Invasive species are one of the biggest threats to global biodiversity and are associated with huge economic costs. The biggest vector for marine invasive species spread is shipping, making harbours hotspots for marine invasive species. Concrete is one of the main materials used in harbours. Biofouling organisms have been shown to be influenced by changes to the surface properties of materials at both species and community level. Six types of concrete were selected for study...

The Vibration-based leak detection (VBLD) approach in pipeline systems has been a topic of research interest. It is identified as effective method for early leak detection and popular choice as its non-invasive and more suited to monitoring than inspection. Most of the previous publications investigated VBLD approach experimentally using a straight pipe with a small diameter in water loop systems. The current study investigates this approach computationally in the oil and gas sector particularly in...

The wellbeing of university students has long been a topic of interest, with growing concerns regarding the impact Higher Education can have on the mental and physical health of young adults. The recent Covid-19 pandemic has been a draining addition to the list of issues significantly impacting the quality of life and wellbeing of young adults. This research aims to identify how exactly the Covid-19 pandemic has affected the lives of university students in Scotland...

The genomes of eukaryotes exist as chromatin. The organisation of chromatin provides a means of regulating access to the underlying genetic information. One way in which eukaryotes regulate chromatin is through the action of chromatin remodelling motor proteins. Human forms of the SWI/SNF remodelling complex are a series of chromatin remodelling ATPases comprised of some 15 partially overlapping subunits. These complexes function at enhancers and other regulatory elements. They have been observed to be mutated...

Small-molecule inducible degrons allow the conditional degradation of genetically modified proteins in diverse models from human cell lines to mice. However, these approaches vary in selectivity, potency, and suitability and have various limitations. In this thesis, we describe the development of BromoTag, a novel inducible degron system that consists of a BRD4 bromodomain variant that can be recruited to the VHL E3 ligase via new bumped proteolysis targeting chimaeras (PROTACs) to induce the degradation of...

Using four-dimensional whole-embryo light sheet imaging with improved and accessible computational tools, we longitudinally reconstruct early murine cardiac development at single-cell resolution. Nascent mesoderm progenitors form opposing density and motility gradients, converting the temporal birth sequence of gastrulation into a spatial anterolateral-to-posteromedial arrangement. Migrating precardiac mesoderm doesn’t strictly preserve cellular neighbor relationships; spatial patterns only become solidified as the cardiac crescent emerges. Progenitors undergo a heretofore unknown mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition, with an anchored first heart field...

Agricultural activities are subjected to a wide range of risks because of the variable economic and biophysical environment in which farming operates. The uncertainties and risks in agriculture are diverse, ranging from weather conditions and animal diseases, changes in agricultural product prices to fertilizer and other inputs, and from financial uncertainties to policy and regulatory risks. The existence of risk in agriculture has long been observed as having a significant influence on farmers’ production and...

Oncolytic virus (OV) is a potential therapeutic cancer treatment since it has the ability to selectively infect and reproduce inside cancer cells, killing them while posing no threat to healthy cells. The ability of viruses to destroy cancer cells has been known for almost a century, but the specific processes behind tumour-virus interactions have only just begun to be appreciated. Due to the rapid viral replication rate, infected cancer cells come loose, releasing infectious viral...

The last four decades have witnessed extraordinary volatility in crude oil prices, and this has severe implications for the race toward achieving a net-zero carbon emission target by 2050. This thesis attempts to understand the dynamic behaviour of crude oil prices through four interrelated essays on the flipping behaviour of crude oil prices between contango and backwardation market conditions. The thesis revealed interesting findings by employing robust econometric estimation techniques and innovative ideas on weekly...

Learner-centered feedback is one of the most powerful influences in learning and achievement. However specific literature on feedback for culturally diverse environments, such as Sri Lanka is lacking. By addressing this problem, I aimed to enhance learning and teaching in medical schools. The objective was to explore and develop a culturally sensitive feedback guidance model for Medical Education. This qualitative, ethnographic, case study of the ethnically diverse Eastern University, Sri Lanka (EUSL) was emergent in...

Background: Microvascular complications are common in diabetes mellitus (DM). Approximately 30% of the patients with DM developed chronic kidney disease (CKD), also known as diabetic kidney disease (DKD). DKD is associated with higher mortality risk before progressing to kidney failure. The integration of electronic health records (EHRs) and high-throughput multiomics data has shown great potential in personalised medicine. This thesis aims to identify biomarker clusters (corresponding to underlying systemic factors) of CKD progression in type...

Quorum sensing in bacteria is the process of cell to cell communication that allows individuals in a population to monitor the local density of similar cells. The switch from individual cell to collective behaviour is governed by the production of chemical signals called quorum sensing molecules (QSMs). As the level of QSMs experienced by individual cells exceeds a threshold, transcription of certain genes will be activated. Many collective processes are regulated by quorum sensing, such...

There is strong evidence to suggest that craft practitioners find it difficult to seize their potential as micro businesses and sole traders (Nielsen et al., 2018). Despite much work at the intersection between craft and entrepreneurial practice (Pret and Cogan, 2018), research shows a gap exists between the needs of craft business and the support provided by national organisations (Fillis, 2004; Bouette and Magee, 2015). Despite craft practitioners’ reliance on a non-linear, project-based approach to...

This thesis aims to explore Muslim pilgrims’ anticipations and experiences of shared identity at the Muslim pilgrimage of the Hajj in Mecca, Saudi Arabia in terms of the social identity perspective to crowd behaviour. Specifically, it focuses on participants’ expectations about shared identity before the event, the manifestations and complexities of shared identity and identity enactment at different sites of the pilgrimage, the role of social identity content in the maintenance of shared identity, and...

In order to enable exploitation of noble metal/poly(vinyl-­‐alcohol) nanocomposites for device fabrication, solutions of poly(vinyl-­‐alcohol) suitable for piezo-­‐driven inkjet printing techniques are identified and discussed in terms of their material properties. The printable poly(vinyl-­‐alcohol) medium is then exploited as a host material through the formation of silver or gold nanoparticles in order to create nanocomposites that exhibit a surface plasmon resonance behaviour associated with the small metallic inclusions. To mitigate some of the material redistribution...

Dataset related to the named publication by Palmer et al in Biomedical Optics Express regarding autofluorescence spectroscopy of the endogenous fluorophores collagen, elastin, NADH and flavins in a developing lab based model of muscle invasive urinary bladder cancer. Data from spectroscopy measurements is included in the form of an excel spreadsheet, including day (0-21), sample number, opinion (1 = control, 2 = cancer organoid) and the values of amplitude of fluorescence and diagnostic ratios given...

This site contains information on the gathering of data (2016-17) from the residents of care homes for older people in the U.K. The study created a novel visual game activity to enhance engagement with residents, and a redesigned ethical consenting approach to be more accessible, equitable and inclusive. Described are the tools used to develop a visual method of interacting with vulnerable people to better facilitate interviews with them. This includes the research materials, the...

In order to metastasize triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) must make dynamic changes in cell shape. The shape of all eukaryotic cells is regulated by Rho GTP Exchange Factors (RhoGEFs), which activate Rho-family GTPases in response to mechanical and informational cues. In contrast, Rho GTPase-activating proteins (RhoGAPs) inhibit Rho GTPases. However, which RhoGEFs and RhoGAPS couple TNBC cell shape to changes in their environment is very poorly understood. Moreover, whether the activity of particular RhoGEFs...

In this study we introduce distinct fluorescent tags flanking a range of genomic regions and track the motion of the labelled reporters using an OMX Blaze microscope. We describe a work flow that enables 3D live cell tracking with a mean measurement error of 63 nm. We find that within individual yeast cells the separation of operator sequences exhibits substantial variation over time. Genomic loci are able to reorganize extensively below a threshold of approximately...

Imaging a whole mouse central nervous system with the mesoSPIM

Hela cells were transfected with the human Lincode small interfering RNA (siRNA) library targeting 2231 lncRNAs. Following 48 hr incubation, cells were fixed and processed for immunostaining and subsequent automated image acquisition and analysis. Antibodies targeting CEP215 (to label centrosomes), alpha-tubulin (to label the microtubule cytoskeleton), phalloidin (to label the actin cytoskeleton) and Hoechst (to label nuclei) were used. 10x 384-well plates were used. The fixation and staining was carried out at the Institute for...