TCES Travel Bursary Report
TERMIS-EU 2025, Freiburg-Germany
Dr Farnaz Ghorbani – University of Bristol
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Tissue and Cell Engineering Society (TCES) for awarding me a travel bursary to attend and present at the TERMIS-EU 2025 conference, held in Freiburg, Germany, from 20-23 May 2025. As Europe’s flagship event in the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, the conference brought together over a thousand participants from academia, industry, and clinical practice. The diverse programme provided an exceptional platform for scientific exchange and collaboration, particularly for those working on translational biomaterials and advanced biofabrication strategies.
I was honoured to deliver an oral presentation entitled “Bioprinting GelMA-PDA Hydrogels: A Bioinspired Path to In Situ Biomineralization and Bone Regeneration.” My talk presented recent results from my research on polydopamine-functionalised gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA) hydrogels designed to promote in situ biomineralization. The bioinspired materials and architecture enable a more biomimetic and functional performance, especially at the bone interface, and hold significant potential for clinical translation in orthopaedic repair.
Delivering this talk to an international audience of experts not only enabled me to share our recent findings but also to receive insightful feedback and engage in highly stimulating discussions with researchers working on similar or complementary technologies. The Q&A session after my talk led to conversations with several senior investigators and industrial delegates, with whom I am now exploring future collaborative opportunities.
Throughout the conference, I attended numerous oral and poster sessions related to biomaterials, biofabrication, osteochondral regeneration, and clinical translation. I found the dedicated sessions on hierarchical scaffold design and clinical pathways for biomaterial-based therapies particularly valuable. These discussions provided fresh perspectives on how to design next-generation scaffolds with enhanced functionality and translational potential.
Thanks to the TCES bursary, I was able to represent the UK biomaterials and regenerative medicine community on an international stage, elevate the visibility of my research, and strengthen academic and industry ties. This experience has been immensely beneficial for my professional development and has already resulted in a number of potential collaborative leads and invitations for follow-up meetings.
Once again, I am deeply grateful to TCES for supporting my attendance at TERMIS-EU 2025. Your investment in researchers at critical stages of their careers plays a vital role in advancing the future of tissue engineering in the UK and beyond.
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TERMIS 2025
Dr Rosalia Cuahtecontzi Delint, University of Glasgow
This year TERMIS EU chapter, was held in Freiburg, Germany from the 20th – 23rd May. The conference theme was “Shaping the future by connecting scientific diversity in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine” and drew over 1000 researchers from all over the globe. I presented my work titled ‘Using materials to understand how to disrupt sepsis causing biofilms by understanding how they talk to each other’ during the Infection session. It was great to share the findings of this work with the wider scientific community. I also had the opportunity to chair the sessions is osteoarthritis and Lift off: translating tissue engineering tools and methods to space, fostering engaging discussions with experts in these fields.
Additionally, the SYIS meet the mentor lunch was a valuable opportunity to chat with an experienced professor. I found this to be a relaxing environment to talk about his academic journey and gaining insights into his perspectives in the current state of the topic in cell therapies and models for tissue regeneration. It was also great to connect with other young researchers navigating similar paths.
This year included a plenary lecture as a debate on the use of AI for academia, it was great to hear the views of experienced researchers about the topic and how it should be used responsibly as a tool to complement our research. Throughout the week, there were 6 parallel sessions divided per topics, I attended, amongst others, sessions on cartilage regeneration, extracellular vesicles, hydrogels and 3D printing, nanofibers for tissue regeneration, and bone regeneration. The dynamic poster sessions showcased a wide array of topics from protein folding in the ER to innovative hydrogels and their mechanotransductive cues for tissue engineering and organoids.
TERMIS 2025 was an excellent conference. It offered a valuable opportunity to network with other researchers and staying current with the latest advances in research in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine and left me feeling inspired. I very thankful to the Tissue and Cell Engineering Society for the Travel Bursary Award that helped cover the conference costs.
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TERMIS EU 2025, Freiburg, Germany
Dr Cathy Yu Xin, University of Manchester
The Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society (TERMIS) European Chapter Meeting 2025 took place in Freiburg, Germany, from the 20th to 23rd of May. The conference brought together researchers, clinicians, and industry professionals from around the world to share ideas and present the latest developments in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. The programme featured keynote lectures, parallel scientific sessions, poster presentations, and activities for early-career researchers.
I was pleased to present my poster titled “Engineering an Animal-Free 3D Model Using Self-Assembled Peptide Hydrogels”, which showcased my recent work on developing 3D in vitro hepatocyte cultures for drug toxicity screening. It was a valuable opportunity to receive feedback, engage in scientific discussions, and highlight the importance of animal-free approaches in biomedical research.
Sessions focused on advanced biomaterials, in vitro co-culture systems, and liver models were particularly relevant to my work, offering new insights and ideas for future research. I also appreciated the SYIS (Student and Young Investigator Section) events, which provided a supportive space to network with fellow early-career researchers. This year’s translational sessions also introduced some unique innovation themes such as AI-driven digitisation, 4D tissue engineering, next-generation cancer therapies, and even 3D bioprinting in Space – topics that broadened my perspective on potential applications of my research.
I am sincerely grateful to the Tissue and Cell Engineering Society (TCES) for the travel bursary that enabled me to attend this conference. It was an inspiring and enriching experience that strengthened my network and reinforced my commitment to advancing ethical, human-relevant biomedical research.
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2025 Joint Meeting of the American Association of Oral Medicine (AAOM)
Rachel Furmidge, Sheffield University
Thanks to the support of the TCES Travel Award, I had the opportunity to attend the 2025 Joint Meeting of the American Association of Oral Medicine (AAOM), where I presented my research in the form of a poster presentation. My poster presentation, entitled “Electric Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) And Machine Learning-Based Decision Support System For Early Diagnosis of Oral Cancer”, detailed our current work using tissue-engineered models of healthy, precancerous and cancerous oral mucosa as a way of training and validating a new point-of-care diagnostic device.
The field of oral medicine is relatively small and therefore this conference was an excellent opportunity to share my work with others working in oral cancer diagnostics and get their feedback. Overall the response to my poster was very positive, and it was nice to have a discussion with another individual who wants to use similar techniques to train their device that uses FTIR rather than EIS. We were able to give each other some advice based on the experiences we’ve had so far working on these respective projects.
Attending the conference was also extremely valuable, learning about the latest developments in oral diagnostics and seeing what is currently being used in clinical practice. The conference has a strong clinical presence, which is quite unique compared to some academic conferences, and was a nice opportunity to learn more about the specific challenges that are currently being faced by oral medics. From our perspective this was incredibly valuable, as we could see ways tissue engineering could be applied to help tackle some of these conditions and hope to investigate these further in the future.
The conference was a great opportunity to network with key leaders in the field. A particularly exciting moment was talking at my poster with Dr. Ross Kerr, a prominent figure in oral medicine. He expressed strong interest in the potential of our tissue-engineered models for disease modeling. Specifically, we discussed the possibility of creating models to replicate a disease he is currently studying, so he can use the model as a platform for evaluating new treatments and diagnostic methods. We are hoping to do this work with Dr Kerr as a collaboration between our universities in the near future.
Overall this conference was extremely valuable for my professional development. Sharing my work led to insightful conversations, including potential collaborations, and helped me refine how I communicate my research to a broad scientific and clinical audience. The conference environment fostered new ideas that I plan to incorporate into upcoming projects and proposals, and I left with insights into improving my current work. I’m also looking forward to building on the connections I made to pursue future collaborations.
I am sincerely grateful to the TCES for supporting my attendance at the AAOM/EAOM conference and giving me the opportunity to have this excellent experience which will benefit my career in the years to come.
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TERMIS-EU 2025 Freiburg
Abhinav Thareja, Birmingham
I had a great learning experience attending the TermisEU2025 conference in the beautiful black forest city of Freiburg in Germany, as a new member of the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society, Inc. (TERMIS). As a first time attendee, I had the privilege to present my talk about our research at the University of Birmingham on remote activation of T-cells via externally applied magnetic fields through mechanotransduction for anti-cancer adoptive cell immunotherapies on the first day of the conference. I was honoured to co-chair my scientific session on Biomechanics and Forces, as a young investigator member of TERMIS SYIS-EU, alongside Prof Viola Vogel who also very kindly mentored me in the conference with her vast experience in our shared research field, and Prof Bodo Kurz with his warmth and wisdom.
It was a great opportunity not just to explore all the exciting research, but at the same time making new friends in the TERM community at the specially designed SYIS networking dinners. The SYIS Meet-the-Mentor lunch with a senior TERMIS member was an excellent programme for budding young researchers in this field like me to widen our outlook from the experiences of established researchers and to ask them all sort of questions for career growth. A full day dedicated to clinical needs included sessions like Speed Dating the Clinicians on day 2, was a great way to discuss the unmet gaps and requirements in the clinic to guide the laboratory research in a way to bridge those gaps via clinical collaborations and translate it more efficiently. Japan was the invited guest nation this year and I was awed by the cutting-edge technologies that are being developed there which was very evident in talks from multiple senior researchers, specifically in bioprinting of tissue grafts. The amazing city of Freiburg had a lot to offer both in terms of history as well as lush green forests and scenic mountains.
I am absolutely grateful to TCES for awarding me a travel bursary, thus enabling dissemination of our research at international conferences like TERMIS and supporting young members like me in pursuit of successful academic careers, aligned with the fundamental objectives of TCES of furthering knowledge, research and dissemination of information on cell and tissue engineering.
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TERMIS 2025
Amaziah Ron Alipio
Hi, my name is Amaziah, and I’m a final-year PhD student at the University of Birmingham. In May 2025, I had the exciting opportunity to present a poster at TERMIS-EU 2025, my first international conference, held in Freiburg, Germany. My research focuses on cell surface engineering for the development of cell-based regenerative therapies—a theme closely aligned with the conference’s emphasis on tissue engineering and translational medicine.
Presenting at TERMIS-EU was an incredibly rewarding experience, both professionally and personally. I received insightful feedback from leading experts, engaged in stimulating discussions that broadened my perspective, and connected with researchers from around the world. It was particularly motivating to see genuine interest in my work and to be part of a vibrant community driving innovation in regenerative medicine.
Beyond the usual conference sessions and activities, I also participated in a hands-on clinical workshop exploring current in vivo models in articular cartilage and oral regeneration. This was a fascinating introduction to an area outside my core research-yet one I hope to explore more deeply in the future. On a more personable note, I formed lasting connections with fellow PhD students and other researchers through the many networking events throughout the week and enjoyed some fantastic food and (of course) local beers in the beautiful city of Freiburg. I’m deeply grateful to TCES for supporting my attendance and encouraging me to share my work on such a prominent international stage.
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ESB 2025, Turin, Italy, 7-11 September 2025
Fatih Eroglu, The University of Manchester
I had the pleasure of attending the 34th Annual Conference of the European Society for
Biomaterials (ESB 2025), held in Turin, Italy, from 7–11 September 2025. The meeting
brought together approximately 1,400 participants from 67 countries, providing an
excellent environment for networking and exchanging ideas with researchers working on
related topics.
As a PhD student working on 3D in vitro bone models using both scaffold and scaffoldfree
approaches to investigate breast cancer metastasis, I found the conference highly
relevant. Many presentations and poster sessions concentrated on bone model systems
and biomaterial-based strategies, offering new perspectives and inspiring ways to refine
and differentiate my own project. Attending these sessions also helped me discover
innovative approaches that could be applied to my research.
I was thankful for the opportunity to present a poster titled “Engineering physiologically
relevant 3D scaffold-based bone models to investigate breast cancer metastasis to
bone.” Sharing my work with the community enabled me to gain valuable feedback from
experienced researchers and to participate in stimulating discussions that have shaped
my thoughts on the next steps for my project.
I would like to sincerely thank the Tissue and Cell Engineering Society (TCES) for
supporting my attendance through travel funding. Attending ESB 2025 was a highly
rewarding experience that offered both scientific inspiration and valuable professional
connections.
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Annual Congress of the European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ESGCT), October 7–10, 2025
An Nisaa Nurzak (University of Nottingham, UK)
I attended the 32nd Annual Congress of the European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ESGCT), held from October 7–10, 2025, at the FIBES Conference and Exhibition Centre in Seville, Spain. The congress gathered participants from across the globe, including Europe, North America, Asia, Canada, Africa and Australia, creating a truly international platform for scientific exchange and collaboration.
The 2025 ESGCT Congress featured 45 sessions, including 5 plenary sessions, 31 parallel sessions, and 6 workshops, with 114 invited speakers, 105 oral presenters, 1,046 posters, and 156 sponsor exhibitors. Most of the time, there were four room sessions running in parallel, ensuring that there was always a session aligned with my research interests while also allowing me to explore emerging topics in other areas.
I participated as a poster presenter in the session on Non-Viral Delivery Systems, where I showcased my research on a glucose-responsive construct as a regulatory element for diabetes gene therapy. These sessions featured 77 presenters, making it one of the most interesting and rapidly evolving areas in gene therapy: non-viral delivery nowadays. The presentation generated insightful discussions and constructive feedback from experts in metabolic disease gene therapy and synthetic gene regulation.
Many presentations highlighted current in vivo studies in gene therapy, with particular emphasis on recent advances in gene editing technologies. I found these sessions especially relevant and inspiring, as they provided critical insights into the translation of gene therapy from preclinical models to clinical applications.
Overall, As a second-year PhD student, this has been one of the most valuable and impactful experiences of my PhD conference journey. I am very thankful to TCES for the Travel Bursary Award that made my trip possible. This opportunity gave me valuable knowledge, new connections, and great motivation for my future research.