From heart pumps to deady habits... how university is helping
INNOVATION IN SPOTLIGHT FOR SCIENCE WEEK
A CITY university has been highlighting the top five innovations it has pioneered as it celebrates this year’s British Science Week (March 5–14).
The theme of this year’s week is “Innovating for the Future”.
The University of Leicester has played a part of some of the most important discoveries and innovations in its 100 years, most notably DNA fingerprinting.
It was invented in 1984 by Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys in the laboratories at the university, after he realised variations in human DNA could be detected in the form of mini-satellites. DNA fingerprinting is a technique that simultaneously detects lots of mini-satellites in the genome to produce a pattern unique to an individual.
Professor Philip Baker said: “We are immensely proud to be a leading research-intensive university, and our pioneering work has helped shape the understanding of our world through discovery and endeavour.
“From breaking boundaries in space research to life-saving interventions for patients, research has been an intrinsic part of our success story and will continue to be so in the future.”
Its top five are:
3D PRINTED MASK THAT CAN DETECT TUBERCULOSIS EARLY
A team of researchers led by Professor Mike Barer are revolutionising the way tuberculosis is diagnosed, through the invention of a 3D printed insert added to a simple face mask, which has the potential to save millions of lives across the world every year through early detection of the disease.
Designed and printed at the university, the insert can reliably catch and retain live tuberculosis (TB) bacteria, after a patient who may have symptoms has worn it for 30 minutes. The inserts can be removed safely and tested for the presence of live and dormant TB. In comparison, the current diagnosis of TB through a blood test can take weeks, and cannot differentiate between live and dormant TB.
MERCURY IMAGING X-RAY SPECTROMETER
The MIXS is an X-ray spectrometer carried on board the BepiColombo mission currently en-route to Mercury. It will be able to report on the surface composition of the planet once the craft arrives in orbit in 2025, and forms part of the UK’s scientific contribution to the mission.
MIXS will analyse the surface of the innermost planet by collecting fluorescent X-rays, emitted by rocks after stimulation by high energy solar X-rays. MIXS will measure those X-rays, allowing academics to calibrate the results.
FIRST ‘VIRTUAL ASTHMA PATIENT’
Dr Himanshu Kaul has created a “virtual asthma patient” to participate in clinical trials, to help make more accurate and timely predictions around which new drugs are successful and can offer benefits to patients.
Dr Kaul is collaborating with experts from the University’s Schools of Engineering and Mathematics and Department of Respiratory Sciences on his pioneering research project, called The Lung Pharmacome. It aims to produce a working mathematical computer patient model by 2024, with the ambition of conducting patient-specific “virtual clinical trials” by 2025. The initial area of focus will be lung diseases, working with the team at University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust.
DEVELOPMENT OF THE ARTIFICIAL HEART PUMP
Heart specialists and space scientists developed an artificial heart pump used to treat people with severe heart failure. The left ventricular assist device (LVAD) is often used as a “bridge to transplant”, when patients being considered for a heart transplant are unlikely to survive until a donor becomes available. The LVAD models used to treat patients today are fitted inside the heart and pump blood out into the aorta and saves thousands of lives a year.
TRACKING IMPACT OF TOBACCO
Little is known about the implications of this rapid diffusion through populations of Western Europe from 16001900, and what this means for our health.
Through the interdisciplinary analysis of archaeological skeletal remains, this four year UKRI-FLF funded project will track the impact of tobacco use on health in the post-Medieval period.
It focuses on changing disease patterns and explores how socio-economic and political priorities that enabled tobacco commodification, have had a lasting legacy on human health.
HAVE you ever sat there and wondered what unusual and bizarre items people end up flushing down their toilets? No, I didn’t think so...
You may want to wait until after you’ve eaten your tea before you read on because Severn Trent Water has decided to reveal all in any case.
Leicester is home to the worldfamous Poo Museum - also known as the Abbey Pumping Station Museum - after all.
Beyond the much-publicised and horrific “fat bergs” lurking in the deepest darkest sewers of the UK’s big cities, the water utility firm said some of the other things its engineers have found blocking pipes and drains deep down below our feet are almost as weird.
Try a block of butter, an apple, clothes pegs, a pen, a dog bowl, a pair of scissors and a screwdriver.
No, this isn’t a shopping list, but actually some of the peculiar items they say have recently found their way into sewers in Leicestershire and the East Midlands.
Better leave it to Grant Mitchell, Severn Trent’s leading expert on sewer blockages to explain.
“Over the past few months we’ve been really puzzled by some of the items that have appeared at our treatment works,” he said.
“I can’t help but wonder what people were thinking.”
There is, of course, a serious side to all this toilet flushing tomfoolery.
Would you like to be the one, after all, having to crawl about underground in among all that human flotsam and jetsam? “We can’t stress enough how important it is to only flush the three Ps - pee, poo and toilet paper - down the toilet,” urges Mr Mitchell.
“Anything else needs to go into the bin.’
He added: “The drains that take waste water away from homes are only a few inches wide and unflushable items such as sanitary products, wipes, or in this case food and household objects, can easily cause a big blockage - which isn’t something anyone would wish to experience, especially when it’s entirely preventable.”
Severn Trent Water said it has found plenty of other unusual things in the sewers that shouldn’t be down there in the past.
They include false teeth, toys, tennis balls, cutlery and even a motorbike broken down into parts. “Many customers may not realise that they are responsible for the waste pipe running away from their home until it either crosses the property boundary or meets with another waste pipe or sewer,” said Mr Mitchell. “Unblocking or repairing this section of pipe can be costly, but avoidable if you’re careful about what you put down your toilet or your sink.
“So we’d really encourage people to think before they flush!”
He added: “If you do run into problems, either slow drains or a blocked sewer which is Severn Trent’s responsibility, you can report it.”
■ To report such a problem call 0800 783 4444 or get in touch using the Severn Trent Water website.
Unblocking or repairing this section of pipe can be costly, but avoidable if you’re careful
Severn Trent’s Grant Mitchell