The University of Westminster has secured a £120,000 studentship from The Guy Foundation to a Westminster PhD student to support their work on quantum biology, a project that investigates how low-level light given off by all life can affect ageing.
The studentship, awarded to Ifigeneia Kalampouka in Westminster’s Research Centre for Optimal Health, will focus on the research of photonic and electromagnetic manipulation of living systems, which is a rapidly developing field of medicine. It has been suggested that photons, fundamental quantum entities, could be pivotal in understanding the extent that life is using quantum mechanics.
The proposed project will investigate the potential role of biophotons in senescence, a fundamental cellular event associated with health and disease. It will study the role of mitochondrial health and how hormesis controls health span, which suggests that investigating the relationship between biophotons, oxidative stress and mitochondrial function could be a valuable path to pursue.
In 2019 the University of Westminster secured £350,000 in funding from The Guy Foundation for a two-year research program into how living organisms use light to communicate, detect and adapt to their environment. With this grant, Westminster has put in place a powerful system that has enabled more detailed investigations of possible biophotonic communication between cells and the effects some medicines may have on this.
Speaking about the studentship, Ifigeneia Kalampouka said: “My passion is to keep exploring the human as a micro-environment, it's interactive macro-environmental stressors and I seek to link biological aspects of life with quantum phenomena. As a researcher, my enthusiasm is gathered around the impact and applications of multidisciplinary science to real world, and I engage with translational science communication. I am extremely honoured to be awarded this studentship by The Guy Foundation and I am excited to begin my PhD.”
Project Supervisor and Professor of Metabolic Imaging, Professor Louise Thomas, also commented on the studentship: “We are delighted that The Guy Foundation has generously provided funding for Ifigenia to undertake her PhD studentship at the Research Centre for Optimal Health. Ifi is an excellent scientist, and this is a great opportunity for her to build on our previous study, also funded by The Guy Foundation, of Biophotons and non-chemical communication, led by Dr Rhys Mould and Professor Jimmy Bell. Ifi was a research associate on that project which gave her considerable relevant expertise for this PhD.
“Her studentship will be great start to her becoming an independent scientist. This is an exciting study, understanding mitochondrial photonic communication could become an important indicator of cellular health. Ultimately a better understanding of these cellular processes will enable development of senolytics compounds to slow down or even reverse the ageing process.”
The Research Centre for Optimal Health was established to deepen understanding of the lifestyle-induced accelerated ageing process and use this knowledge to deliver practical solutions to achieve optimal health throughout adult life.
Find out more about the Research Centre for Optimal Health, and how your organisation can support Westminster by contacting [email protected].
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