10 ways we are making an impact
We have a successful track record of contributing to society through our research, learning and teaching, and innovation and engagement activity.
Efforts by many staff and students highlight a rich variety of ways in which we're engaging with and benefitting society. Here are just ten recent examples:
The Life Sciences Challenge for Year 10 pupils features parallel competitions for Welsh-medium and English-medium schools. It has grown since its inception in 2013, and this year attracted entries from over 100 teams, involving almost 500 pupils across the whole of Wales.
The Challenge aims to inspire pupils to consider careers involving science and is run by staff and students from the School of Medicine.
Both English and Welsh finalists included a North/South Wales split of teams - Brynteg School, Bridgend v Ysgol Brynhyfryd, Ruthin, (English) and Ysgol Bro Morgannwg, Barry v Ysgol Tryfan, Bangor (Welsh). The worthy 2019 winners were Tryfan and Brynteg.
Virus experts have uncovered, for the first time, how a virus known as Adenovirus type 26 (Ad26), which has been used effectively in a tamed form as a vaccine, can infect human cells.
The research, published in the journal Science Advances, provides the first detailed analysis of the structure of the virus in complex with its newly discovered receptor.
“Our research finds that Ad26 uses a type of sugar found on the surface of most cells to enter and infect human cells,” according to Alexander Baker, who led the research.
By understanding how the virus infects human cells the team believe this will allow them to develop antivirals to prevent the spread of infectious forms of Ad26 and will result in the development of more effective vaccines, based on tamed Ad26, to fight infectious diseases as well as cancer.
On Halloween, two Cardiff University societies- MediCan and WEMS- worked together to put on a free day of first aid activities for Welsh sixth formers with an interest in studying medicine.
The morning was spent in mini lectures giving the basics, before putting the pupils through their paces! Our volunteer medical students acted as casualties in (very dramatic) scenarios including basic life support and catastrophic bleeds.
After a whistle stop lunchtime tour of UHW pupils settled down for talks and group work about applying to medical school.
The pupils enjoyed the day, giving it an average rating of 9/10!
Nearly £1.4m in funding by Cancer Research UK has been awarded to scientists to support the development of cancer-killing viruses.
“Oncolytic” viruses are widely seen as the next breakthrough in cancer treatments. They destroy cancer cells but leave health cells unaffected. Dr Alan Parker said “Viruses haven’t evolved to infect and kill cancer cells - unfortunately they infect healthy cells, making us ill in the process. Our research has focused on generating ‘smart viruses’ that can discriminate between cancerous and healthy cells.
“Our next challenge is to engineer the virus to make it even more potent and deliver this to clinical trials. This funding from Cancer Research UK will accelerate this process and help us to deliver these exciting new therapies to cancer patients sooner.”
Our medical students, led by fifth year students Hayley Taylor and Elliot Phillips, taught CPR to members of the public at locations in Cardiff as part of the World Restart a Heart Day on Wednesday 16 October.
Restart a Heart Day is an annual initiative led by the European Resuscitation Council and the Resuscitation Council (UK) alongside other partners, with the aim to raise awareness and improve the low numbers of people surviving out-of-hospital cardiac arrests.
Hayley said: “Anyone has the ability to save a life. Chest compressions are simple once you know how, and automated external defibrillators (AEDs) are becoming more and more common in public places.
“If people are taught these skills, and shown that AEDs are designed for anyone to use, they could have the skills and confidence to save a life.”
Healthcare professionals tasked with planning the future direction of the NHS in Wales will receive academic training at Cardiff University.
The Postgraduate Diploma in Healthcare Planning will be delivered by academics from Cardiff Business School, the School of Mathematics and the School of Medicine. The 18-month programme of learning will involve professionals from across Wales – from seven health boards and three NHS trusts.
Funded by Welsh Government and NHS Wales, the course is part of a wider initiative to develop employees already working in healthcare planning in Wales. A total of 125 people will be trained over five years.
Dr Jonathan Tyrrell and his team set up shop in Cardiff St David’s 2 last summer, providing visitors with the opportunity to find out more about the microbial world and the increasing threat of antibiotic resistance to public health globally.
During the two week period, 6566 visitors enjoyed a mixture of activities including games, arts and crafts and laboratory experiments and 1626 youngsters became ‘Antibiotic-Resistance Champions’ representing 200 schools throughout Wales.
Superbug visitor quotes include:
“The children enjoyed the event. The activities were brilliant and informative. They liked the coconut shy game.”
“Engaging for my boys, I was surprised by their understating of antibiotic use and happy they learned the rules throughout the science shop.”
“Interactive activities to help children understand complexity of antibiotics. Station 11 (Fighting back, how we combat antibiotic resistance) was the favourite. Very enthusiastic scientists.”
The Delirium Study led by Dr Martyn Stones, Psychiatry trainee and PhD student at the School of Medicine in collaboration with Jan Sharp, Senior Medical Artist at the University Hospital of Wales, provides a unique insight into patients’ subjective experience on the intensive care unit (ICU).
Delirium is a common condition affecting about 20% of all hospital patients. Symptoms fluctuate and include poor attention, disorientation and in severe cases visual hallucinations and paranoia.
The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between the biological and psychological changes that occur in patients on intensive care after heart surgery.
Patients described their visual hallucinations to Jan Sharp who used photo-montage in an attempt to accurately represent the hallucinations and enable viewers to experience what they saw.
The Centre for Trials Research is to coordinate a trial looking at the use of antibiotics in sepsis. Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening complication of an infection and it is estimated that 52,000 people in the UK die every year as a result of it. Optimal treatment includes early recognition, prompt antibiotics and fluids.
The trial will look at emergency assessment of sepsis and whether antibiotics are being oversubscribed, which experts cite as a significant factor leading to increasing antimicrobial resistance.
Emma Thomas-Jones, senior research fellow at the Centre, said: “The aim of the trial is to assess whether the addition of a point-of-care blood test can aid clinicians in their decision-making around the requirement for urgent antibiotic treatment in patients presenting to the emergency department with suspected sepsis, which will hopefully lead to a reduction in antibiotic usage without increasing risk of mortality.”
Research shows that more than 50,000 children in the UK attend hospital with burns each year, with the majority happening to children under five.
Hot drinks account for 60% of hospital attendances with burns in children under three years. The SafeTea campaign is based on evidence collected by researchers from Cardiff University, the University of Bristol and the University of the West of England and tested in collaboration with early years teaching staff and parents of young children.
Professor Alison Kemp, who led on the research, said: “To avoid risk, parents should keep hot drinks out of reach of children, never pass a hot drink over a child, or hold a drink and a baby at the same time. We also advise them to learn the correct burns first aid to help them in the event of an accident: Cool the area under running water for 20 minutes; Call for medical advice, NHS Direct or 999; Cover the area with clingfilm. The moments following a burn are the most critical time for preventing long-term damage.”
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ReMEDy edition 33
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