In line with government instructions, members of the LMB are working from home where possible. The LMB buildings remain open for research and work that cannot be conducted from home. The LMB COVID-19 risk assessment has been updated and measures are in place to manage the risk from infection including strict social distancing measures in all areas of the building and maintaining high standards of both personal and environmental hygiene, including wearing face masks in all communal spaces and multi-occupancy lab areas.
All meetings will be held via video or teleconferencing. Travel for work is not permitted, nor are visitors to any LMB building unless essential (prior permission required). Please use email as the preferred means of contacting members of LMB.
COVID-19 research remains active at LMB, with over 12 separate strands of research into various aspects of the SARS-CoV-2 virus underway:
About Us
The MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) is a research institute dedicated to the understanding of important biological processes at the levels of atoms, molecules, cells and organisms. In doing so, we provide knowledge needed to solve key problems in human health.
Our scientists tackle fundamental, often difficult and long-term research problems. The LMB has made revolutionary contributions to science, such as pioneering X-ray crystallography and electron cryo-microscopy (cryo-EM) to determine protein structures, the sequencing of DNA and the development of monoclonal antibodies. Twelve Nobel Prizes have been awarded for work carried out by LMB scientists.
The LMB also promotes the application and exploitation of our research findings, both by collaboration with existing companies and the founding of new ones, helping to advance medical research and the translation and application of knowledge.
The LMB provides an unsurpassed environment for both young and established researchers, with state-of-the-art facilities and a unique scientific culture. The LMB has always been very diverse, with a truly international outlook. We currently employ men and women from over 50 countries, and LMB alumni work in research organisations across the world.
Insight on Research
How the fate of immune cell precursors is decided

Type 2 ILCs (ILC2s) play an important role in dealing with parasites and are implicated in allergy. Andrew McKenzie’s group has discovered that the transcription factor RORα acts as a checkpoint controlling divergence between T cell and ILC2 development.
A new 2D protein material for studying receptor endocytosis

Emmanuel Derivery’s group, in collaboration with David Baker’s group in Seattle, have, for the first time, re-engineered two proteins so that they assemble into a 2D material and used this design to investigate a fundamental process of cell biology, receptor endocytosis.
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Latest News
Lights, Crafts and Charity: Christmas at the LMB
The generosity of the people at the LMB has shone through this year with a number of recent charity events, culminating in the traditional Christmas charity raffle. The combined efforts of staff raised over £1,500 for various charities. […]
Claudia Bonfio wins the Dream Chemistry Award
Claudia Bonfio, a MSCA Fellow in the PNAC Division, has won the 2020 Dream Chemistry Award for her dream project proposal, “Unlocking primitive chemical messages”. […]
Latest Publications
- Site-specific covalent labeling of His-tag fused proteins with N-acyl-N-alkyl sulfonamide reagent.
Thimaradka, V., Hoon Oh, J., Heroven, C., Radu Aricescu, A., Yuzaki, M., Tamura, T., Hamachi, I.
Bioorg Med Chem 30: 115947. (15th January 2021) - Chemosensory Neurons Modulate the Response to Oomycete Recognition in Caenorhabditis elegans.
Fasseas, MK., Grover, M., Drury, F., Essmann, CL., Kaulich, E., Schafer, WR., Barkoulas, M.
Cell Rep 34(2): 108604. (12th January 2021) - Sleep analysis in adult reveals state-dependent alteration of neural and behavioral responses.
Lawler, DE., Chew, YL., Hawk, JD., Aljobeh, A., Schafer, WR., Albrecht, DR.
J Neurosci [Epub ahead of print]. (12th January 2021) - RORα is a critical checkpoint for T cell and ILC2 commitment in the embryonic thymus.
Ferreira, ACF., et al.
Nat Immunol [Epub ahead of print]. (11th January 2021) - A Bayesian analysis of the association between genotype and survival in tuberculous meningitis.
Whitworth, L., et al.
Elife 10. (8th January 2021) - The deubiquitinase TRABID stabilises the K29/K48-specific E3 ubiquitin ligase HECTD1.
Harris, LD., et al.
J Biol Chem : 100246 [Epub ahead of print]. (8th January 2021) - SARS-CoV-2 3D database: understanding the coronavirus proteome and evaluating possible drug targets.
Alsulami, AF., et al.
Brief Bioinform [Epub ahead of print]. (8th January 2021)
See more Publications