laboratory is currently not equipped to directly measure. This will provide a step change in the ability of QMUL to conduct world-leading research in the EPSRC research area, “Fluid Dynamics and Aerodynamics”. By providing the capability to obtain high-quality velocity data in wind tunnel tests in a shared multi-user environment, the system will be essential in supporting at least four early career academics. 3. Upgrade of an existing Raman system (Renishaw InVia) to include 532 nm laser excitation. The Renishaw InVia Raman gas lasers are at the end of their useful life and need to be replaced/upgraded to maintain system operations. The upgrade of the system by replacing one of the gas lasers (HeCd 442nm) by a semiconductor-based laser source (532nm) with a useful life of 10-15 years will ensure uninterrupted access to this critical research facility. 4. Upgrade of the collector block for the existing Thermo Delta IRMA to measure H2. The growing cross disciplinary renewable energy research at QMUL needs to be able to measure hydrogen, and there is currently no cost effective means to do this accurately and rapidly. The growing need for sustainable energy has made sustainable hydrogen production a key part of Queen Mary research.  For comparatively little cost, the Thermo Delta plus IRMS system could be upgraded to facilitate research across a broad range of inter-departmental energy and environmental sciences.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-12

Modular forms are highly symmetric functions that are central to modern number theory and have links to many branches of mathematics. For instance, Sir Andrew Wiles' proof of Fermat's Last Theorem in 1995 relied on a deep connection between modular forms and elliptic curves. Modular forms and their generalisations known as automorphic forms constitute one of the most active areas of mathematical research today and have been studied by several Fields medallists. In his visionary 1916 paper, Ramanujan conjectured certain bounds on the Fourier coefficients of modular forms. These bounds were proved by Deligne in 1974 using tools from algebraic geometry, a deep work that won him the Fields medal. For more general automorphic forms, understanding the growth of Fourier coefficients remains a difficult and important open problem. One of the most important classes of automorphic forms are the Siegel modular forms of degree n (where n is a positive integer). Siegel modular forms of degree 1 are just the usual modular forms. Siegel modular forms of higher degree were first investigated by Carl Ludwig Siegel in the 1930s and are of great significance in number theory and the Langlands programme, and also have applications to physics and information technology. To give an example, Wiles' proof of Fermat's last theorem relies on a deep connection between modular forms and elliptic curves; the generalization of this fact to surfaces involves Siegel modular forms of degree 2. The objective of this project is twofold. First, by deriving a new formula, we will prove a special case of a famous conjecture of Resnikoff and Saldana on bounds for Fourier coefficient bounds of Siegel cusp forms of degree 2. This is a deep and important conjecture (open for almost 50 years) with applications to representation numbers of quadratic forms. Secondly, this project will serve as a feasibility study for extending our results to Siegel cusp forms of general degree n. What makes this project unique is that it will need a synthesis of different techniques, yet is concrete and feasible, is deliverable in the short time-frame, and will have substantial impact. The overarching theme of this project is that key integrals of automorphic forms (known as periods) can be used to prove new bounds on their Fourier coefficients. Underlying this is the fact that periods have close links to objects known as L-functions lying at the heart of two Millennium prize problems. The proposed work will provide a breakthrough in our understanding of Fourier coefficients of Siegel cusp forms of degree 2 by applying the theme of periods and L-functions in a highly novel way. Building on prior works of the PL, we will develop ground-breaking approaches at the interface of algebra, arithmetic and analysis, which will allow us to make advances that were previously inaccessible and will forge new links between different mathematical areas. Our proposed methodology will build upon a number of recent papers of the PL as well as a key recent paper of Xue. The project will have significant academic impact and will benefit researchers from the EPSRC research areas Number Theory and Algebra. The mathematical community will benefit from our discovery of important new results as well as our development of new tools which will open up several avenues for further exploration around periods and L-functions of higher degree.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-12

Antibiotic resistance is one of the major threats to human health with an estimated cost of $1 trillion by 2050 if not effectively combatted. Just in 2019, antibiotic resistant bacteria killed more people than HIV/AIDS or malaria. Addressing this global problem requires a better fundamental understanding of how bacteria respond to environmental stress on the single-cell level and how antibiotics ultimately kill bacterial cells. For simple organisms such as bacteria, cell shape and size are crucial for growth, nutrient uptake, and motility. However, the biophysical and molecular mechanisms of how bacteria control their biomechanics and morphology to readily adapt to stress conditions such as antibiotics, are still unknown. Despite the traditional view, bacterial cells have highly plastic cell shapes and can dynamically transform their sizes to access more nutrients to optimise their growth. For example, in nutrient-poor conditions, bacteria increase cell surface area to volume ratio (S/V) to increase nutrient flux and effectively increase intracellular nutrient concentration. Also, when bacterial cells are exposed to stress conditions such as antibiotics, a decrease in S/V provides a beneficial cell shape transformation for reducing intercellular antibiotic concentration and lowering the damaging effect of antibiotics. Therefore, bacterial cell shape and size transformation represent a novel antibiotic-resistant pathway that facilitates bacterial adaptation to antibiotic treatments - requiring our immediate attention. However, how bacteria dynamically harness their morphology with antibiotic perturbations to optimise growth and proliferation is still an open question. Furthermore, how bacteria regulate their nano-scale molecular machinery to achieve robust morphological transformations under extreme osmotic pressures remains also unknown. This proposal focuses on developing novel experimental, multi-scale computational and theoretical approaches to better understand how bacteria control their shape and size under antibiotic stress and how antibiotics disrupt bacterial cell biomechanics ultimately causing bacterial cell death. One of the main hypotheses of this proposal is that when bacteria are exposed to high antibiotic concentrations, bacterial cell death originates in the unbalanced volume and surface area synthesis. Using single-cell imaging and image analysis we will extract bacterial drastic cell shape and size transformations during antibiotic exposure - directly monitoring unbalanced bacterial growth responsible for deadly cell lysis. Drug candidates that effectively induce unbalanced growth will be supplemented with highly effective DNA-targeting antibiotics formulating effective antibiotic cocktails. Therefore, in this proposal we seek synergistic drug combinations to optimise treatment protocols to effectively kill bacterial cells. To understand how bacteria change their shape and size on the molecular level, we will develop molecular dynamics simulations of bacterial cell envelope that will identify relevant molecular players responsible for robust cell-shape control. This computational model will reveal molecular mechanisms behind unbalanced growth and how bacteria control their S/V ratio at the nano-scale level. By combining experimental and computational approaches, we will develop a research framework to prevent the emergence of antibiotic resistance mediated by bacterial cell shape transformations. Therefore, this research will address the urgent and timely problem of antibiotic resistance and will reveal how disruption of biophysical and biochemical pathways induce bacterial cell death, revealing basic design principles for the development of new antibiotic treatments and adjuvant therapies.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-12

Next-generation wireless networks are poised to leverage extremely large-scale antenna arrays (ELAAs) and higher frequencies. This shift towards ELAAs in high-frequency bands signifies not only a quantitative upgrade in antenna size and carrier frequency but also a qualitative shift from the conventional far-field (FF) transmission paradigm to near-field (NF) transmission. The expanded antenna aperture and shortened wavelength associated with ELAAs extend the boundaries of what is considered the near field, an area that has traditionally been overlooked in traditional wireless communications. Within this context, exploring near-field transmission (NFT) becomes particularly intriguing, representing an underexplored domain of significant interest, especially in the context of next-generation 6G systems. This project is driven by the goal of developing a practical analytical framework and efficient resource management algorithms to enhance NFT. It is structured into three key components. The first part is dedicated to designing streamlined, low-complexity transmission strategies that boost the spectral efficiency (SE) of NF communications (NFC) systems. In the second part, we delve into the multifaceted capabilities of future wireless networks within the NF domain, with a specific focus on integrating NF into dual-functional sensing and communications (DFSAC) systems. Here, we aim to harness the NF effect to optimize sensing accuracy, reduce spectral resource demands, and enhance the energy efficiency (EE) of DFSAC systems. The third part establishes a comprehensive link between NFT and its FF counterpart, offering a holistic perspective on future applications. In this segment, we leverage intelligent antenna selection methods to augment both SE and EE within versatile hybrid-field (HF) systems. This project catalyzes fostering collaborations among telecommunication operators, service providers, and over-the-top providers, facilitating advancements in the field.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-12

With AI-driven advances, the rapidly developing field of voice technology (VT) has transformed European life through voice assistants, text-to-speech systems, and cochlear implants. However, severe challenges remain in processing paralinguistic information such as identity, emotional state or health in voices. The Voice Communication Sciences (VoCS) project is an ambitious initiative to address these challenges and advance Europe's position at the forefront of VT. VoCS aims to train a new generation of scientists with interdisciplinary expertise in Voice Communication Sciences. The project gathers a consortium of 21 academic and non-academic partners across 12 countries, collaborating to provide a world-class training-by-research program. The primary goal is to equip 17 doctoral candidates (DCs) with integrated knowledge spanning cognitive neuroscience, acoustics, phonetics, and computing science, via a unique combination of hands-on research training in labs, with cross-sectorial workshops in fundamental, technological, and clinical domains relevant to voice communication. The project's innovative aspects lie in its comprehensive approach to voice processing, bridging disciplines from neuroscience to engineering. The VoCS research program is structured around three scientific objectives: (1) advancing basic knowledge of natural voice processing, exploring paralinguistic information in voices; (2) building on these insights to design more natural and flexible synthetic voices; (3) transferring this knowledge into user-oriented applications in health and forensics, including the improvement of voice perception for hearing-impaired individuals, advancements in forensic speaker comparison methods, and the development of tools to combat deepfake speech. VoCS aims to contribute not only to scientific knowledge but also to the exponential growth of the VT industry by creating a network of skilled experts shaping the future of VT in Europe.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-11

The genomes of organisms accumulate changes with the passage of time, recording the evolutionary history of species divergences and extinctions as a timepiece does. By sequencing genomes and integrating information from fossil records, scientists can reconstruct evolutionary trees and calibrate them to geological time. This molecular-clock dating approach has led to spectacular results by leveraging information from sequenced genomes, greatly enriching our understanding of the macroevolutionary process of species diversifications through time, and the possible driving factors such as major geological events and paleoclimate changes. Bayesian inference provides a flexible framework for integrating various sources of uncertainty in molecular clock dating analyses, such as uncertainties in the rate of molecular evolution over time, in the age and placement of fossils on species phylogenies, and in estimated molecular branch lengths from genomic data. However, Bayesian methods are computationally expensive as they require stochastic MCMC sampling to integrate over the uncertainties, and thus they are unable to handle the deluge of genomic data. This computational limitation is a major problem because genome-scale datasets are needed to achieve high precision in estimated evolutionary timescales, which allows the testing of precise evolutionary hypotheses that could never be addressed with the crude time estimates obtained with small molecular datasets. Our team has a track record of successfully developing Bayesian methods to infer evolutionary timescales, with our software packages, BPP and MCMCtree, being widely used by academic beneficiaries to reconstruct such timescales. The overarching aim of this proposal is to develop new models and algorithms for efficient inference of evolutionary timescales using large genome-scale datasets, and integrate these new methods into our existing software. We will develop (1) models that account for sequence errors (to accommodate DNA degradation) and integrate dated samples for analysis of ancient genomes, (2) cross-bracing calibrations to leverage information in gene duplications and horizontal gene transfer events for inferring ancient timescales, and (3) efficient MCMC sampling algorithms for analysis of species-rich phylogenomic datasets. The improved algorithms will make it possible to analyse large datasets with thousands of genomes, from the Darwin Tree of Life and Earth BioGenome projects, as well as helping reduce the carbon footprint of computational analyses. Finally, we will use our newly developed technologies to tackle three important case studies: (1) The evolution of human populations and other hominids, by integrating analysis of ancient and modern genomes within the multi-species coalescent model with introgression, (2) inferring the species-rich Tree of Life of Tetrapods (mammals, birds, crocodiles, turtles, lepidosaurs, and amphibians) in the context of three major past extinction events (end-Permian, Triassic-Jurassic, and end-Cretaceous), and the rapid global warming event during the Eocene-Palaeocene Thermal Maximum, and (3) inferring the Tree of Life of Eukaryotes, by integrating information from ancient gene duplication and horizontal gene transfer events, which will help reduce uncertainty in the timing some of the deepest speciation events in the history of Life on Earth.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-11

The ability of bats to act as natural reservoir hosts of zoonotic viruses has been attributed to aspects of their innate immune systems. In particular, bats appear to detect and respond to pathogens differently compared to humans, allowing them to tolerate viruses that are harmful to other mammals. Studies to date have identified several lineage-specific mechanisms responsible for dampened immune and inflammatory responses in bats; however, these have mainly focused on a few putative reservoir species and their relatives, representing ~1% of bat species. It is therefore not known whether the vast majority of bat species (which span >60 million years of evolution) also possess immune mechanisms for tolerating viruses, and, if so, whether these might predispose them to viral infections and potential involvement in future zoonotic spillovers. We will conduct the first large-scale comparative study of bat immune adaptations by screening key innate immunity genes across hundreds of species, spanning this group's full evolutionary and ecological diversity. To test how putative molecular adaptations (amino acid changes) alter immune responses to viral infection, we will run cell-based assays, focusing on 3 key proteins (STING, NLRP3 and MyD88) that represent different effector pathways in innate immunity. Finally, we will examine whether the presence of impactful molecular adaptations in these and other loci can explain known variation in bat-virus associations.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-11

The motion of eukaryotic cells in a fluid medium, such as blood, lies at the heart of fundamental biological processes and underlies various pathologies, from infections to cancer metastasis. In the flow, cells experience stresses and deformations that heavily influence their behaviour and function. However, accurate mechanical modelling of the motion, deformation and stresses of suspended eukaryotic cells has been a classical challenge, due to the complex viscoelastic structure of the cells, and the nonlinear interactions between the cells and suspension fluid. The fellowship will tackle this challenge and it will develop a general mechanical modelling framework to enable high-fidelity computational predictions of the motion, deformation and stresses of human eukaryotic cells suspended in a flowing fluid medium. The fundamental development will make possible a wealth of new exciting research, ranging from understanding the flow and stresses of circulating tumour cells in the cardiovascular system during cancer metastasis, to designing next-generation microfluidic technologies that can isolate targeted cells from blood with high purity without using fluorescent or magnetic tags. The fellowship will provide a unique opportunity for a talented young researcher to acquire essential new skills and to develop collaborations with EU research leaders.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-11

We have detected over 5000 exoplanets in more than 3800 planetary systems. One of the most striking features of the exoplanet population is the remarkable diversity in planet compositions, system architectures and host star characteristics. The origin of this diversity, however, is poorly understood. This is primarily because the vast majority of planets detected to date are reasonably old and have already evolved to become mature planetary systems. It is extremely challenging to study evolutionary processes using systems in which they have already occurred and finished. Furthermore, most planetary systems do not possess measured ages and the vast majority of those that do are neither robust nor precise. Our predominantly old and poorly age dated exoplanet population severely limits our ability to understand how planetary systems evolve into the diverse population we observe. Significant progress can be made, however, by studying young transiting planet systems (in which evolutionary processes are ongoing), and robustly age dating stars and their planets across the full life cycle of planetary systems. I will (i) build the first statistically powerful sample of young transiting planets with the TESS space mission, (ii) characterise high-value systems in detail by measuring planet masses, orbital obliquities and atmospheric loss rates, (iii) develop a novel method to robustly age date stars (and hence planetary systems) between 1 Myr and 10 Gyr, and (iv) draw these complementary avenues together to construct the first planet occurrence rates as a function of time and to perform the first population level tests of the processes driving planetary system evolution. This programme therefore provides the missing link between our theories of planet formation and early evolution and the mature population of exoplanets. Furthermore, my age dating framework will have far reaching implications for exoplanet, stellar and Galactic astrophysics.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-11

This grant supports the IRIS Federation deliver compute to its science activities by placing hardware at GridPP sites.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-11

AMR is a global threat needing urgent coordinated actions via a transdisciplinary approach with pooling of resources and research efforts to expedite practical solutions for new - diagnostics, therapies and vaccines - the three lines of defence against AMR. In 2016, the O'Neill report 'analysed the global problem of rising drug resistance and proposed concrete actions'. However, almost a decade later, without 'fit-for-purpose' diagnostics, the report's recommendation of diagnostics-guided antimicrobial treatments by 2020 remains unrealistic even today. In addition, to have a meaningful impact in controlling AMR, One Health approach is crucial for all AMR interventions including diagnostics - as emergence and spread of AMR is interlinked between humans, animals, plants and the environment. Animals raised for food account for 73% of global antimicrobial use, and >75% of human pathogens detected (last 3 decades) have originated in animals, highlighting the context and the need for diagnostics for domesticated animals. Plant health depends heavily on fungicides for the control of fungal and oomycete diseases. However, resistance against multiple fungicide classes has led to control problems in key diseases in wheat, barley, potatoes, and fruits. There are concerns about the impact of agricultural fungicides on antifungal resistance in human pathogens, especially Aspergillus fumigatus. Thus, diagnostics are needed for timely detection to prevent spread. Environment Chemical pollutants, heavy metals, antimicrobials, co-selectors and pathogens and pesticides - all drive selection of AMR, thus needing prompt and precise detection and control. Clinical need for appropriate diagnostics is well-documented. AMR from Bacterial pathogens are associated with ~5 million AMR deaths annually and the threat from fungal pathogens and their resistances are high too. Hence, our Network's focus is One Health diagnostics. While the UK is well-placed to meet the scientific challenges of developing such technologies and become an international leader, a step-change in our approach is needed if we are to transition the country's scientific excellence into a coordinated drive to develop practical solutions that can be implemented and adopted across these sectors. Thus, through a transdisciplinary team, ARREST-AMR will support the successful development and smooth journey of technologies from research labs to adoption and use in 'real life' through 5 objectives: Identify 'needs': Across all the sectors (i) identify areas (such as diseases, pathogens, chemical co-selectors) where the diagnostics are needed the most (ii) what types of technologies are needed (iii) where should they be placed to provide the most useful information at the right time and at the right cost. To achieve this, the Network will conduct extensive stakeholder engagements across all sectors. Innovate: Experts such as scientists, engineers, clinicians, veterinarians, crop-protection professionals, experts in One Health and biologists who work in fundamental biology of AMR - will together develop research projects to contribute to better understanding of AMR, with the knowledge-generation focussed to develop new products that address the 'needs'; and help existing UK technologies improve their diagnostic performance/economic utility and reconcile the 'needs'. Evaluate: Supporting with standardised approaches for performance, economic and utility evidence generation for each sector will engender a culture of translational-focussed research. Implement: We will support translational aspects including Regulatory and behavioural aspects, identifying facilitators and barriers for adoption. Cross-pollinate: Will help exchange of best practices, needs, regulatory aspects and product applications within and outside - their sectors and the Network.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-10

Sustainable and high-performance energy storage devices are an immediate need in today's world to achieve the UN's sustainability goal of affordable and clean energy. One such energy storage device is the supercapacitor (SC), which can exhibit longer lifetimes, high power densities, faster charging and discharging and safer operation than batteries. The performance, efficiency, as well as the cost of SCs, are critically dependent upon the electrode material used. Historically, electrodes based on carbonaceous, or transition metal oxides have been used, but respectively suffer from lower theoretical capacitance and poor cycling stability. To fully develop the potential of SCs, sustainable and innovative electrode materials are required. In this regard, there has been much interest in 2- dimensional (2D) MXene materials, with general formula Mn+1XnTx where M is a transition metal (typically Ti), X is C and or N and Tx are surface functional groups. These materials combine the properties of carbon-based materials and the efficient pseudocapacitive mechanisms of transition metal oxides. Nevertheless, some salient aspects of MXenes are still unexplored, such as the synthesis of non-Ti based and related hybrid MXenes for SC applications. The proposed project will focus on little or unexplored non-Ti containing MXenes (e.g., Co, Ni, Mn, V), novel carbonitride and hybrid high entropy MXenes. Green synthesis approaches will be investigated to prepare novel and hybrid MXenes for the development of sustainable high performance SCs. To address the need for miniaturised SCs, MXene-based micro-supercapacitors (MSCs) will also be fabricated. The project has been carefully designed based on the researcher's expertise in SC electrode materials development and interdigital micro/nano electrode fabrication, along with the supervisor's extensive experience in the synthesis and characterization of energy materials, to lead to the development of sustainable high-performance SCs and MSCs.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Our vision is to develop enabling organ-chip technology to accelerate the time from medicines discovery to deployment supporting therapeutic innovation. This will be achieved through 3D bioprinting and micro-manufacturing techniques developed specifically for use within the complex environment of microfluidic organ-chips. Our vision and approach are supported by partnership with major biopharma, Organ-chip technology providers and by the UK regulators as well as wider community engagement with over 50 companies and other stake holders via Queen Mary's Centre for Predictive in vitro Models. The development pipeline for new therapeutics is failing due to inadequate pre-clinical testing methodologies and a reliance on in vivo animal testing. This has a significant environmental and sustainability impact with wasted energy and resources as well as associated time and money. It is estimated that over 90% of drugs entering clinical trials ultimate fail, wasting 10-15 years and over £1billion for each failed therapeutic. Furthermore, adverse drug reactions are estimated to kill 10,000 people a year in the UK alone. Unless we solve this challenge, industry will not be able to deliver on the exciting promise of new therapeutics. An organ-chip is a bioengineered system containing living cells in which key physical, chemical and biological aspects of a living organ are recreated in the laboratory to recapitulate in vivo behaviour. This technology has the potential to address the attrition in the medicine development pipeline by providing the analytical platforms that are essential for testing new therapeutics and predicting scale up performance in the clinic. In the USA, the FDA Modernisation Act in 2022 mandated that organs-chips can now be used to evaluate drug safety and efficacy as an alternative to animal testing. However, micro-manufacturing techniques are urgently needed to recreate the essential tissue/organ heterogeneity. This research programme will develop innovative micro-manufacturing approaches to spatially pattern tissues within organ-chips, producing models that replicate the complex intra- and inter- tissue heterogeneity, gradients and interfaces. Building on emerging technologies of light-based patterning, buoyancy/diffusion fabrication and 3D bioprinting, we will spatially pattern matrix niche environments, cell populations and mechanical and biochemical differentiation cues to create tissue patterning. Our novel approaches will overcome complex technical challenges including accessibility, scalability, size limitations, microfluidic boundary conditions, 3D spatial control, in situ cross linking, biological compatibility and sterility. We will therefore provide a toolbox of validated, industry-ready methodologies which will facilitate models that more accurately represent their in vivo homologues, increasing predictive power for pre-clinical testing. This in turn will stimulate a more efficient, affordable and sustainable therapeutic pipeline with accelerated delivery of safer and more effective medicines from bench to bedside. As demonstrator exemplars of this spatial tissue patterning technology, we will deliver a suite of musculoskeletal (MSK) organ-chip models aligned with partner needs. By developing micro-manufacturing spatial tissue patterning methodologies, we will enable next generation organ-chip models which industry desperately needs to accelerate the medicines revolution. This programme is therefore critical in providing a more efficient and sustainable preclinical testing pipeline to deliver safer and more effective therapies from bench to bedside.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

KidneyGenAfrica: A Partnership to Deliver Research and Training Excellence in Genomics of Kidney Disease in Africa. The overarching aim is to establish a sustainable Pan-African Partnership that will facilitate multi-centre research into the genetic determinants of kidney disease in Africa, leveraging the strengths and resources of different institutions and researchers across Africa, which could ultimately lead to improved kidney disease diagnosis, treatment, and prevention strategies. To develop this framework, it is essential there are appropriate mechanisms for investigators to define and develop multi-centre research programmes and share data, information and resources, and enhance capacity.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Doctoral Training Partnerships: a range of postgraduate training is funded by the Research Councils. For information on current funding routes, see the common terminology at https://www.ukri.org/apply-for-funding/how-we-fund-studentships/. Training grants may be to one organisation or to a consortia of research organisations. This portal will show the lead organisation only.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Neutrinos are the least understood particles we know of. They have extremely small mass and rarely interact, yet they are extremely abundant and critical for our universe's evolution. Neutrinos come in three flavours (electron, muon and tau neutrinos), and since the 1990s, we have known that a neutrino can change its flavour as it travels. This phenomenon is called neutrino oscillations. There are still two big questions left to address about neutrinos. The first is that, surprisingly, we do not yet know which is the lightest neutrino-finding that the third neutrino is heavier than the other two would have implications for many Grand Unified Theories that seek to explain particle interactions as different manifestations of a single force. If that is not the case, how we think about the natural forces in the universe will be completely changed. The second question is whether neutrinos and antineutrinos oscillate in the same way. Answering this question might solve one of the biggest mysteries about the universe's origin: the Big Bang should have created equal amounts of matter and antimatter, but today, everything around us, from the smallest microorganism to the largest stellar object, is made almost entirely by matter. If neutrinos and antineutrinos oscillate following different rules, they might be the reason why the universe evolved to be dominated by matter rather than antimatter, hence allowing the existence of stars, planets and even us. This award allowed me to use a coherent strategy to start solving these two mysteries, following the ambitious programme of the two best equipped experiments to answer them: NOvA and DUNE. NOvA is a world-leading long baseline neutrino experiment: an intense beam of muon neutrinos is produced at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (FNAL), near Chicago, and directed 810 km away towards Minnesota. NOvA uses a near and a far detector to measure the flavour of the neutrinos produced at FNAL, and the flavour of the neutrinos that arrive in Minnesota. DUNE is the future world flagship experiment for neutrino oscillation measurements. It is fully funded, approved by the US Department of Energy, and currently in construction. DUNE will use the intense muon neutrino beam from FNAL and direct it 1300 km away towards South Dakota. DUNE will use a more powerful beam, a much bigger far detector, and better detector technology than NOvA. While the first part of the fellowship focussed on making neutrino interaction measurements, the renewal proposal focusses on their impact on neutrino oscillation analyses and the development of specific techniques for measuring neutrino oscillation parameters. As neutrinos can only be detected when they interact with the matter in the detector and produce other particles, theoretical neutrino interaction models are currently the cause of the most significant systematic uncertainties in neutrino oscillation analyses. My strategy is to exploit the measurements made during the first part of the fellowship to make these experiments more sensitive to neutrino oscillation parameters - my team and I will do this both within the NOvA experiment and the NOvA-T2K joint oscillation analysis. With significant more data than the previous version of these analyses, these experiments have the potential to understand which neutrino is the lightest. Focussing on the future of neutrino experiments, my team and I will develop a new statistical technique to extract neutrino oscillation parameters, to ensure we hit the ground running once DUNE starts taking data. Finally, we will play a leading role in the installation of the DUNE far detector and perform checks to ensure the data taken is of the highest quality. All of these objectives will ensure that my team and I are at the forefront of these neutrino ground-breaking discoveries.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

This is the replacement of the research project funded under STFC consolidated grant ST/X000656/1 that was abandoned due to the PI's move to Queen Mary University of London. The focus of the research is on theoretical aspects of strongly coupled quantum mechanical systems and string theory. Basically, all the objectives which were funded under ST/X000656/1 are now pursued under this grant. Taking into account progress made since the application to the STFC consolidated grant in 2022, we will focus on the following objectives: -- Analysis of emergent holographic geometry in terms of matrix degrees of freedom, including the understanding the connection to other approaches and quantum information theoretic aspects. [Medium risk] -- Analysis of low-energy quantum states of matrix models. I will take a few different approaches including variational Monte Carlo methods and quantum simulations. In addition, I will develop quantum algorithms for future devices. This objective is directly related to the emergent holographic geometry. [Higher risk] -- Lattice Monte Carlo simulation of BFSS matrix models in the M-theory parameter region. Attention is paid to the stability of the confined phase and the details of the first-order confinement/deconfinement transition that is likely to be the dual of string/M theory transitions. [Medium risk] -- Study of the orbifold lattice formulation of QCD to make the quantum simulations more feasible than the approaches based on the Kogut-Susskind formulation. [Lower risk]

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Alzheimer's disease is a serious brain condition and the leading cause of dementia. This condition affects memory, language, and thinking abilities to a degree that significantly disrupts daily life. By 2050, an estimated 153 million individuals worldwide are projected to be living with dementia. Despite promising new drug treatments for early-stage dementia, prevention will be the mainstay of national and international policy responses for the foreseeable future. Expanding upon my PhD investigations into the psychological underpinnings of dementia risk, I will collaborate with Dementia and Neurodegenerative Policy Research Unit (DeNPRU-QM), to author two papers targeted at research and policy audiences. For the first, I will author the consensus statement arising from a major national dementia prevention conference. Despite certain factors being linked to heightened dementia risk (e.g., obesity, depression), there is a notable lack of evidence regarding the clinical and cost-effectiveness of specific strategies for modifying these risk factors to prevent dementia. The paper will focus on how research findings concerning prevention can be translated into concrete, actionable public health policy recommendations, aligning closely with the UK government's preventive initiatives. My second paper will explore social and policy contexts surrounding the introduction of blood tests for diagnosing dementia, which will primarily be conducted in locally commissioned memory services. Understanding of the operations of these services, especially regarding their readiness to adopt blood tests for predicting dementia risk and guiding treatment decisions, remains limited. Concerns have been raised regarding significant geographical disparities in the level and quality of the commissioning of these services. Additionally, the potential shift in dementia funding towards healthcare raises fears of undermining social care and widening social inequalities. To address this knowledge gap, I have collaborated on developing a survey which will be distributed to all memory services in England. Based on findings from this survey, I will assess the social and geographic factors influencing memory services' preparedness for the introduction of blood tests. I will communicate my PhD research findings on psychological dementia risk factors and prevention strategies through various dissemination avenues. I will attend an academic conference and have planned talks within the Centre for Psychiatry seminar series at Queen Mary University of London, University College London's (UCL) Division of Psychiatry seminar series, and at York, Newcastle and UCL to coincide with planned research visits. As a delegate and rapporteur, the dementia prevention conference provides a major opportunity to share my PhD findings. I plan to also share my research with general audiences, through public lectures, podcasts, media engagements, and community events like the Festival of Communities in East London and Walking the Talk for Dementia in Spain. These events ensure broad dissemination and discussion of findings at local, national and international levels. Planned visits to UCL and the University of York will enhance both my research and dissemination endeavours and facilitate aligning my PhD findings with social contexts. I have chosen courses to elevate my skills in social and policy research, qualitative methodologies, and dissemination techniques. Further, by regularly involving a Public and Patient Involvement group, I will ensure that my research remains relevant and inclusive, both in its execution and in the development of research proposals for future funding opportunities.