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On 24 November, the D-BSSE eSymposium dedicated to "Engineering biology" took place. Backed by the success and international interest in this virtual symposium, we are delighted to share with you the recorded video of this conference. Stay wired, the next D-BSSE eSymposium will be announced soon!

During the last three decades, a series of key technological improvements turned atomic force microscopy (AFM) into a nanoscopic laboratory to directly observe and chemically characterise molecular and cell biological systems under physiological conditions. Published in Chemical Reviews, Daniel Müller and colleagues now review the advances in using AFM as an analytical tool to observe and quantify native biological systems from the micro- to the nanoscale.

The Golden Owl honours lecturers distinguished by exceptional teaching and motivates them to continue with their excellent teaching. The Owl is awarded by ETH Zurich’s student association. This year, the Owl was awarded to D-​BSSE Professor Barbara Treutlein who heads the Quantitative Developmental Biology Lab.

Upon the proposal of D-BSSE, Stephen R. Quake from Stanford University was presented this year’s ETH Honorary doctorate. Professor Quake is a pioneer in microfluidics who revolutionised biomedical research and diagnostics, both as a researcher and as an entrepreneur. Watch the laudation given by Niko Beerenwinkel, Head of the D-BSSE.

On the occasion of the 165th anniversary of ETH Zurich, Rector Sarah Springman and ETH President Joël Mesot took stock of how the university has weathered the crisis until now. A few outstanding individuals were also honored during the event.

The D-BSSE spin-off company is an innovator in the field of antibody discovery and immune repertoire analysis and as such, works at the forefront of identifying potent antibodies for the immunotherapy of COVID-19 patients. By raising Series B financing, the company now moves forward towards clinical development of two antiviral assets, including Phase 2 clinical studies and the production of GMP material, beginning in 2021.

On 24 November 2020, 4-6 PM, D-​BSSE is organising its 2^nd virtual Symposium around the question: "Engineering biology - where are we?" On the invitation of the organisers Mustafa Khammash and Sven Panke, Wendell Lim from the Center for Synthetic Immunology, UC San Francisco, CA, USA, will give the keynote address. Please forward this invite to colleagues and friends!  

Microfluidic devices offer a new way to speed up drug screening and toxicity tests, but some of the basic processes such as purification and separation are difficult to implement in these tiny devices. Petra Dittrich, Head of the Bioanalytics Group, and her team member Mario Saucedo-​Espinosa took up the challenge and invented in-​droplet electrophoresis. Watch their video!