Tom Ellis

Tom Ellis is a Professor of Synthetic Genome Engineering at Imperial College London's Department of Bioengineering, part of the Faculty of Engineering. He leads the Ellis Lab, focusing on synthetic biology and engineered living materials. His research includes developing foundational tools for synthetic genomics, with a focus on yeast and bacterial cellulose-based materials. He has pioneered Engineered Living Materials (ELMs), including self-pigmenting microbial leather and bioengineered textiles.

Background: Ellis earned his PhD from the University of Cambridge in 2004, followed by postdoctoral work at Boston University under Jim Collins. He has held academic roles at the University of Cambridge and Imperial College, where he now co-leads synthetic biology education.

Research Interests: Synthetic genomics, engineered living materials, genome engineering, DNA sequence function, and bio-based material production. His lab collaborates with industry partners like Modern Synthesis to advance sustainable materials.

Awards: Multiple teaching awards, including recognition for supervision of iGEM teams.

Lab Affiliations: Ellis Lab, Centre for Synthetic Biology, Synthetic Biology Hub, and Industrial Biotechnology Hub. Active in UK and international projects like the Sc2.0 synthetic yeast consortium.

Recent Work: Development of self-dyeing bacterial cellulose textiles (Nature Biotechnology 2025), optogenetic patterning of materials, and modular yeast genome design.