Prize winners

#UKSB2026 Travel Bursary Winner Reshma McMullan

By Reshma McMullan, Ulster University

I am incredibly grateful to the UKSB President, Dr Adrian Boyd, and all of the UKSB Committee members for awarding me the UKSB Travel Award to attend the 2026 UKSB Conference. Their generous support gave me the opportunity not only to attend this fantastic event at the University of Birmingham but also to fully immerse myself in an inspiring community of biomaterials researchers.

The conference was an unforgettable experience from beginning to end. I thoroughly enjoyed the wide range of excellent talks and presentations, each offering new perspectives and ideas that will undoubtedly influence my own PhD research. One of the highlights for me was the thought-provoking debate on animal testing. It was fascinating to hear different viewpoints, and it encouraged meaningful discussions about the ethical and scientific challenges facing biomaterials research. It was one of the sessions that stayed with me long after the conference had finished. Beyond the scientific programme, one of the most rewarding aspects was meeting so many passionate, knowledgeable, and welcoming people. I had the opportunity to share ideas, discuss research, exchange experiences, and make new friendships that I hope will grow into future collaborations. These conversations were just as valuable as the presentations themselves.

The conference atmosphere was exceptional throughout. The BBQ on the first evening was the perfect way to meet fellow delegates in a relaxed setting, making it easy to start conversations and build connections before the conference officially began. The beautiful University of Birmingham campus and hotel facilities created an inspiring backdrop for the event, and the warmth, enthusiasm, and openness of everyone involved made the experience truly memorable. I feel incredibly fortunate to have been part of this year’s conference and would like to sincerely thank UKSB once again. The knowledge, inspiration, and connections I have gained will have a lasting impact on both my research journey and my future career.

#UKSB2026 Travel Bursary Winner Reza Sair

By Reza Sair, Imperial College London

The UK society for Biomaterials (UKSB) conference 2026 was a fantastic opportunity for a first year PhD student, such as myself, to experience a wider scientific community coming together to discuss novel research and technologies. Thanks to the UKSB travel award, I was able to be a part of this conference and present a scientific poster on zinc incorporation into bioactive glass, to enhance the antimicrobial properties in orthopaedic applications.

Photograph of a person with short black hair wearing a light blue shirt, black trousers and black trainers stood in front of a poster

The opening keynote presentation on dental filling materials suitable for children, highlighted both the scientific challenges of developing new biomaterials but also the difficulty of clinical translation and regulatory approval. This was followed by panel conversations on inclusive research, patient involvement and a debate about the need and excessive use of animal testing. Together, these experiences highlighted to me that good scientific research goes beyond discovery in the lab; it is also about communicating ideas and thinking about the people that we are trying to help. A focus on the big picture whilst also discussing how to navigate the hoops and hurdles of regulation, was an area of the field which I had previously given little consideration.

On top of the panels and debates, I also attended a wide range of presentations on topics such as drug delivery, biofabrication and infection control, learning a great deal about biomaterials research beyond my field of expertise in the process. In presenting my research I also faced challenging and thought-provoking questions that will continue to shape my research going forwards.

I am extremely grateful to the UKSB for awarding me a Travel Award and making it possible for me to attend the conference. I look forward to attending future events, including the next annual conference in London.

Photograph of a person with short black hair smiling, wearing a light blue shirt.

ESB 2025 Travel Awards

This year we funded several travel awards allowing members to travel and present at ESB in Torino, Italy.

It was great to see Zarin Moghaddam (University of Surrey) present her oral presentation during the meeting.

#UKSB2025 Travel Bursary Winner Ellamay McIlhatton

By Ellamay McIlhatton, University of Ulster

Thanks to the generous support of the UKSB Travel Award, I had the opportunity to attend and present at this year’s UK Society for Biomaterials (UKSB) conference. The event brought together a diverse community of researchers and industry professionals, all working at the forefront of biomaterials science.

I was fortunate to both give an oral presentation and present a poster on my PhD research, which focuses on enhancing the corrosion resistance of magnesium alloys through calcium phosphate coatings for orthopaedic applications. It was a rewarding experience to share my work with others in the field and to receive insightful feedback and questions.

The conference also offered a valuable platform to engage with new ideas, covering topics such as regenerative medicine, next-generation implant materials, biofabrication techniques, and translational biomaterials research. These presentations provided valuable perspectives on current challenges and innovations in the field.

I’m sincerely grateful to UKSB for funding my attendance. The experience not only deepened my understanding of current trends in biomaterials research but also helped build connections that will benefit my future work.

UKSB2025 Travel Bursary Winner Frances Hasson

By Frances Hasson, University of Ulster

I had the privilege of attending the UK Society for Biomaterials (UKSB) 2025 Conference hosted by Lancaster University, thanks to the support of a Travel Award from the UKSB. I had the opportunity to present both a flash presentation and a poster on my recent work involving semi-crystalline polymer composites for biomedical applications, which sparked engaging questions and thoughtful feedback. A standout moment was being awarded the ‘Material Horizons’ poster prize by the Royal Society of Chemistry – a huge honour that affirmed the impact and relevance of my project.

Many of the conference sessions were closely aligned with my interests, particularly those focused on calcium phosphates and bioactivity in bone-interfacing materials. I found the talks on in vivo translation and replacing animal research especially insightful. Conversations with industry representatives, early career researchers, and fellow PhD students gave me valuable insights into current challenges in biomaterials development, particularly in the areas of polymer processing, bioactivity enhancement, and translational considerations for clinical use.

I’m incredibly grateful to the UKSB 2025 organising committee for a wonderful conference, and to the UKSB for the opportunity to attend through receipt of the Travel Award. I look forward to building on this experience and continuing to contribute to the biomaterials research.

ESB Travel Award Blog by Anushree Ghosh Dastidar

Anushree Ghosh Dastidar from Queens University Belfast received a travel bursary from UK to attend ESB2023. Here she reports on his experience at this international conference.

This report is with regards to attending the 33rd European Society for Biomaterials Conference held in Davos, Switzerland, 4th – 8th September 2023 (ESB 2023) for the UKSB Travel Grant 2023. The ESB conference is an annual conference that brings together researchers, scientists, and students from both academia and industry to discuss critical developments in the field of biomaterials. The conference was held in person and consisted of oral presentations and posters from early-stage researchers and leading researchers, and plenary talks from professors in the field of biomaterials and regenerative medicine.

This is by far the largest conference I had been to with over 1200 speakers and 10 rooms running parallel sessions simultaneously. The oral presentations consisted of sessions from students and professionals on their research findings and extended talks from academicians on the ongoing research in their labs. This gave a good insight into the advancement of tissue engineering and all related applications across the world. The research findings on biomaterials and degradation characterisation for scaffolds were especially beneficial to understanding the work that is going on in the world related to my topic.

I was allowed to present an oral presentation on ‘Investigating the regenerative potential of 3D-printed PLLGA/Alginate composite scaffolds for the treatment of articular cartilage defects’ where I answered questions from the audience. This in-person session was beneficial as the experience of presenting and answering questions from a large audience was a learning experience. The questions helped me gain experience on the kind of questions that I would be asked in the future regarding my topic.

This was also the first time I presented my PhD work on an international platform which was a wonderful experience. On top of this, I even won the Best Oral presentation award amongst 1200 presenters which was a prestige to bring for my university Queens University Belfast and the UKSB Society!

This has helped me become more confident in speaking and presenting which is an essential skill every PhD student must possess. The plenary talks from professors in the conference spoke about the different topics ranging from batteries, composite materials on tissue engineering, computational modelling and so on which helped me understand the impending research questions and challenges. Apart from this, there was a PhD & Post-doc mentoring session where we were divided into tables of 6-7 people and a senior faculty-mentored us. They spoke about the requirements for applying for a grant and the general process that an academic would follow. They patiently answered our questions on how we need to focus our careers after a PhD and gave valuable advice on each of our progress so far.

Another seminar organized by several chief editors of journals spoke on the process behind article writing and submission. As a PhD student, this helped me understand the expectations that come from an application made for a grant or submitting a manuscript that will be very beneficial for me in the future. There were also careers workshops from several industries that manufacture organ-on-chip, orthopaedic biomaterials, bioscience and biotechnology companies. Professionals from these companies also spoke on the ongoing animal and human trials for products which helped me understand the products that are currently available in the market and the scope for future products.

Overall, it has provided me with a good insight into the research labs across the world that are working in the field of bioengineering and regenerative medicine. I sincerely thank the UKSB society for providing me with the funding to attend this conference which has been an enriching experience to take away with me for my PhD.

Larry Hench Award #UKSB2022

There were so many excellent nominations this year for this award; it was difficult to select just one winner. But it is with pleasure to announce that Dr Tanveer Tabish will be awarded with the excellent prize this year.

The Larry Hench Young Investigators Prize is dedicated to promising young researchers in recognition of their outstanding contributions within the field of biomaterials. This award is given in remembrance of such a key figure of this field – Prof Larry Hench (1938-2015).

Alan Wilson Memorial Lecture Award

It is with pleasure that we announce the award for the Alan Wilson Memorial Lecture this year will be given to Prof Sanjuka Deb, King’s College London to recognise her work and contribution to the UK Biomaterials field in celebration of the life and career of the outstanding dental materials scientist Dr Alan Wilson OBE (1928-2011).

I look forward to hearing about Prof Deb’s latest work as she joins us at #UKSB2022.

Presidents Prize Keynote Speaker Prof Paul Hatton

It is our pleasure to announce this years UKSB Presidents prize will be awarded to Prof Paul Hatton from the University of Sheffield.

We will hear about Prof. Hatton’s vast experience of the biomaterials world, from the fundamentals of biomaterials science to working with clinical partners. This prize will recognize his absolutely outstanding contributions to the field during his career, and I look forward to the many stories and anecdotes he might tell.

BlogSpot: Joint Virtual Conference 24-25th June 2020

Dr Caroline S. Taylor, PDRA, University of Sheffield

My research in peripheral nerve repair (PNR) was featured at the joint UKSB/CDT conference. I delivered a 3 minute flash presentation about the potential of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) as scaffold materials for PNR and was delighted to receive the runner up prize. PHAs are an attractive material of choice in tissue engineering as they are biocompatible, biodegradable and elimate concerns used with other FDA approved synthetic polymers. Using a novel ex vivo nerve injury model, a combination of 3D printing and electrospinning, different materials, and fibre diameters, can be investigated for PNR with medium throughput. PHAs were significantly better at promoting longer neurite outgrowth distances, and Schwann cell migration distances, from Dorsal root ganglia, compared to a polycaprolactone control.

Image of my flash presentation and schematic diagram of the 3D *ex vivo* model used to test different material scaffolds.

The virtual conference was absolutely brilliant. It was well organised, ran smoothly and a variety of topics in Biomaterials and tissue engineering were discussed. The conference began with a talk from the key note speaker Prof Liam Grover who talked about his work using additive manufacturing techniques in areas of bone/cartilage and skin regeneration, and cornea repair. Two sessions ran parallel to each other after the key note talk, in which I attended clinical applications 1, followed by the poster discussion session. I particularly enjoyed clinical applications 2, on day 2 of the conference, and the talks by Jessica Wiseman and Simon C. Kellaway. Jessica’s talk highlighted the use of neurosurgical grade biomaterial Duragen PlusTM, containing collagen type 1, to repair traumatic spinal cord injury and Simon’s talk used an alternative approach to PNR engineering Neural Tissue from Decellularised Biomaterials. Both these talks compliment my own research in PNR. Overall, the virtual conference was a huge success and I would like to thank the organisers for including my work in the programme.

Caroline submitted the blog as part of the conference competition. She has been selected and has won herself an intensive 2-day training course in lyphilisation sponsered by Biopharma Group. Well done!
Dr Paul Roach, UKSB President