Latest news

Grant Belgard of The Bioinformatics CRO (https://www.bioinformaticscro.com) interviewed me about the past, present and future of Bioinformatics.org in his podcast.

The podcast is now online. Here are the links to the episode on Apple, Spotify, and the Bioinformatics CRO website:

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bioinformatics-cro-podcast/id1535886933?i=1000724490820

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1GTFyxUKBqTNt7E9g8X4WH?si=5IzdGrn-Tqys4aZq4kSlVA

Website: https://www.bioinformaticscro.com/podcast/jeff-bizzaro/

About The Bioinformatics CRO: It is a fully distributed contract research company that serves the computational biology needs of academics, science and research institutes, pharmaceutical companies, and biotechs, with a focus on genomics.

Cheers,
Jeff

Let's be real – college is expensive. Whether you're juggling student loans or saving up for lab supplies, a little extra cash can go a long way. That's where the Creative Biolabs Scholarship (https://www.creative-biolabs.com/scholarship-program.html) comes in, offering a sweet $1,000 award to one standout science student, which could be your ticket to easing some financial pressure and showing off your scientific smarts.

If you're majoring in a science-related field like biology, chemistry, biochemistry, or molecular biology, and you've got the grades, this one's definitely worth a shot. Read on to find out exactly what you need to apply – and how to make your application shine.

Who Can Apply?

First thing's first: are you eligible? The Creative Biolabs scholarship is open globally, which means whether you're studying in Boston or Berlin, you're good to go – as long as you check these boxes:
√ Enrolled in an accredited college or university (freshman, undergrad, grad, or PhD).
√ Major in a science-related field (e.g., Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology).
√ Maintain at least a 3.0 GPA (B average).

Pretty doable, right?

√ What They're Looking For

This isn't just about your GPA. The Selection Committee is diving deep into your story. Here's what they care about:

Academic Ability – Not just your transcript, but your learning plan. Show them what you're curious about and how you're working toward it.
Leadership Skills – If you've led a club, mentored others, or inspired your peers, flaunt it!
Community Spirit – Volunteering, activism, or community outreach? Big plus.

In other words: grades matter, but heart and hustle count too.

How to Apply (Don't Skip a Step!)

You'll need to send a complete application package to the designated email address with the subject line:

"2025 Creative Biolabs Scholarship Application – Full Name".

Here's the checklist:

√ Completed Application Form – Download it from their scholarship page.
√ Transcript – Official or unofficial.
√ Recommendation Letter – From a teacher, counselor, or community leader.
√ Essay or PowerPoint Presentation – Your chance to shine. Pick ONE topic from below and go all in.

Essay/Presentation Topics (choose one):

√ Overview of Neurodegenerative Diseases and Disease-Related Biomarkers
√ Novel Gene Delivery Systems for Gene Therapy
√ mRNA-Based Therapeutics Application
√ Overview of Clinical Applications of Stem Cell Therapy

Essay should be 800--1,000 words, and if you go the PowerPoint route, it should be 10-12 slides with lecture notes. Either way, it has to be original, clear, and grammatically solid.

• Heads up: incomplete submissions = automatic rejection. Double-check everything before you hit send.

Deadlines & Announcement
Submission Deadline: September 30, 2025
Announcement: October 15, 2025

The winner will be contacted via email and their name will go up on the Creative Biolabs website. (Yep, time to get famous.)

Bonus Step: Acceptance Video

If you win, you'll be asked to submit a video acceptance speech. Nothing too fancy, just something authentic that shares your gratitude and goals. In addition, your story may get featured on Creative Biolabs' website or social media.

Final Thoughts:

Creative Biolabs – an innovative biotech company supporting researchers worldwide – is all about encouraging the next generation of scientific minds. This scholarship isn't just about the money, but about giving a platform to students with passion, purpose, and a vision for impact.

So if you're studying science and looking for an opportunity to get your work noticed (and maybe upgrade your coffee budget while you're at it), this one's calling your name.

About:

As a trusted end-to-end CRO, Creative Biolabs (https://www.creative-biolabs.com) specializes in providing comprehensive solutions across antibody engineering, cell and gene therapy development, and 3D disease modeling to accelerate the journey from discovery to preclinical success.

Predicting antibody and NANOBODY® VHH--antigen complexes remains a notable gap in current AI models, limiting their utility in drug discovery. We present SNAC-DB, an open-source, machine-learning-ready database and pipeline developed by structural biologists and ML researchers to address this challenge.

Key features of SNAC-DB include:

• Expanded Coverage: 32% more structural diversity than SAbDab, capturing overlooked assemblies such as antibodies/nanobodies as antigens, complete multi-chain epitopes, and weak CDR crystal contacts.
• ML-Friendly Data: Cleaned PDB/mmCIF files, atom37 NumPy arrays, and unified CSV metadata to eliminate preprocessing hurdles.
• Transparent Redundancy Control: Multi-threshold Foldseek clustering for principled sample weighting, ensuring every experimental structure contributes.
• Rigorous Benchmark: An out-of-sample test set comprising public PDB entries post--May 30, 2024 (disclosed) and confidential therapeutic complexes.

Using this benchmark, we evaluated six leading models (AlphaFold2.3?multimer, Boltz-2, Boltz-1x, Chai-1, DiffDock-PP, GeoDock) and found that success rates rarely exceed 25 %, built-in confidence metrics and ranking often misprioritize predictions, and all struggle with novel targets and binding poses.

I had the opportunity to present this work last week at the [ICML] Int'l Conference on Machine Learning 2025 Workshop on DataWorld: Unifying Data Curation Frameworks Across Domains (https://dataworldicml2025.github.io) in Vancouver.

• Paper: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/393900649_SNAC-DB_The_Hitchhiker's_Guide_to_Building_Better_Predictive_Models_of_Antibody_NANOBODY_R_VHH-Antigen_Complexes
• Dataset: https://zenodo.org/records/16226208
• Code: https://github.com/Sanofi-Public/SNAC-DB

I hope SNAC-DB will accelerate the development and evaluation of more accurate models for antibody/NANOBODY® VHH complex prediction.

We welcome any comments on how to make this resource more user-friendly or of any deficiencies.

Best,
Abhinav Gupta
Senior AI/ML Scientist
Large Molecule Research, Sanofi
Email: abhinav.gupta[at]sanofi.com

The 15th Edition of the International Conference New Perspectives in Science Education will take place:
on 18 March 2025 | Online Event
on 19-20 March 2026 | in Florence (Italy)

The event brings together educators, researchers, practitioners, and project managers from all over the world to exchange insights, share expertise, and explore innovative approaches to science teaching and learning.

Join us onsite in Florence, Italy, or online from anywhere in the world --- as a Presenter or Listener --- and be part of an inspiring global dialogue on the innovation in science education.

CALL FOR ABSTRACT

Submit your abstract here: http://conference.pixel-online.net/NPSE/callforpapers.php

WHY PARTICIPATE?

All accepted papers will be:

• Published in the Conference Proceedings e-book with ISBN, ISSN and DOI codes.
• Included in Academia.edu and indexed in Google Scholar.
• Sent to be reviewed for inclusion in Web of Science and SCOPUS.
• Archived in the Conference Digital Library.

WHAT TO EXPECT?

• Live Paper Presentations, either onsite and online.
• Interactive Q&A Sessions following each talk.
• Poster Presentation Sessions will be held onsite and online.
• Networking Opportunities and Social Events to foster meaningful connections.

Pixel International Conferences
Pixel Conferences Secretariat: science[at]pixel-online.net
Call for Papers: http://conference.pixel-online.net/NPSE/callforpapers.php
Watch the Video: https://youtu.be/i9JEo035LfY

The 15th Edition of the International Conference New Perspectives in Science Education will take place:
on 18 March 2025 | Online Event
on 19-20 March 2026 | in Florence (Italy)

The event brings together educators, researchers, practitioners, and project managers from all over the world to exchange insights, share expertise, and explore innovative approaches to science teaching and learning.

Join us onsite in Florence, Italy, or online from anywhere in the world – as a Presenter or Listener – and be part of an inspiring global dialogue on the innovation in science education.

CALL FOR ABSTRACT

Submit your abstract here: http://conference.pixel-online.net/NPSE/callforpapers.php

WHY PARTICIPATE?

All accepted papers will be:

• Published in the Conference Proceedings e-book with ISBN, ISSN and DOI codes.
• Included in Academia.edu and indexed in Google Scholar.
• Sent to be reviewed for inclusion in Web of Science and SCOPUS.
• Archived in the Conference Digital Library.

WHAT TO EXPECT?

• Live Paper Presentations, either onsite and online.
• Interactive Q&A Sessions following each talk.
• Poster Presentation Sessions will be held onsite and online.
• Networking Opportunities and Social Events to foster meaningful connections.

Watch the Video: https://youtu.be/i9JEo035LfY

Pixel International Conferences
Pixel Conferences Secretariat: science[at]pixel-online.net
Grand Hotel Mediterraneo – Congress Center, Lungarno del Tempio 44, Florence (Italy)
Tel: +39 055 489700

Dear colleagues,

Registration is now open for the Transmitting Science course: "Introduction to Network Analysis and Modelling".

Dates and schedule: Online live sessions on September 22nd, 24th, 26th, and 29th & October 1st, 2025; 10:00 to 14:00 (Madrid time zone).

Course webpage: https://www.transmittingscience.com/courses/systems-biology/introduction-to-network-analysis-and-modelling/

In bioinformatics, network analysis is crucial for elucidating the intricate interactions that underlie biological systems at the molecular level.

Programme:

Introduction to networks:
Understand the basics of what networks are and their representation.

Random Graphs and Null Models:
Explore fundamental concepts in random graphs and null models to comprehend the structure of real-world networks.

Community Structure and Mixing Patterns:
Investigate how networks exhibit interaction structure and analyze mixing patterns within them.

Ranking in Networks:
Examine algorithms for ranking nodes within networks to identify their significance.

Introduction to Dynamics on Networks and Dynamics of Networks:
An overview of how dynamical processes work on networks and models of network growth.

More upcoming Transmitting Science courses: https://www.transmittingscience.com/courses/#upcoming-courses

Best regards,

Sole

Soledad De Esteban-Trivigno, PhD
Director
Transmitting Science
http://www.transmittingscience.com/courses

Bluesky @soledeesteban.bsky.social
X @SoleDeEsteban
Orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2049-0890

I'm excited to share a bioinformatics web app I developed to analyze and visualize genomic data!

This tool allows users to upload datasets and explore differential gene expression, protein interactions, and regulatory pathways using interactive plots and algorithms – all in a streamlined, user-friendly interface. It was built using Python, Streamlit, and publicly available genomic data.

Whether you're a student, researcher, or just curious about computational biology, feel free to check it out and let me know what you think!

https://blank-app2.streamlit.app

Exciting news from Bio-protocol!

We're expanding our scope to include more bioinformatics and computational biology protocols to support reproducible, data-driven research.

Get involved:

• Submit your protocol
• Join our Peer Review Board
• Spread the word to your colleagues

Scan the QR code on the banner at https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bio-protocol_bioinformatics-computationalbiology-reproducibility-activity-7338580817629073408--Oib

or visit https://bio-protocol.org/en to get started.

Creative Biolabs made waves the first week of May with a trio of high-impact announcements: commanding attention at the 23rd BioPharma Drug Discovery Nexus Conference, launching its 2025 scholarship program, and previewing a groundbreaking webinar on dual-function antibody technology.

The moves underscore the company's dual mission to advance cutting-edge science and empower future researchers.

Event 1: BioPharma Drug Discovery Nexus Conference Steals the Spotlight

Creative Biolabs' booth (#13) emerged as the talk of the town at the May 7-8 event in Boston, drawing standing-room crowds with its AI-powered drug discovery platform. The interactive demo let attendees simulate antibody production workflows, slashing typical R&D timelines from months to minutes. The booth became a hub for pharma execs and academics that lined up to test-drive the tool, with one researcher calling it "a game-changer for target validation".

"This conference set up a pivotal platform that bridges innovation with real-world impact," said a scientist of Creative Biolabs. Industry analysts noted Creative Biolabs' tech could disrupt traditional drug development models, particularly in oncology.

Event 2: Scholarship Program Targets Next-Generation Scientific Elites

On May 1, Creative Biolabs opened applications for its 2025 Scholarship Program, inviting global graduate students tackling healthcare disparities to apply, and the winner will receive support for their education or research work in areas like cancer immunotherapy, rare diseases, or AI-driven diagnostics.

"Empowering next-generation innovators isn't optional – it's survival," said a scientist from Creative Biolabs, referencing the program's high alumni retention rate in biotech careers. "We strongly encourage global students in their bachelor, master, or doctoral studies about life science subjects to apply." Previous winners used their grant for their discoveries in the lab, participating in global industry conferences, or pursuing a higher degree of study.

https://www.creative-biolabs.com/scholarship-program.html

Event 3: Dual-Function Antibody Webinar Teases Industry First

Mark the calendar – on May 22, Creative Biolabs will invite a renowned scientist to present "dual-engager" antibody tech in a free webinar. The session will delve into the development and applications of an ingenious multi-engager antibody complex, Targeted ADAM17 Blocker and Killer (TABK), that is capable of simultaneously enhancing NK cell proliferation while directing these empowered immune cells to engage and eliminate ADAM17-expressing tumor cells.

"This isn't science fiction – it's the future of precision medicine," teased the scientist. "Attendees will access an exclusive Q&A and a certificate download. Secure your spot now!"

https://www.creativebiolabs.net/generation-of-a-dual-function-multi-engager-antibody-for-simultaneous-targeting-nk-cells-and-tumor-cells.htm

About:

A New York-based biotech trailblazer since 2005, Creative Biolabs specializes in antibody engineering and AI-driven drug discovery. Serving 1,500 + clients across 45 countries, Creative Biolabs accelerates breakthroughs from the lab to the preclinical.

Have you ever wondered how scientists design new medicines or study the body's smallest building blocks? One powerful tool they use is research peptides – short chains of amino acids that help us understand how cells work.

In our latest blog, we explain how these peptides are used in bioinformatics, drug discovery, and lab studies. From computer models to real-life testing, research peptides help scientists find answers faster and more accurately.

Learn how these tiny molecules make a big impact in medical science and how researchers use software tools to study them.

https://nextechlaboratories.com