Insigneo Newsletter - October 2024

Welcome to our monthly Insigneo newsletter!  

Our monthly e-newsletter keeps you up to date with events, funding, success stories and information. We hope you will find it useful! 

Accessing Python computation results without setting Python up - an opportunity for NHS doctors and Insigneo researchers

This new tool lets NHS professionals and medical researchers run Python scripts and machine learning models without needing to install or maintain anything. Simply enter parameters via a secure web interface, and the script runs remotely on a researcher-controlled server, returning results instantly. No coding is required!

For instance, some NHS doctors are working on a project with an Insigneo researcher. The researcher has designed a model for predicting recidive probability in some cancers. The NHS doctors can access the results of this script via their interface, simply by entering a couple of parameters on a webpage, which can even be accessed on their smartphone.

Researchers can easily add new scripts/models for different diseases to the server, and doctors can choose from a list which script they would like to run. When a new model is added, researchers do not have to update the user interface manually as it will be done through a configuration file. That way, the use of research models does not have to wait for a full implementation that would be in a commercial-ready state.

To learn more, watch a short demo: https://digitalmedia.sheffield.ac.uk/media/A+Web+Interface+for+Remote+Python+ComputationA+demonstration/1_a0ignfea

If you are interested in trying out this tool, don't hesitate to get in touch with Dr Charles Grellois at c.grellois@sheffield.ac.uk for further details.

BSCI BSCCT Annual Scientific Meeting 2024 hosted in Sheffield

The British Society of Cardiovascular Imaging (BSCI) British Society of Cardiac Computed Tomography (BSCCT) Annual Scientific Meeting for 2024 was held on 19 - 20 September in the Mercure St Paul’s Hotel Sheffield. 

The event, which was organised by Insigneo Member Dr Samer Alabed, Senior Clinical Research Fellow from the School of Medicine and Population Health, featured two streams of sessions: a mainstream covering multimodality cardiovascular imaging topics and a “Read with Experts” stream designed for interactive learning.

The programme featured eminent speakers across sessions including coronary, post-intervention, congenital heart disease and multi-modality imaging and had the presence of international key speakers.

There was strong representation from Insigneo members at the event with talks from:

• Dr Samer Alabed, School of Medicine and Population Health) - Welcome Speech featuring Sheffield’s contribution to cardiopulmonary medicine in the past and present
• Dr Rebecca Gosling, School of Medicine and Population Health - Patient diversity in coronary imaging - Age, sex and ethnicity
• Dr Andy Swift & Prof David Kiely, School of Medicine and Population Health - MDT LIVE - Imaging guiding Pulmonary Vascular Disease Management
• Dr Laura Saunders, School of Medicine and Population Health - The future of imaging! Hyperpolarised gas and lung MRI with xenon - how different frequencies allow us to see the xenon and identify pathology
• Dr Mahan Salehi, School of Medicine and Population Health - AI in teaching and presentations - Human Learning
• Dr Paul Morris, School of Medicine and Population Health  - chair of the coronary imaging session 
• Dr Chen Chen, School of Computer Science -the role of trustworthy AI for cardiac imaging- from workflow streamlining, acquisition and reconstruction to analysis and monitoring therapeutic effects.

University of Sheffield top in England for working with businesses and public engagement

The University of Sheffield is one of the best universities in the country for working with businesses and public and community engagement, according to the latest Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF).

The results, published in September show that Sheffield is also one of the top universities in England for developing IP and commercialising research.

Published by Research England, the KEF provides a range of information on how universities work with external partners - such as businesses and local community groups - for the benefit of the economy and society. 

On commercialisation and developing IP, a report earlier this year named the University of Sheffield in the UK top five academic institutions for the number of equity deals secured by their spinouts in 2023. In 2021, Sheffield was one of three universities that founded Northern Gritstone - a venture investment company established to boost the commercialisation of university spin-outs and start-ups in the north of England. Its activities have raised more than £312 million of investment to date.

EPSRC funding opportunity: Healthcare Technology Translation Partnership Scheme Outline

There is an opportunity to apply for EPSRC funding to progress basic and fundamental engineering and physical sciences research towards proof of concept and validation through partnering with clinical and healthcare professionals, and industrial partners.

Projects will address unmet clinical needs, offer significant added value or both over current health solutions. Applications will provide detailed translation plans and show how the project has been co-developed in partnership to maximise the impact in healthcare.

The full economic cost (FEC) of projects can be up to £1.88 million. EPSRC will fund 80% of the FEC.

For University of Sheffield staff, if you are interested in applying please contact Kirsty MacNeil in Research, Partnerships and Innovation in the first instance. Insigneo members will also be able to discuss support with Insigneo Commercialisation Manager, Alex Wilkinson, and Translational Project Managers, Evy De Leenheer and Sabiniano Roman Regueros.

The closing date for applications is 12 December 2024.

NHSA funding opportunity - cell and gene therapies

Are you an academic working on cell and gene therapies, or their enabling technologies?

The Northern Health Science Alliance (NHSA) is pleased to announce that Newcastle University, Teesside University, the University of Sheffield and the University of Manchester have been successful as a consortium to progress to a full Research England bid stage for a £5m, three-year project: 'Connected Health North for Advanced Therapies Commercialisation'.

The consortium is seeking potential interest from academics to bolster the bid by demonstrating the need for the support ecosystem and funding. We can help academics develop as potential future entrepreneurs, and access facilities and expertise to move their research along the 'technology readiness level' (TRL) pipeline towards proof-of-concept stage.

For more information click here.

To register your interest, please complete this online form with your name, contact details and a project title with brief summary paragraph of your research in cell and gene therapies, or their enabling technologies.

If the consortium is successful in this award, then we anticipate the programme to run from April 2025 to March 2028.

Code & Cure: Technologies behind in silico Medicine

CODE & CURE: UNDERSTANDING IN SILICO MEDICINE is a series of  videos from the VPH Institute to spread the knowledge of in silico medicine towards a larger public with accessible animated videos spanning from models to real-world applications.

This fourth episode presents how medical imaging, supercomputers, and virtual and augmented reality (AR/VR) contribute.

SCI Awards 2025

SCI is thrilled to announce the 3rd edition of the SCI Awards Dinner, which will recognise and celebrate outstanding achievements within our community.

The shortlisted nominee's for these awards will be given an opportunity to attend our annual awards dinner at the Palace of Westminster, London on 21st May 2025 where the winner's will be announced.

To apply you must complete one short online application form alongside a longer form telling us more about why your work should be recognised. Once completed this longer form should be sent to awards@soci.org. Everything you need can be found on the awards pages using the links below.

Applications close: 09:00 (GMT) 30 November 2024

SUSTAINABILITY AWARD

The SCI Sustainability Award is presented to an individual or team that contributed significantly to improving environmental sustainability through scientific innovation in product, process development, business, and operational processes. 

The award is open to anyone or any team worldwide, from any business or organisation regardless of size.

Submit your nominations today! 

Submit your nominations

AWARD FOR INNOVATION

ENABLED BY PARTNERSHIP

The SCI Innovation Award is a recognition and celebration of scientific innovation through collaborative partnerships. Across a variety of scientific contexts, this award recognises collaborative partnerships, whether it is a single organisation or stakeholders from different organisations, either in business or academia. 

The award is open worldwide to any organisation or company and we accept nominations from individuals submitting on behalf of their team. 

Submit your nominations today!

Submit your nominations

LEADERSHIP IN DIVERSITY IN SCIENCE-LED INDUSTRY AWARD

The Leadership in Diversity award recognises an initiative, led by an individual or a team, which has resulted in a significant impact to encourage a more equal, diverse and inclusive workforce in science-led industry.

Submit your nominations today!

Submit your nominations

Insigneo Early Career Researcher community

Our Early Career Researcher ECR group is open to all Insigneo Members who are PhD students, postdocs, fellows, lecturers and those who self-define as an ECR.

Find out more and join

Congratulations to Insigneo member Dr Saira Farage O'Reilly for passing her viva with minor corrections! 

We would like to introduce some of our new members who have joined the Insigneo Institute recently. 

Find out more about Insigneo membership and our members here: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/insigneo/membership 

We specialise in clinical research focused around atopic dermatitis (Eczema), in particular we run clinical trials with the aim of improving our understanding of the condition and advancing treatment options.

My PhD is in Electrical Engineering so my interests lie on the technical side of research, developing new imaging modalities and processing pipelines which we can use to capture data from the skin in new, novel ways.

Full profile

Before joining the University of Sheffield, he held postdoctoral positions at Imperial College London, UK and Tsinghua University, China. He received a PhD degree from Tsinghua University, China and a B.Eng. degree from Xi'an Jiaotong University, China.

Dr Chen is interested in Image analysis, Computer Vision and Machine Learning including human motion/action/expression analysis/generation, object detection, representation learning, and model acceleration, which could be used in various applications.

Full profile

My PhD research focuses on utilising soft robotic actuators to mechanically stimulate cells and promote the growth of functional tissue in vitro. By leveraging the compliant and flexible nature of soft robots, we aim to better replicate the physiological motions and forces experienced by cells in the body and produce advanced tools for tissue engineering.

Additionally, I have just started work as a research associate on the development and preclinical testing of a soft robotic implant for the treatment of short bowel syndrome. The project is funded by the MRC and is in collaboration with clinicians and surgeons from Sheffield hospitals. I'm looking forward to being part of the development of an innovative solution that can bridge the gap between our research and clinical practice and lead to improved patient treatment.

Full profile

She specialises in experimental fluid mechanics, turbulence and optical flow diagnostics. 

She received her BS and MS degrees in Aerospace Engineering from Middle East Technical University, Turkey. She obtained her PhD in Fluid Mechanics from Delft University of Technology (Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering), the Netherlands (2019). Prior to joining Sheffield, Melika was a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Aerodynamics and Flight Mechanics group at the University of Southampton from 2018 to 2021.

Melika's research interests include: 

• Turbulent flows (turbulent boundary layers, channel and pipe flows)
• Disturbed, inhomogeneous low Reynolds number flows relevant to the vascular system
• Particle image/tracking velocimetry (PIV/PTV), including micro-PIV
• Macro- and micro-scale fluid flows developing over rough or porous surfaces

Full profile

Following this, she completed Dental Foundation Training and multiple Dental Core Training posts in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery / Oral Medicine / Oral Pathology and Radiology (2013-2018). During this time, she gained an MFDS at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, a Postgraduate Certificate in Medical Education (2017) and a Diploma in Conscious Sedation (2018). 

She was appointed as a NIHR Academic Clinical Fellow in Oral Surgery in 2018 (School of Clinical Dentistry, Sheffield) during which she completed the Diploma of Membership in Oral Surgery examinations (2021), a Masters in Clinical Research with Distinction (2021) and a prestigious NIHR Doctoral Research Fellowship which supported her PhD in the application of Artificial Intelligence to aid early oral cancer detection. She received several national and international research prizes, including the prestigious BSODR Senior Colgate Award (2023) as well as the BSODR Oral Medicine & Pathology Research Prize (2022) and the BSOMP Potts Prize (2022). She gained entry into the GDC Specialist Register in March 2024 and was promoted to Senior Clinical Lecturer and Honorary Consultant in Oral Surgery in July 2024. 

Dr Mahmood’s main research focus is the study of oral precancer progression to malignancy. She is a key member of the NEOPATH research group leading innovation in oral, head and neck cancer research.

Her PhD, supported by a prestigious NIHR Doctoral Fellowship (worth £353K) developed novel digital, computational and quantitative models for early oral cancer risk prediction (supervisors Professor Syed Ali Khurram, University of Sheffield and Professor Nasir Rajpoot, University of Warwick).

She is currently exploring novel digital and spatial biomarkers in oral precancers using state-of-the-art approaches, including single-cell analysis and multiplex imaging.

Full profile

I moved to Sheffield to commence Internal Medicine and subsequently Respiratory Medicine training.

I have joined the University of Sheffield in October 2024 as a Research Fellow for the Biomedical Research Centre: Imaging & Engineering Theme,  with the project title: Mapping the Unexplained Breathlessness Pathway.

We are interested in the journey of investigations which someone presenting with breathlessness experiences in our area; and will use discrete event analysis to understand this. Once we have a clearer understanding of this process, we hope to create an innovative pathway which is more streamlined, cost-effective and leads to better patient satisfaction. 

Full profile

Before starting my PhD, I completed a medical degree and an MPH in South Africa. I've worked in both healthcare consulting and academia, where I've focused on bridging the gap between research and health economic policy. I enjoy interdisciplinary environments, where different perspectives can be brought together to solve real-world problems. My current research focuses on finding the best algorithms to incorporate individualised treatment effects into health economic models, with the goal of improving public health decision-making.

Ruby obtained her PhD in Physics from King’s College London in 2019, where she investigated the nanoscale organisation of the T cell immunological synapse through super-resolution microscopy and data analytics. Ruby conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Cambridge, where she became fascinated in applying super-resolution techniques to study mechanobiology. Her postdoctoral work was focused on the motor protein myosin, and its key role in regulating cellular mechanics during cell division. 

Ruby recently joined the School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences as an early career fellow in the physics of life. Her research group investigates how the structural, mechanical and material properties of actin cytoskeletal networks drive key cell functions. Since a tight regulation of cellular mechanics is critical to various physiological processes, and a deregulation of actin network architecture and dynamics is a hallmark of disease, there is an urgent need to uncover how actin networks control the mechanical properties of cells. To address this, Ruby’s group develops advanced fluorescence microscopy approaches to quantify the nanoscale organisation and dynamics of the actin cytoskeleton and utilises atomic force microscopy to map the biophysical properties of the cell surface. By integrating these techniques, we gain unprecedented insights into how actin networks mechanically function at both the nano and cellular scales, and how this in turn governs cellular behaviour. 

Full profile

My main focus will be on developing computational tools for cardiovascular digital twins with a focus on pulmonary arterial hypertension. My PhD focused on the quantification of uncertainty with cardiac models focusing on methods surrounding identifiability and sensitivity analysis. My main programming language is Julia which I am interested in highlighting its effectiveness. 

I am looking forward to joining the community and highlighting/promoting the use of computational tools within medicine.

Full profile

Do you have news to share with us?

If you would like us to include information and/or events to this newsletter please email: info@insigneo.org (the newsletter will be issued during the 2nd week of the month, excluding January and August). 

Insigneo members - please let us know when your students are graduating so that we can celebrate their success!

Please ensure that you submit items for inclusion with a minimum of one week's notice.

Guest Lectures, Conferences & Seminars

We will share a link to our Online Training Opportunities document here each month.

Insigneo events

24 October
Insigneo Seminar: Spatial mechano-transcriptomics of mouse embryogenesis

28 November
Insigneo Horizon Europe event - save the date!

11 December
Insigneo General Assembly - save the date!

2025

6 March
Insigneo PPIE Workshop with Grace Edwards, NIHR BRC & CRF PPIE Officer

A selection of Insigneo seminar recordings are available to view on our YouTube channel.

Other events

17 October
South Yorkshire Digital Health Hub Annual Plenary

18 October
Sheffield Robotics Seminar: Safety and Visualisation in Robot-Assisted Dressing to Enhance Trustworthiness, Baslin James, School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. To request an invitation contact: sheffield_robotics@sheffield.ac.uk

1 November
Sheffield Robotics Seminar: A human nature and behaviour inspired security solutions for healthcare multimodal robots, Dr Jims Marchang, Department of Computing at SHU, Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre
To request an invitation contact: sheffield_robotics@sheffield.ac.uk

22 November
Sheffield Robotics Seminar: Emotional Intelligence for Social Robots: A Data-Driven Approach to Designing Robots’ Facial Expressions - Dr Chaona Chen, School of Computer Science. 
To request an invitation contact: sheffield_robotics@sheffield.ac.uk

2025

24-25 March
Physics of Life conference - call for abstracts open!

11 - 12 June
4th Child Health Technology (CHT) Conference - call for abstracts open!

For a full list of upcoming events visit: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/insigneo/overview/events

Vacancies

PhD Opportunity:  Efficient In Silico Trials for Bone Diseases (closing date: 31/10/24)

Publications

Evidence of time dependent degradation of polypropylene surgical mesh explanted from the abdomen and vagina of sheep (Journal of the Mechanical Behavior of Biomedical Materials) N. T. H. Farr, D. A. Gregory, V. L. Workman, C. Rauert, S. Roman, A. J. Knight, A. J. Bullock, A. I. Tartakovskii, K. V. Thomas, C. R. Chapple, J. Deprest,  S. MacNeil, C. Rodenburg 

The effects of APOEe4 allele on cerebral structure, function, and related interactions with cognition in young adults (Ageing Research Reviews) L. Kucikova, X. Xiong, P. Reinecke, J. Madden, E. Jackson, O. Tappin, W. Huang, 
M.-E. Dounavi, L. Su

The spectrum of systemic sclerosis-associated pulmonary hypertension: Insights from the ASPIRE registry (Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation) H. Smith, A. A. R. Thompson, M. Akil, S. Alabed, A. Charalampopoulos, K. Dwivedi, C. A. Elliot, A. Hameed, A. Haque, N. Hamilton, C. Hill, J. Hurdman, R. Kilding,  K.-P. Kuet, S. Rajaram, A. M. K. Rothman, A. J. Swift, J. M. Wild, D. G. Kiely,  R. Condliffe

Deep multi-metric training: the need of multi-metric curve evaluation to avoid weak learning (Neural Computing and Applications) M. Mamalakis, A. Banerjee, S.t Ray, C. Wilkie, R. H. Clayton, A. J. Swift, G. Panoutsos, B. Vorselaars 

Computational modelling of cardiovascular pathophysiology to risk stratify commercial spaceflight (Nature Reviews Cardiology) P. D. Morris, R. A. Anderton, K. Marshall-Goebel, J. K. Britton, S. M. C. Lee, N. P. Smith, F. N. van de Vosse, K. M. Ong, T. A. Newman, D. J. Taylor, T. Chico, J. P. Gunn, A. J. Narracott, D. R. Hose, I. Halliday

Differences in Grey Matter Concentrations and Functional Connectivity between Young Carriers and Non-Carriers of the APOE ε4 Genotype (Journal of Clinical Medicine) C. Muñoz-Neira, J. Zeng, L. Kucikova, W. Huang, X. Xiong, G. Muniz-Terrera, C. Ritchie, J. T. O’Brien, L. Su