Live Scientists

 Historically, infectious diseases have been at the forefront of public health concern but the rise of advances in health care has meant non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and dementia, are fast becoming the leading health problem of the modern era. By 2050 an estimated 106 million people will be living with dementia (Figure 1).  (Key words in this article are in Bold – find the descriptions in the Terms Explained section at the end of this article).   So What is Dementia?   Dementia is an umbrella term which describes diseases and conditions characterized by decline in cognitive function. There are several misconceptions about dementia, the most common being that it is… Read More »Vascular Dementia: Where the Cardiovascular System Meets the Brain

Dr Glenda Beaman has put together this fun DNA Detective activity, suitable for a wide range of ages. In the video of the activity below, one of our own, Katie Sadler, narrates and guides you through it. There are also subtitles available for the video if needed. In this activity, you will learn about a patient’s story, many commonly used genetic terms, and will workout how it all ties together to be able to help the patient…like a DNA detective! Thanks to Oxford University Hospitals, they have made a 2 page activity worksheet that you will need to help you… Read More »Activity: DNA Detective

Who is The Scouse Scientist? Holly Ellis grew up in Liverpool and was always a science geek. She studied biological sciences at Oxford University, afterwards she joined the NHS and completed their postgraduate scientist training program in genetics where she now works as a clinical scientist in genetics in the NHS. Her main aims are to inspire young people to pursue a career in science whilst educating people about genetics. Her YouTube channel – The Scouse Scientist – is her way of achieving this. What does the hands on activity involve? In one of her videos, Holly Ellis introduces an… Read More »Hands on Activity: DIY DNA Extraction Experiment

My name is Elke and I am a researcher at the University of Manchester. My work focuses on breast cancer: I am interested to discover the role our genetic material has in the development of breast cancer, which is the most common form of cancer in women. Our aim is to predict the likelihood of developing breast cancer for each individual. My work mostly focuses on families with many women affected with breast cancer, for reasons that aren’t yet understood. Advancing knowledge on genetic factors involved in breast cancer development is one of the key factors for managing breast cancer… Read More »Determining the Risk of Breast Cancer Using our Genetic Material

We would like to start by thanking you all for your keen interest and support since we launched Live with Scientists (LwS) on the 20th of April this year. It has been a difficult period for us all, but the uncertainties and restrictions faced over recent months have not stopped the brand successfully launching and building a keen following. Whilst our website is an ever-expanding hub of scientific content, our newly established social media platforms on on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube are continually refined to most effectively reach out to our wide-ranging audience.  Behind the scenes, the team work consistently to produce original written content, research and liaise… Read More »LIVE with Scientists: Updates and Future Events

Hello! My name is Jess and almost two years ago, I embarked on a PhD project centred on finding new ways to treat endometriosis. When I first received the news people were delighted for me, but almost certainly followed up with: “What is endometriosis anyway?” I distinctly remember being told that my topic “sounds really niche”. But the thing is, endometriosis isn’t ‘niche’ at all. In fact, endometriosis affects roughly 10% of people that have a uterus (primarily cisgender women, but also transmen and some non-binary individuals). “What is endometriosis anyway?” Endometriosis is a gynaecological disease where cells from the… Read More »Endometriosis & ‘The Gender Pain Gap’