A short film by artist-researcher Dr. Daksha Patel, titled Interfacing, has received international recognition, winning an award at the Oregon Documentary Film Festival (Winter 2025). The film was created in response to pioneering biophysical research into lipid membranes led by Dr. Margarita Staykova at Durham University.

The 2026 Physics of Life Summer School, held in September 2025, brought together early career researchers from across the UK and beyond for a week of scientific discussion, interdisciplinary connections, and community building. Hosted in Durham, the programme showcased the breadth and ambition of research at the interface of physics and the life sciences, while offering participants unique opportunities to learn, connect

A new online exhibition showcases the fascinating intersection of science and art, displaying scientific images of biological systems alongside creative responses from professional artists and the wider public.

A recent publication in Nucleic Acids Research reports the discovery of new DNA associated enzymes from some of the most extreme environments on Earth and shown that they can improve rapid medical tests for infectious diseases.

Nevrargenics Ltd have won the 2025 Bionow Project of the Year Award in the annual Bionow awards at the Concorde Conference Centre in Manchester. The award recognised their lead programme Ellorarxine™ as one of the most innovative and impactful life sciences projects in the UK.

In May 2026, the MoSMed CDT (the Molecular Sciences for Medicine Centre for Doctoral Training) hosted its sixth annual conference, bringing together current PhD researchers, alumni, supervisors and collaborators from across academia and industry.

An international team led by researchers from Physics Department and the Biophysical Sciences Institute are developing a new way to tackle soil degradation in sub–Saharan Africa.

In June 2026 Dr Kasia Tych (University of Freiburg and University of Groningen) visited Durham to deliver the 2026 Judith Howard Lecture, the flagship annual lecture of the Biophysical Sciences Institute (BSI).

Durham University has announced the appointment of renowned physicist Professor Mark Leake as Chair of Natural Philosophy, effective 1st October 2026.

The success of the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases has been recognised with a 2026 Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) Chemistry–Biology Interface Horizon Prize. The GCRF funded team which is led by the BSI’s Professor Paul Denny in Durham University’s Department of Biosciences, has been honoured for its pioneering work in identifying and validating new drug targets for leishmaniasis and Chagas disease.

The latest events in our Art-Science platform BSI Create brought together a new group of creative and professionals for two very different events designed to share and explore scientific research concepts from new perspectives.

Researchers from across Great Britain and Ireland gathered at Durham University in March 2026 for the inaugural Strep GBI conference, a new cross-disciplinary initiative uniting the streptococcal research community.