On 22 April, we were delighted to welcome Sir Alec Shelbrooke MP for Wetherby and Easingwold, to the UK DRI at King’s. Sir Alec was hosted by UK DRI Centre Director Prof Jernej Ule and Prof Mark Richardson, Head of School of Neuroscience at King’s College London for a tour of the UK DRI labs and to learn more about dementia research.
During the visit Sir Alec met with researchers who showcased how novel techniques are enabling us to create more realistic human models to study progression of neurodegeneration and discussed the importance of fundamental cell science to improve understanding of disease mechanisms.
Sir Alec also spoke with data scientists using developments in AI to unlock opportunities to identify new treatment targets as well as discussing the transformative potential of blood and digital biomarkers to support early detection of neurodegenerative diseases.
Reflecting on his visit, Sir Alec said:
"As our society ages, accelerating research into dementia and related conditions is vital. It was inspiring to visit the UK Dementia Research Institute at King's College London today to speak with researchers at the cutting-edge of developing treatments and diagnostics for these devastating conditions.
UK DRI is delivering incredible research which will transform the way we diagnose, treat and care. By bringing together government, researchers, industry and the NHS through innovative research institutions we can make sure that the UK is at the forefront of global life sciences."
Prof Jernej Ule, Centre Director, UK DRI at King's said:
It was a pleasure to welcome Sir Alec Shelbrooke MP to UK DRI at King's, showcasing the impact and breadth of our groundbreaking research. We discussed the vital importance of studying the underlying biological processes and harnessing advances in data science and AI to open up opportunities to detect, slow, and ultimately halt these conditions.
Prof Mark Richardson, Head of School of Neuroscience, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London said:
“We were delighted to welcome Sir Alec Shelbrooke to King’s College London and share a brief insight into the work happening here as part of UK DRI. Researchers at the IoPPN are taking innovative and important steps toward our understanding and treatment of dementia and neurodegenerative conditions and highlighting this vital work is a key aspect of the continued progress of science in the UK.”
