Public engagement
"Seeing the unseen"
Thursday 4th July 2024
Against the backdrop of a sunny but blustery London skyline, teams of researchers from the University of Oxford, Kings College London (KCL), Imperial College London, and University of Southampton worked together to showcase their scientific research to the local community in Lambeth and Southwark Boroughs.
Against the backdrop of a sunny but blustery London skyline, teams of researchers from the University of Oxford, Kings College London (KCL), Imperial College London, and University of Southampton worked together to showcase their scientific research to the local community in Lambeth and Southwark Boroughs.
Working within the theme of “Seeing the unseen” researchers from the EPSRC funded RedOx⇌KCL and MITHRAS programmes exhibited posters and provided hands-on activities to explain their work. The programmes are multidisciplinary and bring together chemists, biologists, and imaging specialists to develop new probes that detect changes in cells, tissues and whole bodies in diseases including cancer and cardiovascular disease. Researchers from both programmes are developing new probes to help us to understand complex biological processes in disease and help to improve detection in patients using Positron Emission Tomography (PET) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).
RedOx⇌KCL programme researchers have developed new fluorescent probes that can be imaged using a fluorescence detecting microscope to understand the levels of oxygen within cellular systems, such as in cancer. Understanding oxygen levels in cancer is important as cancer cells adapt and learn to survive in a low level oxygen (hypoxia) environment, for example inside a tumour mass. As a consequence they become harder to treat as they do not respond well to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Understanding the cellular environment in diseases including cancer help researchers to develop new medicines.
After brief introductory talks from the scientific programme leads Prof. Philip Blower (MITHRAS) and Prof. Stuart Conway (RedOx⇌KCL) members of the community were encouraged to discuss the areas of research with the teams who had created colourful and informative posters designed to showcase and highlight the work being done. Buzzing with discussion and activity, tabletop displays with the aid of UV light lamps enabled participants to learn about fluorescence and how some chemicals when they absorb Ultra Violet (UV) light fluoresce – such as quinine in tonic water. Interactive posters encouraged delegates to learn more about MRI and how it works through identifying their favourite fruit and chocolate using images from MRI scans! There was plenty of discussion, thought provoking questions and activities for members of the London community to learn about the exciting research that both programmes have achieved in their lifetime.
