Alumni Association
Dr. Conrad Bessant (Cranfield University)
09 April 2013
JSPS Joint Research Project
Project title: High through-put function analysis of neural chemicals on cellular biosensing with data analysis through chemometrics
Japanese scientific lead: Professor Tetsuya Haruyama, Division of environmental engineering, bioelectronics, Graduate school of life science and systems engineering, Kyushu Institute of Technology
UK Counterpart: Dr. Conrad Bessant, Health, Bioinformatics Group, Cranfield University
Project Duration: April 2011 to 2013
The two research groups participating in this research
project have highly complementary expertise in the areas of novel sensor design
(Haruyama group) and advanced multivariate data analysis (Bessant group). They
originally came into contact as a result of a strategic university-level
partnership between Cranfield and Kyutech, which previously involved Cranfield
having a full time presence on the campus on which Kyutech is situated.
The aim of collaborating via the JSPS scheme was to develop
novel analytical methodologies through the close integration of these two sets
of specialised expertise. During the two year duration of the project, this was
achieved through a number of interactions facilitated by the JSPS funding.
Specifically:
1. Prof Haruyama visited Cranfield with two researchers
(postdoc Shinya Ikeno and postgraduate student Keiichi Sano) who stayed on for
two weeks to work alongside Dr Bessant and postdoc Dr Michael Cauchi to develop
data analysis approaches for data previously acquired from Kyutech prototype sensors.
2. A reciprocal visit, in which Dr Cauchi spent a week in
Kyutech learning more about the sensor technology and educating members of the
Haruyama group in data analysis methodology.
3. Prof Haruyama visited Cranfield with three postgraduate
students (Yoshiyuki Takatsuji, Ryota Yamasaki, Masami Tanaka) who stayed on for
two weeks to develop methods for the analysis of newly created datasets.
As a result of these interactions, significant progress has
been made in the development of advanced analytical methods that incorporate
both novel sensing elements and advanced data analysis. An outline of this work
was presented at the Biosensors 2012 conference in Mexico, and manuscripts are
being prepared for publication in leading journals.
In April 2013, Dr Bessant moved to Queen Mary University of
London (QMUL) to take up a Professor position in the School of Biological and
Chemical Sciences. It is hoped that a new collaboration will be established
between Kyutech and QMUL as a result of this, but the collaboration between
Kyutech and Cranfield (via Michael Cauchi) will also continue.
Prepared by Conrad
Bessant, April 2013.
