Menzies Lab

Celebrating a second journal cover from the department this month!

Congratulations to BLS Lecturer Dr Stefanie Menzies @menzieslab.bsky.social who has co-authored research featured on the front cover of Nature Magazine!

AIBIO UK poster describing the network

Great time at the AI in the Biosciences (AIBIO-UK) Sandpit - many thanks to the organisers. Really encouraging to see cross-disciplinary conversations turn into excellent project ideas so quickly. Looking forward to developing these & keeping up the new connections & collaborations.
#AI #biosciences

Development of novel point-of-care diagnostics for mpox AbstractMpox is a zoonotic disease caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV). Historically, mpox was endemic to Central and West Africa, but since May 2022, the number of mpox cases has increased with the

Project 3: Next-Gen Antibody Diagnostics for Mpox
Supervisors: Ana Cubas Atienzar (LSTM), Tom Edwards (LSTM) & me.
Developing rapid, sensitive point-of-care tests for mpox.
More info: tinyurl.com/2s3f9c6m

Refinement and replacement of preclinical models to better evaluate envenoming pathology and snakebite therapeutics AbstractSnakebite is a medical emergency causing rapid onset of both local tissue-destructive and potentially lethal systemic haemorrhagic and neurotoxic pathologies. Snakebite primarily afflicts

Project 2: Refining Preclinical Models for Snakebite Envenoming.
Supervisors: Nick Casewell (LSTM), me & Stu Ainsworth (Liverpool).
Developing microdosing and organ-on-chip models to improve translational snakebite research and assess next-gen therapeutics.
More info: tinyurl.com/3stb7bdm

Antibody discovery for neglected tropical and emerging infectious diseases AbstractMany monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) licensed today are so-called ‘blockbuster’ therapies, with the majority of the Top 10 best-selling therapeutic drugs being mAbs. Until recently, mAbs for

Project 1: Monoclonal Antibodies for Global Health.
Using in vitro & computational platforms to develop advanced biologics, with scope to focus on snakebite, viral haemorrhagic fevers or fungal pathogens.
Supervisors: me & Prof. Nick Casewell (LSTM)
More info: tinyurl.com/4dkybcmx

MRC CASE/DTP

🚨 Applications are now open for fully funded PhD positions through the LSTM–Lancaster University MRC Doctoral Training Partnership for 2026/27 cohort. 🧪Several projects available under my supervision - details below
lstmed.ac.uk/mrc_dtp_case
#PhD #antibodies #mAbs #NTD #snakebite #infectiousdiseases

Modern biotech can deliver safer, scalable & affordable treatments for snakebite - a neglected tropical disease killing 100k+ people annually.
#Biotechnology #Snakebite #Nanobody #Antivenom #GlobalHealth #NTD
@blslancasteruni.bsky.social

We showed that a cocktail of 8 nanobodies protected mice against 17/18 African elapid snake venoms - preventing death and tissue damage.🐍 🧪

Nanobody-based recombinant antivenom for cobra, mamba and rinkhals bites - Nature A recombinant antivenom composed of eight nanobodies provides broad protection against venom-induced lethality and dermonecrosis in mice challenged with venoms from cobras, mambas and rinkha...

Excited to share a new paper led by @andreaslaustsen.bsky.social, Anne Ljungars, @tpjenkins.bsky.social, Shirin Ahmadi and Nick Burlet. It was a privelege to be a part of this amazing team!

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Deadline extended to 4th January 2026!

Leanne in lab coat sat at biological safety cabinet, holding a pipette

Delighted to welcome Leanne Antido, who has just started their MSc by Research in the group. Co-supervised by myself and Dr Nick Robinson. Leanne’s project focuses on discovering #antibodies against #Asgard #archaeal proteins and developing them as tools to study protein function

🔗 Info & apply: www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...

Informal enquiries welcome
@BLSLancasterUni #antibody #plant #aquaculture #diagnostics #PhD #bioengineering 🧪

🚨 Funded PhD Studentship 🚨
Antibody Engineering & Plant Molecular Farming for Aquaculture Health
📍 Lancaster & Glasgow | BBSRC NWBio DTP
🗓 Apply by 21 Nov 2025
👉 Engineer antibodies vs Vibrio
👉 Develop rapid diagnostics
👉 Explore plant-based biologics for fish health

Stef Menzies @menzieslab.bsky.social @blslancasteruni.bsky.social is leading a project with Martin Llewellyn (Glasgow) and I looking at antibody engineering and different ways to deliver these in aquaculture settings, including some plant engineering! www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...

Another paper hot off the press! Dual proteomics strategies to characterise and compare the venom composition of nine African #snake #venoms . A wonderful collaboration with Louc Quinton's lab as part of the ADDovenom project. @blslancasteruni.bsky.social 🐍🧪 www.mdpi.com/2072-6651/17...

Snake antivenom serum proves to be three times more effective than the standard one In Brazil, a group of researchers from the Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) and the Butantan Institute have developed a new version of the antibothropic serum that is three times more effective than the version currently used to treat envenomation by snakes of the genus Bothrops, the jararaca (B.

A new snake antivenom serum in Brazil is three times more effective than the current standard, with reduced adverse effects, potentially improving treatment for Bothrops envenomation. doi.org/g9fnm9

Thanks to amazing co-authors Rohit Patel and Stuart Ainsworth for all their hard work! @blslancasteruni.bsky.social

Practical progress towards the development of recombinant antivenoms for snakebite envenoming Snakebite envenoming is a neglected tropical disease that affects millions globally each year. In recent years, research into the potential production of recombinant antivenoms, formulated using mi...

Our review article on progress towards #recombinant #antivenoms for #snakebite is now published at www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
We cover snakebite, methods for #mAb discovery, do a deep dive on mAbs for neurotoxins, and discuss what is needed next to get this from concept to clinic.

Last week I had the great pleasure in hosting the launch meeting of our NC3Rs project grant now known as G.E.M (Galleria Envenoming Model). Our work is focused on developing and validating an alternative model to assess venom lethality and therapeutic efficacy testing.

photo of a green mamba

Our department now hosts two labs with interests in #snakebite – Steve Hall Lab and @menzieslab.bsky.social. Snakebite is a global health crisis that affects millions annually. Conventional antivenom, the only currently available treatment, has severe limitations. #WorldNTDDay #BeatNTDs (1/3)

De novo designed proteins neutralize lethal snake venom toxins - Nature Deep learning methods have been used to design proteins that can neutralize the effects of three-finger toxins found in snake venom, which could lead to the development of safer and more accessible an...

First post on BlueSky - sharing our latest paper!
So thrilled to have been part of this exciting collaboration - using AI to design new protein-based therapeutics for #snakebite 🐍
www.nature.com/articles/s41...