PhageBank Leadership Team
The PhageBank and its associated database are led by Andrew Millard and Darren Smith. This initiative brings together expertise in bacteriophage biology, microbial genomics, sequencing technologies, bioinformatics, and the development of curated research infrastructure.
These resources have been established to support high-quality phage research, the long-term preservation and curation of isolates and associated metadata, and the application of genomic data across both academic research and applied sectors.
Dr Andrew Millard
Co-Director of the Becky Mayer Centre for Phage Research, University of Leicester
Dr Andrew Millard is Co-Director of the Becky Mayer Centre for Phage Research at the University of Leicester, with over 25 years of experience studying bacteriophages and microbial genomics.
My research focuses on phage genomics, bioinformatics, and the development of rapid sequencing approaches to support phage therapy and antimicrobial resistance research.
I have developed and contributed to several widely used bioinformatics resources and tools, including the INPHARED phage database, tax_myPHAGE, and large-scale comparative genomics pipelines for bacteriophage classification and analysis.
My work combines laboratory and computational approaches to better understand phage diversity, evolution, and therapeutic potential.
Professor Darren Smith
Professor of Bacteriophage Biology, Northumbria University
Director of the NU-OMICS DNA Sequencing Research Facility
Professor Darren Smith is Professor of Bacteriophage Biology at Northumbria University and Director of the NU-OMICS DNA Sequencing Research Facility.
My research focuses on bacteriophage biology, microbial genomics, and the use of multi-omic and bioinformatics approaches to study phage-host interactions and microbial community dynamics.
I have extensive expertise in genomics, metagenomics, transcriptomics, and sequencing technologies, combining laboratory and computational approaches to investigate the role of phages in bacterial evolution, clinical microbiology, and environmental systems.
My work spans phage genomics, microbial ecology, and applied sequencing, supporting both academic and industrial research projects through the NU-OMICS facility.