From a new asthma detector to using AI responsibly – research at Northumbria University is driving change
Diagnosing lung conditions has traditionally been a difficult – and very expensive – task. Obtaining fluid samples from deep inside organs which are tucked away within our ribcage can't be done without a highly invasive, risky procedure. And most sampling devices can't tell the difference between fluids from the lung and ones from the mouth, often leading to unclear or misleading diagnoses.
As a result, millions of patients with common, chronic conditions such as asthma have been left waiting years for effective treatment, while millions of others have been hospitalised with pneumonias impossible to diagnose with current tests.
All that is set to change with the launch of a new handheld device later this year, developed by Dr Sterghios A Moschos, a renowned molecular biologist and visiting professor at Northumbria University, which will revolutionise the diagnosis of these diseases.
The new breath-sampling technology by PulmoBioMed, a Northumbria University spin-out founded by Moschos in 2020, offers a fast, non-invasive and inexpensive way to test for lung conditions. Called the PBM-Hale, it captures the breath as the patient exhales and separates the droplets that come from the mouth from those found deep in the lung. It has been shown in clinical studies to help quantify lung infections and inflammation in 100% of symptomatic cases.
'PBM-Hale has the potential to transform respiratory care,' says Moschos. 'It is more than 40 times cheaper than endoscopy, where a tube is inserted into the lung, which carries a one-in-seven risk of injury.
'There are seven different types of asthma, and we hope this will allow doctors to quickly diagnose not just the condition but the exact type, without having to try several different kinds of treatment to see if the patient responds.'
The device is one of a growing number of pioneering innovations being developed by researchers at Northumbria University to tackle some of the biggest real-world challenges facing us, regionally, nationally and globally.
The first to be commercialised, the PBM-Hale is likely to be followed soon by the portable Solar2Water system developed by the university's department of mechanical and construction engineering, which uses solar energy to extract moisture from the air and turn it into water. The unit could be a gamechanger for remote regions where there is no grid connection or water availability nearby. Running on solar energy alone, it can be deployed quickly and easily to any location, such as army camps and field hospitals, or to support displaced communities in refugee camps and disaster zones.
Moschos credits much of the success of his innovation to the support he received from the university at every step of the process. 'Since I arrived at Northumbria in 2016 and told them the idea I was working on, I couldn't have asked for more,' he says. 'They gave me everything I needed to create the device, supported the patent and grant applications and helped us apply for programmes to commercialise academic research.'
PulmoBioMed raised an extraordinary £1.4m in an investment round last year to help grow its business, as well as a £700,000 grant from Innovate UK.
It's these kinds of groundbreaking advances that have powered Northumbria's meteoric rise through the ranks for research: in the most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF2021), Northumbria made the biggest leap of any UK university in research power, climbing from 50th in 2014 to 23rd in 2021. It was the second time Northumbria achieved this impressive feat, after previously rising from 80th place in 2008.
Building on this momentum, and with a mission to create new knowledge that shapes change, Northumbria is investing in, and attracting funding for, new research innovations that will have an impact on society and the economy.
One of its most ambitious projects to date is the North East Space Skills and Technology centre (NESST). A state-of-the-art facility being developed by the university, NESST is the result of a £50m investment with partners including the UK Space Agency and Lockheed Martin UK Space that will create new knowledge and skills intended to transform the UK's space economy.
'We doubled the value of our research awards in the last year,' says Prof Louise Bracken, Northumbria's pro vice-chancellor for research and knowledge exchange. 'Not only does that money fund more research, it also demonstrates the value of that research to others.'
The university's social mobility ethos – approximately 40% of its undergraduates are from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, and 65% are from the north-east region – also underpins many of its research projects.
Overcoming social inequities is central to all the research done by another of its biggest schemes, the Centre for Health and Social Equity (CHASE). 'We're working with people experiencing homelessness, vulnerable adults, children and young people and veterans, to drive policy to better serve their needs. We want to ensure our research has tangible benefits for society and the environment. That's our USP at Northumbria,' says Bracken.
The principle of benefiting society is also at the heart of the work being done by professor of law Marion Oswald, who leads a flagship research project. The multimillion-pound PROBabLE Futures project, in collaboration with several other universities as well as partners from law enforcement and commercial tech, explores how AI can be adopted responsibly in law enforcement and the criminal justice system.
The 'probable' in PROBabLE Futures refers to the fact that AI produces results which are probabilities, but not certainties. This means that great care needs to be taken when using AI in the criminal justice system to avoid unfairness and miscarriages of justice.
'We're looking at how these AI systems are being used in policing, potentially becoming part of criminal justice – in the US, they're even being used to help determine sentences – and then in prisons and with probation,' she says. 'We're also thinking about whether this sector should have new independent oversight.'
The team's AI checklist for policing has recently been adopted by the National Police Chiefs' Council – an instance of the university's research making a significant impact in the real world.
It is this type of outward facing research that has inspired the university's brand-new Northumbria Centre for Responsible AI.
'As AI becomes widespread, we're pulling together all the research, experience and expertise at the university to look at how we make sure it's being used for the public good,' says Oswald. 'It's one of the biggest issues of our time, so it's really exciting.'
Many applications of AI are relatively mundane, but others will have far-reaching consequences for people's lives, 'like deciding whether somebody should get a government benefit or not, or deciding whether somebody should be put on a police watchlist', she says. 'We're concerned that the public sector thinks very carefully about how it implements this technology and that people should have the skills and knowledge to navigate this new AI-informed world.'
Find out more about how Northumbria University is shaping futures and driving change
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Duo take on zip wire dressed in space armour from Aliens film
Fundraisers dressed in armour based on the 1986 film Aliens have taken on a zip wire challenge at a Cornish Clifford and John Mason completed a zip wire at the Adrenalin Quarry in Menheniot, Cornwall on pair are members of the historical organisation the Fellowship of the Knights of the Round Table of King Arthur, and wanted to wear armour during the activity. In the end they said they opted for "space armour" as medieval armour did not fit with the zip wire harness. 'Fantastic' Their outfits were made to look like Colonial Marines from the film Aliens which starred Sigourney Weaver. Fiona Rainbird Clarke, who is part of the fellowship of the knights, said master armourer Terry English who made the armour for the original film created duplicates for the pair. "Terry just made it happen, which is fantastic," she added they "committed themselves to take on any challenge that's a bit crazy and run with it." The money raised is set to be donated to Children's Hospice South West. The pair, both from Glastonbury, also have plans to go around Glastonbury Tor five times in "big heavy metal armour" in September.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Black-market melatonin use points to the need for a national sleep strategy
Your article on the rise of black-market melatonin use among parents highlights a troubling reality: families are being left with nowhere to turn when it comes to safe, effective sleep support ('I feel like a drug dealer': the parents using black-market melatonin to help their children sleep, 15 June). Our report Dreaming of Change: A Manifesto for Sleep revealed that nine out of 10 UK adults now experience sleep issues. Around 14 million people may be living with undiagnosed insomnia, and yet just one in six of those with symptoms has received a formal diagnosis. Despite National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) guidance recommending cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) as the first-line treatment since at least 2009, face-to-face is rarely available on the NHS. Nice has also recommended cost-saving digital CBT-I for over three years and yet this has still not been funded for patients nationally. Without access to effective non-drug interventions, families are turning to unregulated sleep aids out of desperation. But melatonin is not a catch-all solution – and unsupervised use, particularly in children, carries risks. We urgently need a national sleep strategy. That includes national availability of digital CBT-I, funding for CBT-I in every local integrated care board in the NHS, public health campaigns to improve sleep literacy, and better training for GPs, who are often left with little choice but to prescribe medication. Despite the known harms and guidance advising on their risks, NHS data shows that over 5m prescriptions for sleeping pills are still written each year, and the number of children receiving these drugs has tripled since 2015. Parents should not have to rely on imported supplements to help their children sleep. Sleep is a fundamental part of health, not a luxury. It's time the government treated it that BeeversCEO, The Sleep Charity Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Assisted dying law closer but MPs' support narrows in historic vote
MPs have paved the way for assisted dying to become legal in England and Wales despite some switching sides to oppose a new law – reducing its majority by more than half. Kim Leadbeater described backing for her Bill in the Commons as 'a convincing majority', after the number was slashed from 55 in November to 23 on Friday. The Labour MP declared 'thank goodness' after the result, but hospices are among those warning of the 'seismic change' for end-of-life care. Staunch supporter Dame Esther Rantzen, who is terminally ill but has said a new law is unlikely to come in time for her, thanked MPs for doing their bit to protect terminally ill people from a 'bad death'. She told the PA news agency: 'This will make a huge positive difference, protecting millions of terminally ill patients and their families from the agony and loss of dignity created by a bad death. 'Thank you, Parliament.' While 314 MPs voted for the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill at third reading, 291 voted against. Some 14 MPs switched from voting in favour to against, while only one MP – Labour's Jack Abbott – switched from voting no to voting yes. The proposed legislation will now move to the House of Lords for further debate and votes, although one peer has already urged her colleagues they 'must oppose a law that puts the vulnerable at risk'. Bishop of London Dame Sarah Mullally, a former chief nursing officer for England, said instead work is needed to better fund access to 'desperately needed palliative care services'. Her sentiment was echoed by a range of end-of-life care organisations including Marie Curie, which said legalising assisted dying will make it 'more crucial than ever' for governments across the UK 'ensure that there is palliative care available for anyone who needs it'. Ahead of the vote, MPs approved a change to the Bill, which will require ministers to assess within a year of any new law coming into effect the quality and distribution of palliative care services currently available and the impact of an assisted dying service on them. The charity said while it welcomed the change, 'this will not on its own make the improvements needed to guarantee everyone is able to access the palliative care they need'. Ms Leadbeater said the vote result was one that 'so many people need', insisting her Bill has enough safeguards and will 'give dying people choice'. Asked about the narrower gap between supporters and opponents, Ms Leadbeater said she knew there would be 'some movement both ways' but insisted the vote showed a 'convincing majority'. She told reporters: 'The will of the House (of Commons) will now be respected by the Lords, and the Bill will go through to its next stage.' Acknowledging those who remain opposed to the Bill, she said she is 'happy to work with them to provide any reassurance or if they've got any questions about the Bill that they want to talk through with me, my door has always been open and remains open'. Conservative MP Danny Kruger, who opposes the Bill, said support 'is ebbing away very fast', telling of his disappointment the Bill passed but adding: 'The fact is, their majority's been cut in half.' Campaigners wept, jumped and hugged each other outside Parliament as the vote result was announced, while some MPs appeared visibly emotional as they left the chamber. Others lined up to shake hands with Ms Leadbeater, the Bill's sponsor through the Commons, with some, including Home Office minister Jess Phillips, stopping to hug the Spen Valley MP. Before a Bill can be signed into law, both the Lords and the Commons must agree the final text. Thanks to the four-year implementation period, it could be 2029 – potentially coinciding with the end of this Government's parliament – before assisted dying is offered. Encouraging or assisting suicide is currently against the law in England and Wales, with a maximum jail sentence of 14 years. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer remained supportive of the Bill, voting yes on Friday as he had done last year. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, who had urged MPs to vote against the legislation, describing it as 'a bad Bill' despite being 'previously supportive of assisted suicide', voted no. During an hours-long date on Friday, MPs on both sides of the issue recalled personal stories of loved ones who had died. Conservative former minister Sir James Cleverly, who led the opposition to the Bill in the Commons, spoke of a close friend who died 'painfully' from cancer. He said he comes at the divisive issue 'not from a position of faith nor from a position of ignorance', and was driven in his opposition by 'concerns about the practicalities' of the Bill. MPs had a free vote on the Bill, meaning they decided according to their conscience rather than along party lines. The proposed legislation would allow terminally ill adults in England and Wales, with fewer than six months to live, to apply for an assisted death, subject to approval by two doctors and a panel featuring a social worker, senior legal figure and psychiatrist.
