In The News 2012 |
February
2012 |
Smartphone app to help stroke patients get treatment faster
Dr William Whiteley and Mr Graeme Heron (both Division of Clinical Neurosciences) have devised a smartphone app to help people spot a stroke quickly. By asking a few simple questions, the FAST test app helps them to decide whether they need to call 999. It also provides general information about stroke (causes and treatments) as well as providing an option to speak to a specialist. The app is available on iPhones and Android smartphones.
iPhone
Android
Scotsman (20feb12)
Daily Record (20feb12)
February 2012 |
Suicide rates in Scotland increase
Prof Stephen Platt (Centre for Population Health Sciences) has published a study indicating that suicide rates in Scotland have increased and now exceed those in England and Wales. Scotland used to have the lowest rate in the 1960's but it has been increasing, particularly amongst young men.
BBC News online (09feb12)
Scotsman (09feb12)
original paper in British Journal of Psychiatry will be available soon
February 2012 |
New genetic variant identified in ischaemic stroke
Dr Cathie Sudlow (Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences) has published a paper in Nature Genetics identifying a new genetic variant associated with ischaemic stroke and demonstrating differences in genetic associations with different subtypes of ischaemic stroke.
original paper in nature Genetics (05feb12)
February 2012 |
Brain size could be linked to friendship
Prof Neil Roberts (Clinical Research Imaging Centre) has been in the news with research he has published in collaboration with colleagues at Universities of Oxford, Manchester and Liverpool, where they have found that the size of your orbital prefontal cortex may be related to the number of friends you have!
Daily Mail (31jan12)
Independant Online (02feb12)
original paper in Proceedings of the Royal Society B (01feb12)
February 2012 |
January
2012 |
Edinburgh scientists create neurones from neurological disease patients
Prof Charles ffrench-Constant (Centre for Regenerative Medicine) has been interviewed in the media about the work going on at Edinburgh creating neuronal stem cells using skin cells from patients with diseases such as Motor Neurone Disease, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Observer online (29jan12)
January 2012 |
Extent of genetic influence on cognitive ageing revealed
Prof Ian Deary (Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology) and colleagues in Psychology, the Roslin Institute, Molecular Medicine Centre and Alzheimers Scotland Dementia Research Centre have been working with researchers in Aberdeen and Australia to tease out the contribution our genes play in our ability to age well, cognitively speaking. The results of this truly interdisciplinary and international piece of work have been published in Nature and profiled in the media. Their findings indicate that about 24% of changes in intelligence from childhood to old age are due to genetic factors, and that many of the genes that influence intelligence in childhood also affect it in old age.
Daily Mail online (18jan12)
Scotsman online (19jan12)
Telegraph online (19jan12)
Wall Street Journal (19jan12)
Nature Comment (18jan12)
original paper in Nature (online 18jan12)
January 2012 |
Anatomical Museum to open to the public
The Anatomical Museum at the Old Teviot Medical School has undergone a revamp recently and will now to open to the public once a month. Home to a collection of death masks (including those of William Shakespeare, Issac Newton and Walter Scott), as well as the skeleton of William Burke (the notorius murderer who was hanged and then publically dissected in the anatomy depart he used to supply), this museum is a historical treasure trove of the investigation of body and brain.
The Anatomy Museum, in Teviot Place, Edinburgh, will be open to the public on the last Saturday of every month, from 10am-4pm, starting on January 28.
Daily Mail online (18jan12)
January 2012 |
Do thrifty brains make better minds?
Prof Andy Clark (Department of Philosophy) has published an online commentary in the New York Times discussing the efficiency of the human brain in processing information, and how prediction-based strategy's help us to save on our 'neural bandwidth' use!
New York Times online (15jan12)
January 2012 |
December
2011 |
Medal Awarded for Stroke Research
Congratulations to Professor Martin Dennis (Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences) on being awarded the Bhowmick Medal for 2012 by the Welsh Association of Stroke Physicians in recognition of his "tremendous contribution to Stroke Medicine". Martin will collect his medal in June 2012.
December 2011 |
£1 Million Donation to the Patrick Wild Centre
Dame Stephanie Shirley has donated £1 million to The Patrick Wild Centre for Research into Autism, Fragile X Syndrome and Intellectual Disabilities. Dame Shirley's son suffered from autism and epilepsy and she has generously supported research into autism over many years, donating about £50 million since 2001. Her donation will directly support research in the Patrick Wild Centre at the University of Edinburgh.
BBC online (04dec11)
STV (04dec11)
The Telegraph (03dec11)
December 2011 |
Preventing the spread of vCJD
Dr Neil Mabbot (Roslin Institute) has been profiled in the media following publication of research from the Roslin Institute indicating that the production of PrPC protein is essential for the spread of prions.
BBC online (02dec11)
December 2011 |
