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King's College London(伦敦大学国王学院)
所在地区:英格兰所在城市:LondonTIMES排名:27
一键免费快速申请文章正文综述详细专业照片新闻校友录已获Offer学生资料Professor Mark Richardson, the new Paul Getty III Professor of Epilepsy at King's College London, thanked Paul Getty at a reception today, for his generous donation to fund a Chair and research at the Institute of Epileptology.Professor Mark Richardson, the new Paul Getty III Professor of Epilepsy at King's College London, thanked Paul Getty at a reception today, for his generous donation to fund a Chair and research at the Institute of Epileptology.The donation will enable Professor Richardson and his colleagues to develop a programme of multidisciplinary research and continue to build on the College's world-leading reputation for innovative work in epilepsy treatment and research – a reputation developed over more than a century.
The Institute of Epileptology at King's College London, was established in 1994 with three aims in mind: to create a centre of excellence for epilepsy research in Europe; to develop teaching and training in epilepsy for medical and allied health professionals; and to raise awareness of epilepsy, the world's most common serious brain disorder.
Simultaneously with this, King's College Hospital opened the Centre for Epilepsy, which is the largest clinical service of its kind in the UK, offering patients of all ages the widest range of investigations and treatment for epilepsy. King's College Hospital is one of the largest hospitals in the country, with a strong emphasis on research and a nationally important commitment to neurological diseases.
Paul Getty III, after whom this Chair is named and members of his family, attended the special reception at King's, hosted by the College's Principal, Professor Rick Trainor, and Professor Peter McGuffin, Dean of the Institute of Psychiatry. In thanking Mr Getty, Professor Richardson said: ‘A first key area of our research is to better develop functional imaging studies which allow us to determine which parts of the brain are active when we perform various cognitive tasks – and so pinpoint the dysfunctional areas of the brain where seizures may arise. This crucially helps researchers and surgeons target more effective surgery for epilepsy.'
‘In a second area of research we are studying patients undergoing seizure recording using intracranial electrodes – part of clinical routine in our centre - to locate where seizures start. Uniquely in Europe, we have advanced this method to allow recording from individual brain cells. This provides a very important opportunity to understand how brain cells alter their activity before and during seizures. We can also study the way individual brain cells contribute to our thoughts and behaviour. This exciting opportunity is a good example of the way clinical studies of epilepsy may open a window on understanding the normal functions of the brain.'
'In a third area of research, we are developing methods to ‘forecast' when an epileptic seizure will occur. Currently, for most people with epilepsy, seizures appear to be random and unpredictable in occurrence. Several electrophysiological techniques can predict, to a certain extent, when seizures might occur. Using a variety of techniques we can understand more about the reasons seizures start and their apparently random onset and how to prevent a seizure from starting.
'Our ultimate vision is to link-in methods to predict seizures with treatments delivered to the brain only at the time when there is a risk a seizure might start. This would be a completely new way of treating epilepsy – focus treatment to the time when the person is at risk of having seizures – so ensuring a better quality of life and more control for people with epilepsy who are constantly on their guard for a seizure onset.'
Notes to editors
Epilepsy- Epilepsy is a tendency to recurrent seizures due to sudden unexplained bursts of excess electricity in the brain
- Epilepsy is the most common serious brain disorder in the world.
- Epilepsy is universal with no age, racial, social or geographic boundaries
- In the UK 456,000 children and adults are affected (1:131)
- Epilepsy can have profound physical and psychological consequences, including sudden death (SUDEP). It is estimated 40% of these deaths are avoidable
- 1,000 die in England each year as a result of epilepsy. More than one third are children and young adults. 500 of these UK deaths relate directly to an epileptic seizure, which can occur in everyday situations. Common instances include having a seizure in a bath that can lead to drowning or having a seizure in a dangerous situation and suffering a fatal injury.
- Epilepsy has a low profile due to misunderstanding, ignorance, fear and stigma
- Although 70% of those with epilepsy could be seizure-free if they received adequate diagnosis, treatment and services, the basic causes and cures for epilepsy are poorly understood
- People living with epilepsy may experience recurrent seizures, and suffer difficulties at work and in social situations as well as experiencing stigma by those who don't understand this condition.
King's College London
King's College London is the fourth oldest university in England with more than 13,700 undergraduates and 6,200 graduate students in nine schools of study based at five London campuses. It is a member of the Russell Group: a coalition of the UK's major research-based universities. The College has had 24 of its subject-areas awarded the highest rating of 5* and 5 for research quality, demonstrating excellence at an international level, and it has recently received an excellent result in its audit by the Quality Assurance Agency.
King's has a particularly distinguished reputation in the humanities, law, international relations, medicine, nursing and the sciences, and has played a major role in many of the advances that have shaped modern life, such as the discovery of the structure of DNA. It is the largest centre for the education of healthcare professionals in Europe and is home to five Medical Research Council Centres – more than any other university.
King's is in the top group of UK universities for research earnings, with income from grants and contracts of more than £110 million, and has an annual income of more than £387 million.
