JANUARY2026
Inthisnewsletter youcanexpect storiesabout:
OurfreeWill writingwebinar
Thelaunchofthe Institutefor Medical Innovation
Theimpactof legacies
Improvingbreast cancertreatment
Deprescribingfor dementia
PIONEERINGPARTNERSHIPWILLTACKLEWORLD’S MOSTDEVASTATINGDISEASES
TheInstituteforMedicalInnovation(IMI) isanew£100millionmedicalresearch centrebeingdevelopedinSouthampton totransformthefutureofhealthcare.A jointinitiativebetweentheUniversityof SouthamptonandUniversityHospital SouthamptonNHSFoundationTrust,the IMIwillbringtogetherleadingexpertsin medicine,computerscienceand engineeringwithinapurpose-built facilityatSouthamptonGeneralHospital.
Byembeddingresearchdirectlywithina clinicalenvironment,theInstitutewill accelerateprogressintacklingsomeof theworldʼsmostdevastatingconditions, includingcancer,dementia,sightloss, infectiousdiseases,andrespiratoryand allergicillnesses.TheIMIwillalsoplaya vitalroleintrainingthenextgeneration ofmedicalresearchers,providingthem withaccesstocuttingedgetechnology, dataandtoolstodrivelifechanging discoveries.
Supportedbysignificantinvestment fromtheUniversityandanambitious fundraisingcampaigntobelaunchedin thecomingyear,theIMIiscurrentlyin thedesignphaseaheadofformal planning Itslocation,adjacenttothe Universityʼsworld-leadingCentrefor CancerImmunologyandtheGeneral Hospital,willgiveresearchersunrivalled accesstopatients,samplesandclinical teams.
UniversityleadersdescribetheIMIasa beaconofhopethatwillplace Southamptonattheheartofglobal medicaldiscoveryandstrengthenthe long‑standingpartnershipbetween researchandpatientcare.TheIMIwill besolidifiedinSouthamptonʼshistory fordecadestocome Tofindoutmore abouttheimpactyoucouldmaketothe futureofmedicinebyleavingagiftin yourwill,visitOurImpact-Universityof Southampton.
EarlyartistimpressionoftheInstituteforMedicalInnovation
THEIMPACTOFLEGACIES:CATHERINEROBERTSON, PHDSTUDENT
Thankstoagenerouslegacydonation toGiftofSight,afundbasedwithin theUniversityofSouthampton,PhD studentCatherineRobertsonwasable tocarryoutathree-yearresearch projectfocusedonunderstandinghow conephotoreceptorsintheeye develop.Improvingknowledgeof retinaldevelopmentisacrucialstep towardcreatingtargetedtreatments forvisionloss,asphotoreceptors thelightsensitivecellsintheretina areessentialforsight.
Catherineʼsresearchcentredon GNGT2,alittleknownproteininvolved inphototransduction,theprocessthat convertslightintosignalsthebrain caninterpret.Whileearlystudies suggestedGNGT2mightplayarolein coneformation,itsfullfunctionduring eyedevelopmentwasnotwell understood.
Toinvestigatethis,Catherineusedthe geneeditingtechniqueCRISPRto createa“knockoutˮcelllineinwhich theGNGT2genewaseffectively switchedoff Fromthesemodified cells,theteamgrewretinalorganoids miniaturelabgrownmodelsthat mimicthehumanretina.
Bycomparingtheseknock‑outmodels withnormalcells,Catherine discoveredthatGNGT2playsmultiple rolesinretinaldevelopment.Its absenceledtoreducedexpressionof keyproteinsneededforcone formation,revealingapreviously unknownlevelofcomplexityinhow conesdevelop.Thisresearchopens excitingnewavenuesforfuture studiesintosightrestorationand treatment.Theimpactlegaciesmake iseverlasting,and100%ofalegacy giftgoestowardsthedesiredproject. Thismeanslegators,suchastheone thatsupportedCatherineʼsproject, knewtheywouldbemakingahuge anddirectimpactintothisimportant areaofresearch.
Readmoreat: https://giftofsight.org.uk/
COMPOSITIONMAYIMPROVEBREASTCANCER TREATMENT
Ateamofcancerscientistsanddoctors attheUniversityofSouthamptonand UniversityHospitalSouthamptonare workingtogethertoimprovebreast cancertreatment.Theirgoalistofind betterwaystochoosetheright treatmentanddoseforeachpatient
Atpresent,doctorsoftenusesimple measuressuchasheightandweightto guidecancertreatments.However, thesemethodsdonotalwaysreflect howeachpersonʼsbodyrespondsto treatment Thisresearchaimstochange thatbylookingmorecloselyatbody composition,includingmuscleandbody fat,aswellaspatientsʼlevelsofphysical activity.
Theteamisusingdetailedbodyscans alongsideinformationaboutexerciseto betterunderstandhowdifferentpatients respondtotreatment.Bycombiningthis data,doctorsmaybeabletopersonalise treatmentsmoreaccuratelyandreduce unwantedsideeffects.
Sofar,theresearchershavestudied 300peoplewithearly-stagebreast cancerwhoarereceiving chemotherapy Earlyfindingsare positiveandsuggestthisapproach couldleadtosaferandmoreeffective care
Theproject,knownasCANDO,also exploreshowdiet,exerciseandbody shapeaffectpatientsʼresponsesto newertreatmentssuchastargeted therapiesandimmunotherapy.Working withseveralNHStrustsacrosstheUK, theteamhopestheirresearchwill improvetreatmentdecisionsandmake theexperienceofbreastcancercare betterforpatientsinthefuture.TheIMI willhavethefacilitiesandtechnologyto scancellsandbeaplacefor interdisciplinarycollaboration,with cancerbeingoneofthemainareas teamsintheIMIwillbeworkingto acceleratediscoveries
DEPRESCRIBINGFORDEMENTIA
Scientistsareencouragingdoctorsto reduceorstopmedicinesthatareno longerneededforpeoplelivingwith dementia.Thisapproach,knownas “deprescribingˮ,aimstolowerhealth risksandimprovequalityoflife.
ResearchfromtheUniversityof Southamptonfoundthatmanylongtermmedicinestakenbypeoplewith dementiacouldbesafelyreducedor stopped.Insomecases,thisledto betterhealthoutcomesandfewer problemslinkedtotakingmultiple medicines.
Around982,000peopleintheUKare currentlylivingwithdementia,and about60percentliveathomewith supportfromfamilycarers.Taking severalmedicinescanbedifficult,as peoplemayforgetdosesorfeel restrictedintheirdailyroutines,while carersfaceaddedresponsibility.
Theresearchersreviewed32studies andfoundthatreducingmedication canbedonesafelywithoutincreasing theriskofhospitalvisitsordeath. Theyrecommendregularmedication reviewswithaGPorpharmacistto checkwhethereachmedicineisstill needed.
Moreresearchisneeded,particularly forpeoplewithdementialivingat home,tohelpimprovecareand wellbeing.
Thank you for reading!
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