Tag: Research

Death of a cell: the vital process of tidying up cell debris to prevent blood clots

In this post, Dr Anusha Seneviratne breaks down the conundrum of cell death and how this process protects our bodies from blood clots.

Your cells die every day. Don’t worry, your body is protecting itself. In a process known as apoptosis or programmed cell death, cells that are no longer needed commit suicide. Some cells are only required for a short time, they may be infected by a virus or develop harmful cancerous mutations. Cell death is also an essential part of development from an embryo. For example, mouse paws begin as spade-like structures and only form the individual digits as the cells in between die. During apoptosis the cells fragment into smaller apoptotic bodies, and their cell surface is flipped open to display lipid molecules called phosphatidylserines, which act as an ‘eat me’ signal to recruit cells called macrophages to engulf them, before their contents spill out and damage the surrounding tissue. This is a process known as efferocytosis. (more…)

How a little Mo effort can make a big difference

To mark Movember, PhD student Akifumi Shibakawa explains how Movember cash is funding prostate cancer research at Imperial and how to get involved in the fundraising. 

It’s that time of the year again, when men grow moustaches around the globe. It all started in 2003, when two guys in Australia had the idea to make moustache-growing fashionable again. For a greater cause, they made this campaign about men’s health and established the Movember Foundation. As you may know, the campaign became an international phenomenon, attracting over 300,000 participants in more than 20 countries in 2016. (more…)

Understanding our achy breaky hearts

Takotsubo syndrome

PhD student Liam Couch unravels the science behind breaking heart syndrome and explains how his research is helping to understand the unknowns of this condition. 

Broken heart syndrome, officially known as takotsubo syndrome, is an acute type of heart failure, where the bottom of the heart stops beating in situations of extreme stress. A condition predominantly affecting post-menopausal women, it has been dubbed broken heart syndrome owing to the frequent occurrence during bereavement after the loss of a loved one. However, this is just one example of the various circumstances in which takotsubo syndrome can occur. Indeed, any stressful event can lead to a surge in adrenaline which can result in takotsubo syndrome. This could be physical or emotional, and includes trauma such as car accidents, drug abuse, and even happy events such as weddings! (more…)

World Osteoporosis Day: love your bones!

For World Osteoporosis Day, Dr Victoria Leitch provides an insight into how her research in osteoporosis is working towards new treatments for this common condition. 

As a young girl I spent many long afternoons in piano lessons.

Years later, I remember very little from the lessons – but I do vividly remember the teacher. She was very strict, had hair like candy floss and a severe hunch. She always made the lessons run long, but she would give me a chocolate bar if I helped her hang out her washing afterwards. She needed my help because she couldn’t reach the washing line anymore. One day I asked my mum why she had a hunched back and she told me it was because she had osteoporosis. At the time I didn’t really comprehend what that meant, but I knew it wasn’t good. One day she fell and broke her hip, and sadly, not long after that she passed away.  As you read my story, I am sure it sounds familiar to a lot of you. Maybe not with a piano teacher, but with a relative, family friend or neighbour. The reason I say that is due to the rising prevalence of osteoporosis – one in three women and one in five men over the age of 50 are affected. (more…)

One small step in wearable tech: one giant leap in osteoarthritis detection and management

Dr Enrica Papi a post-doctoral research associate looks at how the rise of wearable tech could play a role in osteoarthritis detection and management.

When deciding what to do in life, it was clear that I wanted to help people live better, however becoming a doctor wasn’t for me. I found my way through studying biomedical engineering, which developed my passion for the biomechanics of human movement. I see this as a means to understanding the underlying mechanisms of musculoskeletal disease. Through detailed assessment of patients’ movement function we can understand the implications of disease progression and propose solutions to mitigate the developing disorders. To a curious mind like mine, this is a fascinating way to achieve my aspirations. The idea of being able to find explanations as to why things happen to our bodies is amazing and the fact that it can improve people’s quality of life makes it all the more satisfying. (more…)

World Heart Day: Building new hearts at the BHF Regenerative Medicine Centre

Regenerative Medicine

On World Heart Day, Sian Harding Head of the BHF Centre of Regenerative Medicine looks at how the Centre’s cutting-edge science is working towards building new heart muscle. 

We are excited by the news that our BHF Regenerative Medicine Centre has been renewed for another four-year term from 1 October 2017! At Imperial we have been concentrating on the big challenge of producing new muscle for the damaged heart, along with our partners in the Universities of Nottingham, Glasgow, Hamburg and Westminster.

The heart has a very limited capacity to repair itself after a heart attack, or during the more insidious damage from high blood pressure, diabetes or chemotherapy. We have been looking at various kinds of stem cells to explore their power to become new cardiac muscle cells – one of the big successes of the current Centre. Pluripotent stem cells – those which have the capability of turning into any cell type in the body – can now be turned very efficiently into beating heart muscle in the laboratory dish, and made into strips of engineered heart tissue. Our partner, Professor Chris Denning, at the University of Nottingham has automated the process of making the cells and Professor Thomas Eschenhagen in Hamburg has contributed his technology for converting this into muscle. (more…)

Blood Cancer Awareness Month: all roads lead to EVI1

PhD student Philippa May reflects on being a scientist in the field blood cancer, from working in a leukaemia diagnostic laboratory to a research laboratory. 

For the last 10 years I have been a clinical scientist in genetics working across various London NHS Trusts. Whilst I loved diagnostics, last year I left my job to complete my PhD. I worked in a part of life sciences called cytogenetics. This meant when a patient was diagnosed with blood cancer, I would analyse their chromosomes – the structures into which DNA is organised – from their blood or bone marrow to look for specific abnormalities. For some patients, this can lead to a definitive diagnosis. For others a refined prognosis, and in some, it’s simply a way of monitoring how well the patient’s leukaemia is responding to their treatment. (more…)

Weighing up dodgy diets

Weighing up dodgy diets

From gluten-free to detox diets, Dr Anusha Seneviratne dissects the scientific evidence (or lack of) behind eccentric diets. 

Magazines and newspapers are full of so-called ‘tips’ or ‘advice’ for the image conscious, detailing extreme diets followed by the rich and famous to achieve dramatic weight loss, or new diets apparently supported by the latest scientific research. One example is the gluten-free diet, made fashionable particularly in the sporting world by former world number one tennis player Novak Djokovic (1). Having had a reputation for being physically weaker than his rivals, Djokovic was eventually diagnosed with coeliac disease and the resulting gluten intolerance. Eliminating gluten from his diet transformed his career. (more…)

The magic of crystallography

Light micrograph (LM) of Insulin crystals

Originally published in the Imperial Magazine in June 2017, Professor Naomi Chayen explains why, when it comes to medicine, crystals may indeed have magical properties.

To grow a crystal used to be considered a kind of magic. Perhaps that’s because crystals are so beautiful: it is easy to understand why so many people are fascinated by them and believe that they bring good fortune, or have healing powers. And yes, they do have powers. Crystallise a substance – a protein, for example – and you can understand its structure. We prize diamonds for their beauty: I prize protein crystals for their potential power to unlock new treatments, in everything from cancer to diabetes. They are my diamonds.
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How does the charity Leuka support blood cancer research at Imperial?

In this post, four Imperial researchers write about the different ways in which Leuka has supported their work at the College.

Leuka is a charity that supports life-saving research into the causes and treatment of leukaemia and other blood cancers. Funding from dedicated charities such as Leuka provides an important source of support which enables high-quality research programmes here at Imperial to develop and progress. (more…)