University

Pioneering spin-out company’s test identifies fungal lung disease in COVID-19 patients

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Wed, 07/29/2020 - 1:08am

A revolutionary point-of-care test developed by experts from a University of Exeter spin-out company has been used to safely diagnose a lethal fungal lung disease during the Coronavirus pandemic.

The ground-breaking company, ISCA Diagnostics, has created a simple, affordable and rapid test to detect pulmonary aspergillosis.

A frequently fatal lung disease, which usually attacks immune deficient individuals such as cancer patients and bone marrow transplant recipients, it has also recently emerged as a super-infection of Coronavirus patients in Intensive Care Units known...

Exeter student creates 40 pieces of artwork for the 40 million people trafficked into modern slavery

Megan Buchanan-Smith, a student at the University of Exeter, learned about the transatlantic slave trade during her History degree. She was shocked to realise that there are now more people in slavery than ever before. Megan decided to use her passion for art to raise money for anti-slavery organisation, International Justice Mission.

This Thursday 30th July is World Day Against Trafficking in Persons – a day to raise awareness of human trafficking and increase action to end it.

Megan spent most of her History degree studying the transatlantic slave trade, including...

University of Exeter recognised for life-changing work to promote social mobility

The University of Exeter has been recognised for life-changing work to support disadvantaged young people and help them achieve their potential.

The University has been shortlisted for two categories - Innovation and University of the Year - in the UK Social Mobility Awards . The awards, which recognise and celebrate the achievements of businesses and organisations across the country in their work of advancing social mobility, will take place in October.

University of Exeter staff work with several thousand pupils and their teachers each year via outreach activities to...

Research to reveal the evolutionary reasons why we get by with a little help from our friends

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Tue, 07/21/2020 - 3:41pm

The quest to discover why friendship plays such a pivotal role in social and mental well-being has been given a significant boost, it has been announced.

Professor Lauren Brent, an expert in animal behaviour from the University of Exeter has been awarded substantial funding to help uncover the evolutionary origins of friendship and social bonds.

Prof Brent has received a €2 million grant to conduct ground-breaking new research to investigate not only social bonds are so important to the health and longevity of so many species, but also why evolution allows social...

Collecting footballing memories for the future

Exeter City Football Club’s Grecian Archive has been gathering ‘memories for the future’ with the help of the University of Exeter.

Researchers at the University of Exeter are asking ‘what is the heritage of now?’ to ensure that current events and items are correctly documented and preserved for people to look back on in the future.

Gabriella Giannachi, Professor in Performance and New Media, initially led the creation of the archive to catalogue historic items and try trace their history. Now, she is using those historic documents to engage fans with the history of the...

Next-generation triple antibody test for COVID-19 given green light by MHRA

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Wed, 07/08/2020 - 6:07pm

University of Exeter scientists have developed a revolutionary new device that could allow health professionals to test patients’ antibody response to COVID-19 in as little as seven minutes.

The pioneering new COVID-19 Triple Antibody Test, has been produced by the University of Exeter spin-out company Attomarker Ltd and is set to spearhead the next-generation of rapid and accurate antibody testing.

While traditional tests that require laboratory analysis can take up to 72 hours to get results, the device is able to deliver quick and accurate quantitative results in just...

Exeter part of national project to support disadvantaged students affected by COVID-19 to enter higher education 

The University of Exeter has joined a national project designed to offer pivotal support to disadvantaged students, who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, to enter higher education.

The new online hub, called ‘Uni4Me’, will see 50 organisations from the higher education sector across the country provide around 250 free, interactive online activities for the students.

The activities include virtual courses in a range of subjects led by university academics; online tuition and support in core GCSE/A Level academic subjects; live events involving leading academics...

Exeter in global top five for research on green space and public health

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 07/02/2020 - 9:18pm

The University of Exeter has leapt into the top five institutions in the world for research output on the links between green space and public health.

Exeter is currently number four in a list of the most productive institutions globally to study how exposure to green space can improve public health, according to a review of the field in the journal Environmental Research Letters .

The review found that Exeter has published 148 research papers between 2010 and 2019. Environmental research is a priority area across the University, and in 2010, the European Centre for...

Urgent research begins to help ensure survival of regional theatre threatened due to coronavirus

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Wed, 07/01/2020 - 4:32pm

Urgent research has begun to find a way for small and mid-sized theatre companies threatened with closure due to coronavirus to keep operating.

The study will investigate if audiences are willing to pay for remote performances and how actors can take their work online and continue to be paid.

Theatres and companies around the country are making staff redundant and the future of many is in jeopardy. The research will be conducted rapidly so the findings are reported and can be of use before the Government’s furlough scheme – which has supported many in the industry – ends...

£1 million award could identify a new form of genetic diabetes

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Mon, 06/29/2020 - 11:25pm

An award of almost £1 million will help scientists at the University of Exeter unravel the genetics mysteries of a rare form of diabetes, and could help identify a new form of the condition.

Dr Kash Patel, of the University of Exeter Medical School, has secured the funding under the Wellcome Clinical Research Career Development Fellowship.

Over five years, Dr Patel will study Maturity-Onset Diabetes of the Young (MODY), a rare genetic form of diabetes which can be passed down through families. It is caused by a defect in one of 14 genes, many of them discovered at the...

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