̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge - Homerton College

Prioritise vaccine boosters for vulnerable immunocompromised patients, say scientists

cjb250 — Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:00:46 +0000

̽��ֱ��findings, published today in Science Advances, suggest that such individuals will need regular vaccine boosters to protect them and reduce the risk of infections that could be severe and also lead to new ‘variants of concern’ emerging.

Almost 16 million people worldwide are estimated to have died from Covid-19 during 2020 and 2021, though nearly 20 million deaths are thought to have been prevented as a result of the rapid rollout of vaccines against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that caused the pandemic.

During the pandemic, researchers discovered that immunocompromised individuals had difficulty clearing the virus, even when vaccinated. These are people whose immune systems are not functioning correctly, either as a direct result of disease or because they are on medication to dampen down their immune systems, for example to prevent organ transplant rejection. This meant that their infections lasted longer, giving the virus more opportunities to mutate.

Research from early in the pandemic showed that chronic infections can give rise to variants of concern that can then cause new waves of infection in the wider population.

When an individual is vaccinated, their immune systems produce antibodies that recognise and launch an attack on the virus. Such a process is known as seroconversion. Additional ‘booster’ vaccinations increase seroconversion and hence the likelihood of clearing infection.

However, although most immunocompromised individuals will have received three or more doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, they still account for more than a fifth of hospitalisations, admissions to intensive care units, and overall deaths associated with the disease.

To see why this is the case, scientists at the Cambridge Institute of Therapeutic Immunology and Infectious Disease (CITIID) at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge examined immunocompromised individuals who had been vaccinated against Covid-19. These patients, recruited from Cambridge ̽��ֱ�� Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, were living with vasculitis, a group of disorders that cause inflammation of blood vessels. Data from this group was compared against individuals who were not immunocompromised.

Treatments for vasculitis rely on immunosuppressant medicines. These include drugs such as rituximab, which depletes the number of B-cells in the body – but B-cells are the immune cells responsible for producing antibodies. As such, these individuals are a severely at-risk population.

When the researchers analysed bloods samples from the vasculitis patients, they found that even though vaccination induced seroconversion, this in itself was not always sufficient to neutralise the virus. Every immunocompromised individual required at least three doses of the vaccine to protect them across a range of variants up to and include Omicron (the variant that appeared towards the end of 2021 and caused a new wave of infections). In some cases, even four vaccinations were not sufficient to adequately protect them.

Kimia Kamelian, a Gates Cambridge Scholar at CITIID and St Edmund's College, Cambridge, said: “We know that immunocompromised individuals are particularly vulnerable to diseases such as Covid-19 because their immune systems struggle to clear infections. Vaccinations offer some protection, but our study shows that only repeated vaccinations – often four or more – offer the necessary protection.”

Professor Ravi Gupta, also from CITIID and a Fellow at Homerton College, Cambridge, added: “This of course has implications for the individual, who is more likely to have prolonged infection and a much greater risk of severe infection, but it also gives the virus multiple opportunities to mutate.

“We know from our previous work that at least some of the variants of concern probably emerged during chronic infections. That’s why these individuals must be given priority for updated vaccines against new variants.”

̽��ֱ��research was funded by Wellcome, Gates Cambridge, Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust and Vasculitis UK, with additional support by the National Institute for Health and Care Research Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre.

Reference
Kamelian, K et al. Humoral responses to SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in vasculitis-related immune suppression. Sci Adv; 12 Feb 2025; DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adq3342

Vaccinations alone may not be enough to protect people with compromised immune systems from infection, even if the vaccine has generated the production of antibodies, new research from the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge has shown.

We know that immunocompromised individuals are particularly vulnerable to diseases such as Covid-19 because their immune systems struggle to clear infections

Kimia Kamelian

NoSystem images

Vaccination of an senior male

̽��ֱ��text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Images, including our videos, are Copyright © ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge and licensors/contributors as identified. All rights reserved. We make our image and video content available in a number of ways – on our main website under its Terms and conditions, and on a range of channels including social media that permit your use and sharing of our content under their respective Terms.

Yes

Cambridge talent recognised in 2025 New Year Honours

ps748 — Mon, 30 Dec 2024 22:30:00 +0000

Former ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, an Honorary Fellow of Wolfson College, Homerton College and St Edmund's College, is made Knight Grand Cross (GBE) for services to cancer research, clinical research, medicine and to charities.

Professor Ijeoma Uchegbu, who has been President of Wolfson College since October 2024, becomes a Dame (DBE) for services to chemical sciences and inclusion and diversity. Professor Uchegbu is a renowned expert in the field of pharmaceutical science and was most recently Professor of Pharmaceutical Nanoscience at ̽��ֱ�� College London. Her research has focussed on methods that can be used to help drugs reach their target more effectively and reduce the likelihood of uncomfortable side effects. While at UCL she spearheaded a project to improve outcomes for both staff and students from under-represented ethnic groups. She is is a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry.

She said: “I’m absolutely thrilled. I wouldn’t say I’m humbled – I know people say that, but when I saw the letter at the Porters’ Lodge what I felt was an overwhelming sense of gratitude and pride. In my wildest dreams I never believed I would get such an award.”

Professor Ashley Moffet, Professor of Reproductive Immunology, is made Companion of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (CMG) for services to reproductive health. A Fellow of King's College, she is the foremost international authority on the immunology of human reproduction and her work on genetic research has helped explain high rates of pre-eclampsia and maternal mortality in Ugandan populations. She is a Fellow of both the Academy of Medical Sciences and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

She said: "I am delighted by this honour that is a tribute to the hard work and dedication of my many colleagues both here in Cambridge and in Uganda who are working together so tirelessly to support women in the field of maternal health."

Professor Gilly Carr is Professor of Conflict Archaeology and Holocaust Heritage and receives an OBE for services to Holocaust research and education. Professor Carr, a Fellow of St Catharine's College, is a member of both the UK delegation of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) and the academic advisory board for the UK Holocaust Memorial Centre. Professor Carr has a particular research interest in wartime incarceration, internment and imprisonment. 2024 saw the publication of her latest book, 'A Materiality of Internment', which drew on over 15 years of research and interviews with more than 65 former internees.

She said: “I am absolutely thrilled for my research and teaching to be recognised in this way. I've been working hard on behalf of victims of Nazism and the Holocaust for 15 years and for this to be seen as nationally important and worthwhile encourages me to continue my work with vigour.”

Professor Rachel Oliver, who also receives an OBE, is a materials engineer, inventor and commercial spinout founder. A Fellow of Robinson College, she is currently Director of the Cambridge Centre for Gallium Nitride and Chief Scientific Officer of Poro Technologies Ltd (Porotech). Her research is in understanding and engineering the small-scale structure of semiconductor materials to enable new technologies to develop. Professor Oliver is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Engineering and is a passionate advocate for equality, diversity and inclusion in science and engineering.

She said: “I am delighted to receive this honour and it is vital that I acknowledge the fabulous teams that I work with both in the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge and at Porotech, a company that spun out from my research group. I hope I can encourage more people to get involved in semiconductors in the UK. ̽��ֱ��semiconductor ecosystem has been an exciting place to work throughout my career, but never more so than right now, with both research and industry rapidly growing and stepping up to address some of the most pressing challenges we face.”

Dr James Biddulph, former headteacher of the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge Primary School, has been awarded an MBE for services to education. Dr Biddulph was the inaugural headteacher of the school from 2015 until 2023, and under his leadership it attained an Outstanding Ofsted rating in 2018.

Eleanor Sharpston KC, an Emeritus Fellow of King's College, has been made Dame Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (DCMG) for services to Justice and to the Education of Law in the UK and Europe. Dame Eleanor has combined a career as a barrister (specialising in European Union and European Convention on Human Rights law) with an academic career first at ̽��ֱ�� College London and then at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge where she continues as a Yorke Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Law Faculty. She was also Arthur Goodhart Visiting Professor in Legal Science from 2023 to 2024.

Academics and staff at both the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge and Colleges feature in the 2025 list, which recognises the achievements and service of people across the UK.

Yes

Back to BRCA: the discovery of a breast cancer risk gene

cjb250 — Mon, 07 Oct 2024 08:00:50 +0000

In 1994, a landmark paper identified a gene – BRCA1 – that significantly increases the risk of breast and ovarian cancers when faulty. Thirty years on, we look at the major impact it has had on how we understand and treat cancer – and why there is still much to learn.

Celebrating remarkable talent as part of Black History Month

ps748 — Wed, 02 Oct 2024 10:07:42 +0000

Events in Cambridge for Black History Month

Cambridge's Race Equality Lecture

Jesus College, Thursday 31 October

It may seem odd, but we start at the end of the month because this year’s Race Equality Lecture will take place on Thursday 31 October. ̽��ֱ��lecture is titled “Racism without racists – how racism works in the USA and the western world.” It will be delivered by Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, Professor of Sociology at Duke ̽��ֱ�� and former President of the American Sociological Association. It will take place in the Frankopan Hall at Jesus College and will be available to view online.

Book your place at the Race Equality Lecture

Olaudah Equiano Annual Lecture on Race Justice

Anglia Ruskin ̽��ֱ��, Wednesday 9 October

Lord Simon Woolley, Principal of Homerton College and co-founder of Operation Black Vote, will deliver the Olaudah Equiano Annual Lecture on Race Justice at Anglia Ruskin ̽��ֱ�� on Wednesday 9 October. ̽��ֱ��event will take place at the Cambridge campus and starts at 6pm. Lord Woolley is a tireless campaigner for equality, not just for Black communities but all under-represented or marginalised groups. During the event he will discuss the fight for racial equality drawing on his own personal experiences.

Book tickets for the Olaudah Equiano Annual Lecture on Race Justice

Moving beyond stereotypes surrounding Black women

King's College, Thursday 10 October

On the evening of Thursday 10 October, celebrated authors Kelechi Okafor and Afua Hirsch will discuss the challenges and opportunities they have faced when calling out social injustices in their work, with a focus on how their own identities have shaped their activism. They will share insights on the creative processes involved in their writing and how it has impacted on conversations about race, womanhood and justice.

Reserve a place for the discussion at King's

Collaborative art workshops

Robinson College, Wednesday 16 and Saturday 19 October

For those interested in modern art Robinson College is hosting two collaborative art workshops. ̽��ֱ��first, on Wednesday 16 October, will be hosted by London artist, Shem, on the theme ‘Black present now’. And then, on Saturday 19 October, the College will host Joshua Obichere, a Cambridge alumnus.

Panel discussion: Black excellence, health and wellness

St Edmund's College, Wednesday 16 October

Also on the afternoon of Wednesday 16 October, St Edmund’s College will be hosting a panel discussion on the themes of Black excellence, health and wellness. Speakers include economist and entrepreneur Ebenezer Ademisoye, clinical scientist, Dr Rafia Al-Lamki and Mastercard Scholar, Godspower Major.

Reserve your ticket for the panel discussion at St Edmund's College

Fireside chat at the Business School

Cambridge Judge Business School, Thursday 17 October

Lord Woolley will participate in a ‘fireside chat’ at the Business School on the afternoon of Thursday 17 October. ̽��ֱ��event will be chaired by Kamiar Mohaddes and will also include Tabitha Mwangi, Programme Director of the Mastercard Foundation, and Orobosa Isokpan from the Cambridge Africa Business Network. There will be networking opportunities as well but registration is essential.

An exhibition and events at St Catharine's College

St Catharine's College, throughout October

During the entire month of October, St Catharine’s College is hosting an exhibition showcasing the achievements of two prominent Black alumni. ̽��ֱ��pioneering doctor and civil rights activist Dr Cecil Clarke matriculated in 1914 in the first months of the First World War. Wendell Mottley was an Olympic athlete and economist who served as Trinidad and Tobago’s Finance Minister between 1991 and 1995. ̽��ֱ��exhibition commemorating them is being held in the Shakeshaft Library.

See the full programme of Black History Month events at St Catharine's College

̽��ֱ��Blacktionary Show

Wolfson College, Saturday 19 October

On Saturday 19 October Wolfson College hosts the ‘Blacktionary Show’. Authors Dr Maggie Semple and Jane Oremosu will be discussing their new work ‘My Little Book: A Blacktionary - ̽��ֱ��pocket guide to the language of race’. ̽��ֱ��book aims to help break down barriers when it comes to engaging in conversations on race. ̽��ֱ��event will be introduced by Dr Kenny Monrose, from the ̽��ֱ��’s Department of Sociology.

Panel discussion: how organisations promote equality and diversity in the face of a cultural backlash

Homerton College, Tuesday 22 October

On Tuesday 22 October Lord Woolley will again be participating in a discussion being held at Homerton College looking at how companies and other organisations promote equality and diversity in the face of a cultural backlash. Other prominent speakers include the successful businesswomen, Olu Orugboh and Yemi Jackson.

̽��ֱ��Trevelyan Lecture: 'Black Genius: Science, Race and the Extraordinary Portrait of Francis Williams'

Bateman Auditorium, Gonville and Caius College 5 pm Friday 25 October (Faculty of History)

Francis Williams was a Jamaican polymath who was born into slavery but ended his life as a gentleman and a scholar. His portrait, dating from the 1740s, shows him surrounded by books and scientific instruments. Was he Cambridge's first Black student? And who commissioned the portrait, and why? Princeton historian, Fara Dabhoiwala, will tackle these questions when he presents new research on the painting and its intriguing sitter.

Black History Month Academic Seminar

Hughes Hall, Monday 28 October

An opportunity to hear from the College's Black staff and PhD students and celebrate their achievements but also to hear about the challenges facing Black students at Cambridge. One of the main subjects for discussion will be the low numbers of Black academics in the UK.

More details about the seminar here

̽��ֱ��Really Popular Book Club: Mr Loverman by Bernardine Evaristo

Online, Tuesday 29 October

On Tuesday 29 October the ̽��ֱ�� Library’s Really Popular Book Club will be discussing Bernardine Evaristo’s ‘Mr Loverman’. ̽��ֱ��book follows an Antiguan born immigrant living in Hackney, London, who leads a double life. ̽��ֱ��discussion will be hosted by Yvonne Battle Felton, Academic Director of Creative Writing at Cambridge’s Institute of Continuing Education. This is an online event.

Black Advisory Hub events

St John's College, Wednesday 30 October

During the afternoon of Wednesday 30 October, the Black Advisory Hub is hosting a social and afternoon tea for Black students at St John’s College. It's one of many events the Hub is hosting. These include induction sessions for both undergraduates and postgraduates and the prizegiving ceremony for the Bridgetower essay competition.

Visit the Black Advisory Hub to register

Cambridge Students' Union events

St John's College, Thursday 3 October

̽��ֱ��Cambridge Students' Union is also hosting several events to mark Black History Month. This opens with a screening of the documentary 'Educationally Subnormal: a British scandal' on Thursday 3 October.

Visit the Cambridge SU to see what's on

Black History Month in Cambridge brings an opportunity to take part in topical discussions, appreciate art and hear from a range of engaging speakers.

Montage of faces

Yes

A new way of thinking about the economy could help protect the Amazon, and help its people thrive

sc604 — Tue, 06 Aug 2024 09:00:33 +0000

A group of conservationists from Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, the US and the UK say that current conservation and development efforts will never sustain or scale without systemic changes in how economies are designed.

Despite extensive destruction of the Amazon in the name of economic development, Amazonian communities have seen little improvement in income, life expectancy, and education. ̽��ֱ��researchers have proposed a new model and associated policy changes that could create fair and sustainable futures for the Amazon and its people by improving infrastructure, supply chains, and social organisations.

Their results, reported in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution, are focused on the Amazon, however the researchers say similar economic models could be implemented around the world if the political will exists.

̽��ֱ��Amazon basin is home to the world’s largest tropical rainforest, representing over half of the world’s remaining rainforest, and stores vast amounts of carbon. However, decades of large-scale deforestation, as well as the increased risk of fires and floods due to climate change, has put much of the Amazon rainforest under threat. In addition to what the loss of the Amazon would mean for global carbon emissions, the rainforest is also home to many indigenous peoples and thousands of species of plants and animals.

“We need a different vision for the Amazon if we’re going to protect it,” said lead author Professor Rachael Garrett from the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge’s Department of Geography and the Conservation Research Institute. “Half a century of deforestation and exploitation of the Amazon has not resulted in widespread development, and now the economic value of deforested areas is threatened, not to mention the threats to the global climate and water security.”

Working with colleagues from the Amazonian region, Garrett has proposed building on the success of indigenous and traditional communities to develop new economies, which could protect much of the Amazon while also improving the livelihoods, health, and food security of the many people who live there. These economic models are known as socio-bioeconomies, or SBEs.

“Conventional economic models can result in short-term gains, but over the longer term, the people and resources of the Amazon basin have been exploited by powerful interests, while there has been an underinvestment in education, innovation, and sustainable infrastructure,” said Garrett. “ ̽��ֱ��conventional economic model is simply not sustainable.”

̽��ֱ��SBE model is focused on using and restoring Amazonian and other ecosystems sustainably, and supporting indigenous and rural communities. An SBE economy might include eco-friendly tourism, or the sustainable harvest and processing of plant products into valuable foods, beverages, clothing, and medicines.

“A limited range of interests are controlling the development agenda in most countries,” said Garrett. “ ̽��ֱ��only way we can change that is improving the rights and representation of the people who are not benefiting from the systems and are being harmed by ongoing environmental destruction. We believe it is possible to have win-wins for humanity and conservation, but not if we continue to consume products that have a massively negative impact. SBEs can help put these win-wins into policy and practice.”

Garrett cites the footwear brand Veja as an example of such a win-win. ̽��ֱ��French company buys the rubber for its trainers from small-scale Amazonian rubber farmers, and purchases 100% of the responsibly harvested native rubber in Brazil. As part of its sustainability efforts, the company focuses on building communities of small-scale farmers and has been financially successful without traditional advertising.

Garrett and her collaborators are calling for massive increases in social mobilisation, technology and infrastructure to support SBEs. Under an SBE model, governmental subsidies would be redirected away from agribusiness and toward smaller-scale sustainable development. ̽��ֱ��researchers also outline how to build connections between rural and urban policies in SBEs. An example is the establishment of public procurement programmes where healthy and sustainably produced foods are purchased directly from indigenous and small farming communities and served in school lunch programmes and hospitals, instead of supporting large-scale agribusiness engaged in degrading practices.

Other policy changes that could support an SBE model include redirecting finance to conservation and restoration activities, supporting community enterprises, and ensuring participatory processes to ensure inclusive, long-term benefits.

“It’s possible to have an economy that is strong and works for everyone when we dare to develop new models and visions that recognise the interconnectedness of people and nature,” said Garrett. “By popularising these ideas, investing in people and businesses who are making a difference, and supporting research into SBE innovation we can support a transformation in both conservation and development in the Amazon.

“ ̽��ֱ��SBE model could help protect the Amazon and its people while avoiding climate and biodiversity disasters, but there needs to be the political will to make it happen.”

Rachael Garrett is the incoming director of the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge Conservation Research Institute and a Fellow of Homerton College, Cambridge. She is a council member of the Cambridge Conservation Initiative and serves on the UN Science Panel for the Amazon.

Reference:
Rachael Garrett et al. ‘Transformative changes are needed to support socio-bioeconomies for people and ecosystems in the Amazon.’ Nature Ecology and Evolution (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41559-024-02467-9

To protect the Amazon and support the wellbeing of its people, its economy needs to shift from environmentally harmful production to a model built around the diversity of indigenous and rural communities, and standing forests.

luoman via Getty Images

Man extracts latex from a tree in the middle of the Amazon.

Yes

Changemakers in cancer: Oluwasegun Alofaranmi

zs332 — Mon, 15 Jul 2024 07:00:08 +0000

As a young medical student in Nigeria, Segun was shocked by the disproportionate rate of death from treatable cancers across Africa. To help bring about change, he’s supporting knowledge sharing and skills training for students in Africa. He also co-founded an initiative to provide career guidance and mentoring for schoolchildren in Nigeria. In Cambridge, he hopes his PhD will lead to a way to enhance immune cells to deliver a ‘kiss of death’ to cancer.

International collaboration identifies new breast cancer susceptibility genes

Anonymous — Thu, 17 Aug 2023 15:00:18 +0000

̽��ֱ��study, published in Nature Genetics, was led by teams at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge and Université Laval, Quebec.

Current genetic tests for breast cancer only consider a few genes, such as BRCA1, BRCA2, and PALB2. However, these only explain a minority of the genetic risk, suggesting that more genes remain to be identified.

Researchers looked at genetic changes in all genes in 26,000 women with breast cancer and 217,000 women without breast cancer. These included women from eight countries in Europe and Asia.

Professor Douglas Easton, Director of the Centre for Cancer Genetic Epidemiology at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge, who co-led the study, said: "To our knowledge, this is the largest study of its kind. It was made possible through the use of data from multiple collaborators in many countries, as well as publicly available data from the UK Biobank.”

̽��ֱ��team found evidence for at least four new breast cancer risk genes, with suggestive evidence for many others. ̽��ֱ��team say identification of these new genes will contribute to our understanding of the genetic risk of breast cancer and help improve risk prediction by better identifying those women at higher risk of the disease.

̽��ֱ��findings will better inform approaches to breast screening, risk reduction and clinical management. ̽��ֱ��aim is to integrate this information into a comprehensive risk prediction tool currently used worldwide by health professionals.

"Improving genetic counselling for high-risk women will promote shared decision-making regarding risk reduction strategies, screening and determination of treatment options," said Professor Jacques Simard of Université Laval, co-lead of the study.

“Although most of the variants identified in these new genes are rare, the risks can be significant for women who carry them. For example, alterations in one of the new genes, MAP3K1, appear to give rise to a particularly high risk of breast cancer.”

Before this information can be used in a clinical setting, scientists need to validate the results in further datasets.

"We need additional data to determine more precisely the risks of cancer associated with variants in these genes, to study the characteristics of the tumours, and to understand how these genetic effects combine with other lifestyle factors affecting breast cancer risks," added Professor Easton.

̽��ֱ��discovery of these novel genes also provides crucial information on the biological mechanisms underlying cancer development, potentially opening the way to identifying new treatments.

̽��ֱ��study was funded by the Government of Canada through Genome Canada and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Ministère de l’Économie et de l'Innovation du Québec through Genome Québec, the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation, the European Union Horizon programme, the Wellcome Trust and the International Alliance for Cancer Early Detection.

Reference
Wilcox, N et al. Exome sequencing identifies breast cancer susceptibility genes and defines the contribution of coding variants to breast cancer risk. Nat Gen; 17 Aug 2023; DOI :10.1038/s41588-023-01466-z

Adapted from a press release by Université Laval

A large-scale international collaboration has identified new genes associated with breast cancer that could eventually be included in tests to identify women at increased risk of the disease.

To our knowledge, this is the largest study of its kind

Douglas Easton

Anna Tarazevich

Two women holding pink ribbons

̽��ֱ��text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Images, including our videos, are Copyright © ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge and licensors/contributors as identified. All rights reserved. We make our image and video content available in a number of ways – as here, on our main website under its Terms and conditions, and on a range of channels including social media that permit your use and sharing of our content under their respective Terms.

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Licence type:

Public Domain

Cambridge start-up wins funding to develop new diagnostics

skbf2 — Mon, 20 Mar 2023 14:25:48 +0000

̽��ֱ��first Innovate UK award, received in 2021, allowed SMi to partner with the Cambridge Institute of Therapeutic Immunology and Infectious Disease, the Medicines Discovery Catapult and the National Physical Laboratory to develop its technology for testing for respiratory diseases. ̽��ֱ��second award, made in early 2023, is helping SMi and its partners apply the same technology to detecting cancer.

Co-founded in 2018 by former ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge researcher Dr Andrew Thompson, SMi is developing a new technology that analyses samples using super-resolution imaging. ̽��ֱ��technology can detect, quantify and characterise single molecules that are of interest, including DNA, RNA and protein molecules associated with specific diseases. It can visualise what other technologies cannot see and very rapidly batch analyse hundreds of samples with extremely high accuracy.

̽��ֱ��first round of £1.9m funding enabled SMi to develop its platform, used for the simultaneous screening of common respiratory diseases. ̽��ֱ��COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the need for rapid and cost-effective diagnostic testing on a massive scale. Test accuracy and the ability to identify new variants were critical.

̽��ֱ��second Innovate UK award has funded the application of SMi’s platform to cancer diagnosis by enabling work with another team of specialists at the Medicines Discovery Catapult. Here the same single molecule visualisation approach is being used to detect and quantify cancer biomarkers in patient blood samples. This will help clinicians to make more accurate assessments, and combined with the flexibility, accuracy, speed and high throughput of SMi’s technology, could reduce diagnostic backlogs and provide patients with their results much sooner.

SMi’s aim has always been to create a user-friendly, automated benchtop instrument that can be used in both research and healthcare settings. Initial instrument designs were guided by consultation with NHS trusts and the NIHR Medical Devices Testing and Evaluation Centre (MD-TEC), while prototypes have been tested in labs at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge, the Medicines Discovery Catapult and the National Physical Laboratory. Commercial production will be outsourced to a medical device manufacturer in the East of England.

SMi’s CEO Dr Andrew Thompson said: “SMi is creating a highly accurate and user-friendly platform that is based upon single molecule imaging, meaning that we can detect individual molecules that are invisible to other technologies. With an approach that allows them to reliably monitor single molecules, SMi provides scientists and clinicians with a quality of data that is unprecedented. Such capabilities are likely to have far-reaching benefits for diagnosis and the discovery of new medicines. Our Innovate UK funding is allowing us to work with very highly qualified research and clinical partners, providing a means to accelerate our product development and realise these opportunities sooner.”

̽��ֱ��Cambridge Institute for Therapeutic Immunology and Infectious Diseases has been leading the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge’s collaboration with SMi. Ravindra Gupta, Professor of Clinical Microbiology, and named as one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people of the year in 2020 for his work on HIV, said: “SMi’s platform is incredibly exciting and could revolutionise testing for a range of diseases. We have been fortunate to partner with SMi on SARS-CoV-2 detection, and application could extend to identification of specific genetic variants of pathogens as well as cancers.”

Dr Tammy Dougan, Life Science and Healthcare Partnership Lead in the ̽��ֱ��’s Strategic Partnerships Office, said: “This is a great example of a Cambridge start-up winning Innovate UK funding and using it to build effective collaborations between research partners to take a new technology out of the lab and into clinical practice.”

Since 2018, SMi has grown into a team of sixteen, including scientists, mechanical engineers, software engineers and medical device specialists based in two locations: the outskirts of Cambridge and the West Coast of the USA.

Cambridge start-up SMi and its research partners have received two Innovate UK awards to progress their work on testing for infectious diseases and detecting biomarkers for cancer.

Andrew Brookes, Getty Images:

Pipetting sample into a tray

̽��ֱ��text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Images, including our videos, are Copyright © ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge and licensors/contributors as identified. All rights reserved. We make our image and video content available in a number of ways – as here, on our main website under its Terms and conditions, and on a range of channels including social media that permit your use and sharing of our content under their respective Terms.

Yes