Last week, the COST Action ENOTTA (CA21147) successfully hosted its Biomarker Training School at the University of Manchester, UK.
Following opening remarks by Prof. Denis Mulleman, Action Chair, trainees from 13 countries embarked on an intensive three‑day programme exploring the current landscape and future of biomarker research.
The school opened with an inspirational keynote from Prof. Anne Barton on “The role of biomarkers in precision medicine”. Trainees then attended a series of expert-led lectures including:
- Dr Marlene Santos – Types of biomarkers and their applications
- Prof Richard Unwin – Techniques for biomarker discovery
- Dr John Bowes – Integrated risk tools: combining genetics and clinical risk factors
- Dr Darren Plant – Identifying biomarkers of immunogenicity in rheumatoid arthritis
- Dr James Bluett – Biomarkers in disease diagnosis, treatment, and clinical implementation
Three highly interactive workshops complemented the lectures:
- Two sessions on Evaluating clinical accuracy and utility of biomarkers (Parts I & II) by Prof. Nataša Bogavac-Stanojevic
- A Bioinformatics workshop delivered by Marian Love, Nicola Wong, Aggie Turlo, and Arfa Mehmood from the NIHR Manchester BRC Next Generation Phenotyping and Diagnostics Bioinformatics Team
The programme concluded with presentations and a panel discussion on Regulatory considerations and emerging trends in biomarkers, featuring Dr Videha Sharma, Prof Güldal İnal Gültekin, Dr David Talaver, and Dr George Kararigas.
To wrap up the event, trainees enthusiastically presented four biomarker study proposals—showcasing their newly gained expertise. A fantastic and unforgettable event!
A huge thank you to the organising team — James Bluett, Sean Gavan, Meghna Jani, Marlene Santos, and especially Hannah Shafi — for their professionalism and hard work. And of course, thank you to all the trainees for your energy, engagement, and contributions.
