The UK Physics of Life Roadmap

We would like to draw researchers’ attention to the PoL road-mapping activity that PoLNet3 are leading on. This road mapping exercise provides an opportunity for the PoL community to articulate progress, identify opportunities and support strategy and innovation for UK Physics of Life research which can furthers our understanding and address life-science challenges. 

What's it for?

The Physics of Life roadmap will be used to: 

• Inform the Physics of Life research community and wider stakeholders of the opportunities and potential of Physics of Life (in its entirety).  In doing so, it may  identify unmet needs (e.g. skills or opportunities for more effective working at this interface)  
• Position Physics of Life in relation to other key activities. For example, there may be some activities where Physics of Life leadership is required and others, where the Physics of Life community should seek to increase engagement in activities led by others. 
• Raise awareness of relevant stakeholders, including research communities, who could help shape future research questions 
• Be a resource for funders to inform research strategy by contributing towards the understanding of the importance and potential impact of Physics of Life research and the key opportunities that it presents in the short, medium and long term.

Aims

1. ​Survey, and engage with, the UK physics of life research community, and relevant stakeholders, to review UK research strengths and opportunities in this area of research (to include case studies).
   
2. Synthesise and publish a summary of the Physics of Life research community’s view of research challenges and opportunities, along with an assessment of the significance and potential benefits of these challenges and opportunities.   
   
3. Articulate UK strengths for Physics of Life research in an international context and identify key opportunities for development in this space for the next 5, 15 and 25 years. 
   
4. Review the impact of PoLNET on the research community and assess how training needs might develop over the coming years.   

Who's it for?

Community – the roadmap will be publicised and delivered as part of the Physics of Life conference in Harrogate, 2025. The roadmap will act as a point of reference for current and future opportunities.
Funders – UKRI, Wellcome and other funders to highlight reasons to fund PoL research. 

Why Now?

• The​ PoLNET3 grant ends in March 2025. Additional funding received from UKRI between March 2024 and 2025 is being used to fund this roadmap alongside the PoL PDRA call. 
• The PoL SPF fund (£33M) will be completed by March 2025.
• It’s important momentum created from Physics of Life network(s) (PoLNET1- PoLNET3) and from grants funded by the PoL SPF isn't lost.
• It is therefore timely and important to highlight to funders what the strengths of the Physics of Life community are and where the community envisages priority areas/UK strengths, which may highlight important investment areas. 

​Who’s involved?  

• The Physics of Life community (ECRs, researchers, learned institutions, industry) - to ensure a broad range of voices are incorporated into the written roadmap.  This will involve collecting data, surveying the community and collecting information from community workshops and meetings.
• Physics of Life Roadmap 2023 Working Group (WG) (see below) - to provide written contributions on key aspects and expertise for the roadmap report.
• UKRI and Wellcome - to help define the remit of the review and act as critical friends to provide guidance on the process for developing this roadmap.  
• Physics of Life Steering Group - to provide comment and review of roadmap.

How to get involved

Physics of Life community webinar on 16 May 12-1 pm 
We hosted an open webinar focused around the exciting opportunities we have as a community to help shape the future of Physics of Life research in the UK through the Roadmap discussions which are now underway. Please see the webinar recording at the bottom of this webpage. 

Community Survey: The Physics of Life created a community survey which requested community input. The deadline to complete this has now passed, but we will continue to review any incoming thoughts. Please take the time to ensure your voice is represented by completing the short 10 minute survey, which can be found here: https://forms.office.com/e/s8CXn3HfKr 

Theme Survey:  Based on the community survey data and together with analysis of recently funded research, high-impact articles, and transformative data, the PoL Roadmap working group created draft descriptions of seven of the most disruptive active and emerging areas in UK Physics of Life research (see section below on 'Draft Roadmap Themes for Community Review' or word document located here). 
The draft descriptions and examples within the seven broad areas should not be treated as exhaustive or exclusive, since we are still in the draft consultation phase. We would like to invite the whole UK PoL researcher community to feed back into these descriptions via a final 5-10 minute consultation survey which will remain open until August 15. Please see: https://forms.office.com/r/WvPSumJARp

Events: Physics of Life will be organising events to collect data and information from the community. Keep an eye out on our upcoming events. These will be advertised on our webpage, via our monthly mailing alerts, email and X.
Confirmed upcoming events: 
- Physics of Life Roadmap session at The Astbury Conversation - 8 and 9 April 2024, University of Leeds
- Physics of Life Roadmap session at BBS Biennial meeting - 11 and 14 September 2024, University of Swansea Bay Campus
-Physics of Life Roadmap session at AI for Biological Physics - 9-10 September, IOP, London

Contact us: Please contact our Working group chair Professor Mark Leake ([email protected]) or any members of our working group members (see below).  

Physics of Life Roadmap 2023 Working Group (WG)

*Prof Mark Leake (University of York, [email protected])
​**Dr Karis Baker (University of Durham, [email protected])
Prof Olwyn Bryon (University of Glasgow, [email protected])
Prof Sonia Contera (University of Oxford, [email protected])
Prof Lorna Dougan (University of Leeds, [email protected])
Prof Nigel Goldenfeld (University of University of California San Diego, [email protected]) 
Prof Jamie Hobbs (University of Sheffield, [email protected])
Prof Martin Howard (John Innes Centre, [email protected])
Dr Davide Michieletto (University of Edinburgh, [email protected])
Prof Michelle Peckham (University of Leeds, [email protected])
Dr Alice Pyne (University of Sheffield, [email protected])
Prof Teuta Pilizota (University of Edinburgh, [email protected])
Prof Dr Petra Schwille (Max-Plank Institute of Biochemistry, [email protected]) 
Prof Ben Simons (University of Cambridge, [email protected])
Prof Stephen Smye (University of Leeds, [email protected])
 
* Working group Chair
** PoLNET Project Manager

Draft Roadmap Themes for Community Review

To contribute to this draft, please complete our survey located here: https://forms.office.com/r/WvPSumJARp or for a particular theme, please contact any co-lead members of the working group as listed below. 

Challenge Themes 1-6

Theme 1: Simple models and systems to unlock complex molecular processes inside cells
This theme covers a broad range of approaches which aim to controllably reduce the complexity of native biomolecular processes, using in silico, in vitro and in vivo methods, with an ultimate objective to yield more tractable simplified systems which can then enable new quantitative insights. Simple models, including computational models inspired by statistical physics, and experimental models designed to simplify systems to a predictable quantitative outcome, can often provide breakthrough insights into otherwise highly complex molecular processes. Examples include work on transcriptional and epigenetic dynamics, chromatin architecture, phase-separating systems such as liquid-liquid phase separation, membrane interfaces and proteins, nuclear transport, macromolecular assembly processes, cytoskeletal dynamics, cell size and shape control, and signal transduction pathways.
Co-Leads: Martin Howard Martin ([email protected]), Alice Pyne ([email protected]), Petra Schwille ([email protected]) and Nigel Goldenfeld ([email protected]).

Theme 2: Improving health, ageing and wellbeing 
This theme concerns the physics that governs changes in cells and complex tissues in health and disease across lifespans, e.g., understanding cancer, neurodegenerative disease, ageing and sensory systems. In cancer, progress in theories of active matter which describe the collective behaviour of systems out of thermodynamic equilibrium include advances in activity-driven flows, motile topological defects, and active turbulence which have been applied to study growth, motion and morphogenesis across a range of processes in mechanobiology, developmental biology, and disease including understanding the budding processes which characterise metastases. In neurodegenerative disease such as Alzheimer’s, research involves studying malfunctions in cellular phase transitions and the physics of biomolecular condensates, while statistical physics is informing our understanding of the collective behaviour of neurons and neural processing. In ageing, work is being done to understand how epigenetics and the mechanical properties of cells affect stem cell fate choices across the lifespan. Research on sensory systems such as advanced retinal imaging to measure morphological changes associated with electrical response of photoreceptors is providing new diagnostic routes for Parkinson’s and motor neuron disease. And in wellbeing, quantification of light availability – spatially, temporally, directionally and spectrally – in natural and built environments, using innovative measurement and modelling is revealing new approaches of light exposure to improve health. 
Co-Leads: Steve Smye ([email protected]), Olwyn Byron ([email protected]).

Theme 3: Tackling infection - from the physics of microbial systems to host immunity
Our understanding of infectious agents (viral, bacterial, fungal, parasitic), how they interact with their host and the immune response, how they spread and evolve, and current/potential mechanisms of control are benefitting increasingly from quantitative, “physics-based” conceptual and experimental approaches. E.g., structural insights from molecular to cellular scales, cellular dynamics from single cells to ecosystems, quorum sensing, bioelectricity, antibiotic action, evolution of resistance mechanisms, mechanisms of transmission, the identification of potential drug targets, non-linear properties and learning in the innate and adaptive immune system, as well as the development of methods for rapid sensing, clinical diagnostics, sequencing and tracking of infections and the host response. At the same time, infectious agents such as bacteria and viruses are widely being used as testbeds to resolve the fundamental physics of active matter, new understanding of self-organisation process at scales from molecules to systems of interacting species, and inspiration for nanotechnological approaches in areas such as autonomous assembly and drug delivery. 
Co-Leads: Jamie Hobbs ([email protected]), Pietro Cicuta ([email protected]), William M. Durham ([email protected]). 

Theme 4: Physical principles of embryo and organ development to understand regenerative, ageing and disease processes
Together with in vivo assays, the physical and genetic manipulation of stem cell-derived embryo models and the 3D organ culture systems are providing predictive insights into the programmes that instruct lineage segregation, cell fate specification and the patterning of complex multicellular organisms and tissues. These models also provide a platform to study ageing phenomena, as well as regenerative and disease processes, with the potential to impact on drug design, immunotherapies, and the development of personalised therapies. These advances are leveraged by enabling technologies from the physical sciences, from live-imaging modalities and the microfabrication of patterned and functionalised materials for culture design to theoretical methods rooted in active matter and statistical physics, dynamical systems, and machine learning-based approaches to computational genomics. At the same time, biological systems are providing a laboratory to study new non-equilibrium phenomena, inspiring hydrodynamic theories of tissue fluidisation and rheology, topological and collective cell behaviours, and self-organisation phenomena.
Co-Leads: Ben Simons ([email protected]), Michelle Peckham ([email protected]), Timothy Saunders.

Theme 5: Translating engineering biology across scales
This theme covers broad aspects of engineering biology, including biomimicry and methods to design and generate synthetic systems across a range of scales inspired by native biology involving the use and/or development of biological reagents, e.g. the generation of “smart” biomaterials. Building on past efforts to mechanistically understand cell biology, engineering biology aims to manipulate and take control of biological entities, or “building blocks”, to design systems that behave predictably and can deliver benefits to society. A grand challenge to achieve this is to translate the rich information about individual building blocks to the emergent behaviour of a collection of such blocks. To address this challenge we need to develop both mesoscale modelling for engineering biology and integrative experimental approaches to probe in situ assembly. These will result in, for instance, the efficient production of artificial molecules or polymers from genetically engineered bacteria, smart design of nucleic acids and proteins to predictably synthesise new materials, engineered molecules to optimise novel information and energy carriers or remote sensing devices, predictably engineering microorganisms to process harmful toxins or to behave as living materials, generating new biocompatible materials for use in tissues/organ translation and wound healing. These efforts contribute to addressing key global challenges such as food safety, reliable medicines, clean growth and a green environment. 
Co-Leads: Lorna Dougan ([email protected]), Davide Michieletto ([email protected]).

Theme 6: Physics of Life approaches that impact climate change and food security
A range of multiscale, interdisciplinary approaches which cut across the physical-life sciences interface are being developed which impact the challenges of climate change and food security. For example, approaches which seek inspiration from biology to develop new computing and robotics technologies using cells and even whole plants to reduce energy consumption is an emerging area showing promise to reduce the currently substantial carbon footprint involved in the mass computation revolution that underpins so much of modern society. Similarly, bioinspiration is being used to optimise creative new approaches to reduce the substantial CO2 production associated with traditional manufacturing methods used in the construction industry. Rapid progress is also being made built on physics of life principles to understand the fundamental physical rules of photosynthetic fixation of atmospheric CO2, from quantum light harvesting through to the biophysics of cells, tissues and even the ecological processes driving ocean circulation, and to impact benefits of these insights through re-engineering and optimising these biomolecular machinery in biomimetic systems to improve global carbon fixation efficiency and transformatively improve yield in a range of  food crops. These cumulative approaches which ultimately serve to target “Net Zero” are driving the development of an armoury of new physical, engineering and computational technologies which impact reciprocal benefits across multiple areas of society. 
Co-Leads: Mark Leake Mark Leake ([email protected]), Teuta Pilizota ([email protected]), Sonia Antoranz Contera ([email protected]), Luke Mackinder, Andrew Millar.

Underpinning Approaches
Significant efforts are being made in developing and implementing innovative approaches which cut across many of the disruptive research themes within PoL. These underpinning approaches include aspects of technology development in the form of new experimental instrumentation, advanced computational approaches and biomathematical modelling tools. For example, multiple bioimaging technologies are being developed, including faster and more efficient detector methods, and correlative approaches to integrate orthogonal data sources, and high-precision systems that can control and manipulate force and torsion in biological processes. Advanced mathematical modelling approaches which can tackle cross-scale challenges in the physics of emergence in biological systems are being developed, extending from quantum biology and molecular scales, through to the mesoscale, cells, tissues, organs, organisms and even collections of organisms, such as swarms of bacteria and flocks of birds. Finally, emerging high-performance computational methods are driving aspects of simulation across scales and numerical analysis within PoL, many of which involve machine learning and artificial intelligence. These approaches cut across PoL research and create opportunities for the nurturing, training and support of early career researchers from different areas of disciplinary and technique expertise. 
Co-Leads: Mark Leake ([email protected]),Alice Pyne ([email protected]), Michelle Peckham ([email protected])​, Nigel Goldenfeld ([email protected]).

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