From leaps in ovarian cancer diagnosis, to cutting-edge digital twin technology, The Glasgow Guardian looks at the groundbreaking research taking place on campus.
Research at the University of Glasgow continues to be at the forefront of innovation as we enter the new academic year. The previous months have seen groundbreaking research in medicine, decarbonisation technology, and the prevention and eradication of gambling addiction.
A University of Exeter study, collaborated on by researchers at the University of Glasgow, discovered a regulator-affecting immune cell. This could be used in the treatment of arthritis and severe Covid-19. The study focused on how immune cells sense their environment.
Researchers have also looked at the behaviour of the Myeloid inhibitory C-type lectin-like (MICL) receptor, and how it prevents inflammation and protects against infection. The team found that keeping the MICL healthy was crucial in preventing inflammatory diseases including arthritis.
This study found that the MICL receptor cannot sense its environment or send signals to cells, unlike most receptors in the immune system. This limits the activation of the cell, and makes it key to fighting against auto-immune diseases, as over-action of cells can be problematic.
In arthritic mice, the researchers demonstrated that genetic loss of MICL led to more severe auto-immune disease. In normal mice, antibodies that targeted MICL were applied and, again, created severe disease.
In human patients with arthritis, those who already possessed antibodies which targeted the MICL had an exacerbated inflammatory response, researchers found.
Inflammatory diseases including Lupus, Rheumatoid arthritis and severe COVID have been linked to the production of antibodies which blind the MICL, concluding in more severe disease.
Head of the College of Medical, Veterinary & Life Sciences at the University of Glasgow and co-author of the study, Professor Iain McInnes, said that the study “makes use of the Scottish Early Rheumatoid Arthritis Cohor He described the study as a “Scotland wide effort on the part of NHS and academic consultants and most importantly our patients, to gather information and samples from people in the early years after they developed rheumatoid arthritis.” He explained that this would allow scientists to “better understand the disease.” He added, “Further studies are now necessary to understand how best we can capitalise on this to improve treatments in future.”
In further world-changing scholarship in medicine, researchers at the University of Glasgow are commencing on a two-year project to improve the diagnosis and treatment of ovarian cancer. The James Watt School of Engineering’s Professor Huabing Yin is leading the “high resolution molecular profiling platform to investigate the role of tumour microbiota in anti-tumour immunity,” which has received £1.1m of funding.
The project is one of 36 from the first round of the UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) cross-research council responsive mode pilot scheme, created to encourage interdisciplinary research.
Alongside the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research and other collaborators, Professor Yin’s team will source new insights into the microbiota of ovarian cancer. Currently, this is the hardest gynaecological disease to treat in the Western world, as well as the most lethal, due to how difficult ovarian cancer is to diagnose.
The project hopes to improve early diagnosis of ovarian cancer and better our understanding of the role a tumour microenvironment plays in cancer pathology. The development of immunotherapies to treat the disease is another goal of the project.
The project will advance knowledge of the female body in the medical field; something imperative to improving the quality and expectations of women’s lives globally. Before 1993, females were rarely included in clinical trials, and medical professionals are still catching up today. It is hoped that this research will be groundbreaking in the diagnosis of ovarian cancer; a major cause of death for women.
This research will give the University of Glasgow researchers a brand-new, detailed view of the cancer cell’s biology, supported by detailed molecular information.
Professor Yin said, “I’m grateful to UKRI for their support for this interdisciplinary project, which has the potential to help provide improved outcomes for patients by deepening our understanding of the complex microbiota of tumours.”
In the technology sector, researchers part of the new national hub are set to begin using digital twins to decarbonise the UK’s transport system. Digital twinning is a method of testing different transport configurations, and developing these much faster than in real-life engineering. This is done through data replicating the physical world, through rapidly analysing data to test and improve scenarios. The exchange is almost instantaneous.
The new national hub, named TransiT Hub, is jointly led by the University of Glasgow and Heriot-Watt University, and will focus on identifying the lowest cost, least dangerous, and most energy-efficient way to decarbonise transport in the UK; from road, to rail, and air.
TransiT Hub has secured £46m from the UK government and 67 other partners, and is thought to be one of the largest transport collaborations of its kind. There are eight universities involved in the TransiT Hub, including Glasgow and Heriot-Watt. The University of Glasgow will focus on digital twinning and cyber-physical systems.
The TransiT team will even test futuristic decarbonised transport systems which do not yet exist in the UK, such as electric road systems and alternative fuels. The digital twins will allow experts an understanding of where these future systems would be best deployed, by the analysis of a range of data.
Joint Director of TransiT and Professor in Cyber-Physical Systems at the University of Glasgow, Professor David Flynn, said, “We will explore how digital twinning can improve the design of future transport solutions to ensure services are accessible to all. It’s challenging for designers and engineers today to appreciate the perspective of citizens with mobility challenges and what they experience throughout the full journey. If we can create and embed new design principles, we can identify equitable pathways to decarbonisation.”
Glasgow academics are also making groundbreaking changes in the social sciences. A survey led by the University of Glasgow has provided detailed insight into gambling behaviours. For the first time in 14 years, a new survey has examined participation rates, gambling activities, reasons for, and consequences of gambling.
The Gambling Commission launched the first annual report of the Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB), which was produced by the National Centre for Social Research at the University of Glasgow. This is set to be one of the biggest surveys of its kind, with 20,000 responses predicted by next year.
The survey is expected to focus specifically on the adverse consequences of gambling and gambling addiction for individuals, as well as those close to victims. The impact of gambling on relationships and health and wellbeing will be a focal point.
Co-director of Gambling Research Glasgow, Professor Heather Wardle, who is based at the University of Glasgow, said: “The new GSGB is hugely significant. We know from our research – and the stories we hear from those with lived experience – that gambling harms don’t just affect the individual who gambles, but the people they are close to, and can lead to severe consequences for their loved ones.
“Thanks to the GSGB, we now have the first ever data on the breadth and depth of adverse consequences people experience because of someone else’s gambling, demonstrating the impact gambling can have on relationships and on health and wellbeing.”
