A new first in the fight against cancer from Don Whitley Scientific

February 2, 2021

Press Release

The PRECISE Group at the University of Manchester (pictured above), The Christie NHS Foundation Trust and Don Whitley Scientific today announced the world’s first Proton Radiobiology Modified Atmosphere Workstation with integrated robotic arm, which will be used for research into cancer treatments. The Proton Beam Therapy Centre at The Christie, Manchester, is the first NHS high energy proton beam therapy centre in the UK. Within the facility there is a dedicated research room, which was funded by The Christie Charity, where this new Whitley Workstation will be operated. The workstation with its integrated robotic arm was funded by CRUK Manchester Major Centre funding.

Read more: A new first in the fight against cancer from Don Whitley Scientific

Kidney Cancer Study at the University of Utah

Date: August 17, 2020

Omar Hussain, Product Specialist at Don Whitley Scientific, provides a synopsis of a paper by Dr Sophie Cowman et al, University of Utah. Their research looked at clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), which is frequently associated with inactivation of the von Hippel Lindau tumour suppressor, resulting in activation of HIF-1α and HIF-2α. The current paradigm, established using mechanistic cell-based studies, supports a tumour promoting role for HIF-2α, and a tumour suppressor role for HIF-1α. The paper is entitled:

“Macrophage HIF-1α is an independent prognostic indicator in kidney cancer”

This is something that has not been comprehensively studied before and was carried out by assessing the involvement of hypoxia associated factors/hypoxia inducible factors and their relationship to tumour grade/stage/outcome using tissue from 380 patients.

Read more: Kidney Cancer Study at the University of Utah

COVID-19 Researcher Using H35 Hypoxystation

January 4, 2021

Dr James Nathan is Reader in Respiratory Medicine at the University of Cambridge, and Group Leader at the Cambridge Institute of Therapeutic Immunology and Infectious Disease (CITIID).

Dr Nathan (pictured) is a trained respiratory physician who has carried out extensive research at Harvard, and Cambridge Universities. He set up his own lab in 2013 focusing on how cells sense and adapt to oxygen and nutrients in addition to how this impacts certain diseases. Since March 2020, his group has been conducting research into how low oxygen (hypoxia) affects COVID-19 infected patients.

Read more: COVID-19 Researcher Using H35 Hypoxystation

Uncovering the Effects of Hypoxia in CNS Disorders Using Whitley Workstations

November 5, 2019
By: Don Whitley Scientific Product News

Dr Scott Allen (pictured above) is a Lecturer in Neuroscience at the Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN). Part of the University of Sheffield, SITraN is one of the world leading centres for research into Motor Neurone Disease, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease.

We recently spoke to Dr Allen about his research, which focuses on how hypoxia (low oxygen) affects the metabolism of people with neurological disorders. Dr Allen remarked that historically it has been difficult to measure metabolism under hypoxic conditions due to the lack of available technology. Now, with the Whitley H35 HEPA Hypoxystation, it is possible to expose astrocytes (brain cells) to different levels of hypoxia and then asses how the metabolic profile of the cells has altered using a Seahorse Analyzer housed inside a Whitley i2 Instrument Workstation.

“Scientific advancement goes hand-in-hand with technological advancement; now we have this ability to measure and assess how hypoxia affects the metabolic profile of neurological diseases… we can hopefully improve the quality of life for people with Alzheimer’s and Motor Neurone Disease, and also extend their lives as well.”

To learn more about Dr Allen’s research, watch our video here.