Collaboration could find solutions for healthcare industry

The ISIS Neutron and Muon Source at the STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory near Oxford and the National Physical Laboratory, Teddington (NPL) have agreed to develop closer business and research links to collaborate on commercial offerings for the healthcare industry.

Work at ISIS, which produces beams of neutrons allowing scientists to study materials at the atomic and molecular level, has already enabled researchers to work on developing synthetic versions of antibodies to help fight disease. Neutron scattering has proved particularly useful providing pioneering insight into drug research, cell and membrane interactions and surgical implants.

“This partnership will seek to make closer connections between the two laboratories, to enhance the application of neutron scattering research by industry and to solve end-user problems in real-world environments,” said Andrew Taylor, Executive Director for National Laboratories at STFC.

NPL's healthcare research focuses across diagnostics, medical physics and health and wellbeing where measurement plays a vital role in ensuring reliable and robust detection diagnosis and treatment.

“We will draw on NPL's multi-disciplinary approach to research and the broad experience in using neutron scattering for materials research at ISIS to provide new insight into medical technologies,” said Keith Dobson, Head of Business Development at NPL.

ISIS is free to use provided research results are published into the public domain. Where commercial confidentiality is important, companies can join the fast-track ISIS Collaborative R&D Programme giving full control over intellectual property