SBGrid is pleased to announce that it has established a partnership with Instruct-ERIC, based in Oxford, UK.
Instruct-ERIC is a pan-European distributed research infrastructure with a hub in Oxford, UK and over 30 centres and facilities around Europe delivering high-end technologies and methods in structural biology.
Through Instruct-ERIC, SBGrid now has a foundation in Europe. Dr. Estrella Fernandez-Gimenez began her contract with SBGrid in March 2025. In collaboration with Instruct, Estrella combines her role of curating SBGrid's software collections with expanding the consortium in Europe, working through both Harvard University and CNB-CSIC in Madrid, Spain.
Estrella previously completed her PhD at CNB-CSIC, part of Instruct-ES, which put her in the ideal position to understand the power of software applications for structural biology research.
Estrella commented, “Working with Jose Maria Carazo and Carlos Oscar Sanchez Sorzano at CNB-CSIC really demonstrated the combined importance of both data collection and effective data analysis in structural biology. By joining both worlds through SBGrid and Instruct-ERIC, there is a clear process that researchers can use to get the best possible data. The expertise at Instruct and the software of SBGrid is a great combination.”
Harald Schwalbe, Director of Instruct-ERIC, emphasizes: “I am happy that the project, started from our Instruct centre in Spain, now connects with the larger structural biology community in Instruct. The interaction between Harvard in Massachusetts and Instruct is vital to enrich and strengthen our international high-level cooperation.”
The SBGrid Consortium has steadily expanded its international footprint and now supports structural biology laboratories in ten European countries.
Piotr Sliz, Director of SBGrid, notes: “The Instruct-ERIC centre in Spain represents SBGrid’s second regional hub, following the establishment of our first hub in 2022, in collaboration with Professor Kurt Krause at the University of Otago in New Zealand. Having a dedicated software curation specialist based in Spain will enhance our ability to tailor regional support services and strengthen our engagement with local research communities. Dr. Fernandez-Giménez is exceptionally well suited for this role, particularly given her extensive training in CryoEM at the National Center for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC) in Madrid. We are extremely excited about this new opportunity and look forward to working closely with Estrella and the Instruct-ERIC team to further advance our shared mission.”
CNB-CSIC provides their own structural biology framework, SCIPION, recently included into the SBGrid catalogue of software. SCIPION is developed as a tool for analysing cryo-EM data, a key function of the Instruct Image Processing Centre (I2PC) at CNB-CSIC.
The aim for Estrella and SBGrid is to incorporate more members and more software platforms from Europe, widening the diversity of applications available for users. Through Instruct, researchers can access advanced technologies for structural biology projects. The collected data can then be analysed through SBGrid platforms – the collaboration between both consortia will provide an effective workflow for structural biologists.
As part of this partnership, SBGrid will work to enhance software curation and service delivery tailored to regional needs. Together, Instruct-ERIC and SBGrid will support European Members through a range of joint activities, including customized training programs, user engagement events, and guidance on optimizing local computational infrastructure. The partnership also aims to expand outreach beyond existing members, engaging structural biologists, software developers, and scientists working in data acquisition. By combining their strengths, the two organizations are committed to building a more connected, sustainable, and responsive infrastructure for structural biology in the region of Europe.
Learn more about Instruct-ERIC