Scientists Present Ideas at Westminster


Aberystwyth University researchers Alex Pitchford and Dan McNulty, attended the Houses of Parliament last month, as part of Westminster’s annual STEM for BRITAIN event. They discussed their studies with politicians and a panel of expert judges as part of a national poster competition featuring dozens of early career researchers from across the UK.


Physics graduate Alex, now a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University’s Department of Mathematics presented his research on quantum computing optimisation. He recently returned from Japan where he has been attending a developer conference for QuTiP, open source software for simulating the dynamics of open quantum systems. He is lead developer for the project’s library.


At the event Alex said: “This is an exciting opportunity for me to explain my scientific ideas to the UK decision makers who invested a lot in quantum technology. It’s also a unique opportunity to visit the House of Commons and meet my MP who has generously offered to give a tour.”


A graduate of Imperial College London, Dan is a Sêr Cymru II Research Fellow* in the Department of Mathematics.


He spoke of his work relating to the strange quantum phenomenon of complementarity, discussing its role in some of the new and exciting quantum technologies revolutionising computing, communication and security.


Dan said: “I’m delighted to present my work at the STEM for BRITAIN event in the House of Commons. This gives me the opportunity to promote my research in a non-academic environment and participate in a project which aims to support early career research scientists from across the UK.”


Stephen Metcalfe MP, Chairman of the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee, said: “This annual competition is an important date in the parliamentary calendar because it gives MPs an opportunity to speak to a wide range of the country’s best young researchers. At stake are gold, silver and bronze awards, along with £2,000, £1,250 and £750 to the respective winners.


The overall winner will receive the Westminster Wharton Medal.


Study Points to Added Benefits of Live Vaccines and Implications for Vaccination Programmes


A project by scientists at the University of Liverpool and Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine has shown that vaccination with weakened strains of Salmonella may also protect against other infections, which could impact vaccination strategy in the developing world.


Centred on Salmonella Typhi - the cause of the bacterial blood infection Typhoid fever which is estimated to affect between 11- 18 million people worldwide - promising first data was obtained on the ‘non- specific’ immune response triggered by the live oral typhoid vaccine Ty21a.


“Live-attenuated Salmonella vaccines are low-


cost, well-tolerated and easily administered. These vaccines could potentially be included in global vaccination programmes, not just for their impact on Salmonella, but also for their off-target, non-specific beneficial effects,” said lead author Dr Shaun Pennington from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.


Previous evidence has suggested that some live-attenuated vaccines, such as those for measles and polio, can stimulate the human immune system to generate a wider protective response. The researchers vaccinated 16 healthy adults in the UK with the Ty21a vaccine and during six months looked at immune responses


Wound Care Project Could Reduce Diabetic Amputations


Researchers at the University of Nottingham have secured funding to develop a disposable dressing that could have a significant impact on patient care and healthcare costs for wound management, said to be £4.5-£5.1 billion a year – currently more than 4% of the NHS budget.


The project is initially focusing on hard-to-heal wounds such as foot ulcers, which represent a large proportion of this cost – standing at nearly £1 billion. It was estimated that better wound monitoring has the potential to reduce the 7,000 lower limb amputations that affect people with diabetes in England each year.


“Thanks to a £902,524 grant from the Medical Research Council, we can develop a real step change in the care of chronic wounds. Our smart wound dressing incorporates optical fibre sensors which will remotely monitor multiple biomarkers associated with wound management such as temperature, humidity and pH, providing a more complete picture of the healing process.


“At present, regular wound redressing is the only way to visually assess healing rates, however this exposure can encourage infection, disrupt progress and creates a huge economic burden on NHS resources. Instead our technology will indicate the optimum time to change the dressing and send out an alert if intervention is required with infected or slow-healing wounds to improve patient care and cut the number of healthcare appointments needed,” explained Professor Steve Morgan, Director of the Centre for Healthcare Technologies and Royal Society Industry Fellow at the University.


Developed and validated by the Centre in laboratory tests, the proposed sensors will be fabricated in very thin (~100um diameter), lightweight, flexible, low- cost optical fibres and incorporated into fabric similar to a conventional wound dressing. Connection to a reusable opto-electronic unit will constantly evaluate the wound’s status relaying information to both the patient and clinicians via wireless transfer linked to a mobile phone.


The marginally higher initial cost of the smart bandages is expected to be offset by fewer dressing changes and practitioner visits.


The project will last 34 months in total - 24 months on product development and 10 months of clinical evaluation and chronic wound patient feedback.


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targeting Salmonella and a range of other pathogens. Changes to levels of infection- fighting white blood cells (monocytes) and immune system messengers (cytokines) in the group, suggested that Ty21a can strengthen the immune response against subsequent, unrelated infections.


“The next step is to observe whether these responses also occur in children in low- income settings where their impact would be greatest. We’d like to conduct further clinical studies, where we will be able to assess the wider impact of our observations in conferring protection against other common infections, not just Salmonella,”


said principle investigator Professor Melita Gordon from the University of Liverpool and Malawi-Liverpool-Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Programme.


The study received funding support from the Sir Jules Thorn Charitable Trust, the Rosetrees Trust, the Wellcome Trust and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine Director’s Catalyst Fund.


‘Nonspecific effects of oral vaccination with live-attenuated Salmonella Typhi strain Ty21a’ published in Scientific Advances [DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aau6849]


48691pr@reply-direct.com Lab Industry Showcase set for Autumn


Returning to the NEC, Birmingham on the 30 & 31 October 2019, Lab Innovations expects to draw together more than 150 leading scientific suppliers and around 3,000 attendees to discuss the latest scientific developments and equipment. This dedicated laboratory industry tradeshow, now in its 8th year, enjoys support from some of the UK’s leading scientific institutions and industry players including Analytix, Anton Paar, Cole-Palmer, Eppendorf, GAMBICA, IKA, Perkin Elmer, SLS, Shimadzu and Thermo Fisher Scientific are among the big industry players participating for 2019. Celebrating 2019 as the International Year of the Periodic Table, the Royal Society of Chemistry will focus on this theme in its dedicated theatre and several related networking events taking place across the two days. In collaboration with Cleanroom Technology, a Cleanroom Hub will provide a zone for suppliers of cleanroom-specific equipment, which incorporates a seminar pod, a networking lounge and exhibitor pavilion.


First-time exhibitors will also be able to showcase new products in a dedicated village area and the well-received SLS pavilion has expanded to accommodate up to 20 of its partners suppling laboratory equipment, chemicals and consumables.


The ‘Sustainable Laboratory’ will also provide an opportunity for attendees to speak with leading UK universities on how they made use of ‘green’ equipment and processes to achieve sustainable results while a bespoke meetings concierge service will also provide visitors and exhibitors with


Dan McNulty and Alex Pitchford (right)


*Sêr Cymru II is a research fellowship funded by European Regional Development Fund through the Welsh Government.


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the opportunity for pre-arranged meetings. Phil Ellis, Equipment Services Manager, Aberystwyth Innovation and Enterprise Campus Ltd summed up his first visit and the importance of making connections: “This is the first time I have attended Lab Innovations and I have ended up coming both days due to the amount of connections we were making. Besides networking, Lab Innovations has given me the opportunity to keep up-to-date as the entire market is here. I will definitely come again. Gerald Law, CEO Innovation DB, member of the Lab Innovations advisory board said that: “The advisory board comes together a couple of times a year to define the direction of the annual event. This year the agenda will feature laboratory automation and informatics, the recruitment of young talent into STEM, the implications of Brexit, of course sustainability and a lot more. Watch this space for further announcements!” More information online: ilmt.co/PL/rkaL


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