Professor Peter Sandercock, Personal Chair in Medical Neurology, presents the fourth lecture in the 2014 Medical Detectives series entitled, Unravelling the Mystery of Stroke Disease - The Clue's in the Numbers... Ideas about the causes of stroke have evolved over the centuries from the mystical to the realisation that most strokes are due to a plumbing problem - a blocked or burst artery in the brain. In this lecture Professor Peter Sandercock will begin by describing early attempts to map...

Professor Aziz Sheikh, Professor of Primary Care Research & Development and Co-Director of the University's Centre for Population Health Scientist, delivers the third lecture in the 2014 Medical Detectives series entitled, "The Sign of Three: Progress Report on an Investigation into the Epidemic of Itch, Sneeze and Wheeze". In this lecture, Professor Sheikh will present a summary of the main culprits identified to-date and share his thoughts on where the investigation should now focus...

Dr Chin addresses some of the major challenges in childhood epilepsy: identifying the cause, finding better treatments, and dealing with the learning and behavioural problems in epilepsy. http://www.ed.ac.uk/news/events/medical-detectives/2014/chin Recorded on 9 October 2014 at the University of Edinburgh's Anatomy Lecture Theatre.

No other terrestrial species of animal is as diverse in its morphology as man's best friend, the dog. Today more than four hundred breeds of dogs are recognized worldwide. Why and how did dogs evolve so rapidly and broadly? Dr Schoenebeck discusses the scientific advances that occurred in the last decade that have enabled researchers to begin unravelling the mysteries of canine diversity. http://www.ed.ac.uk/news/events/medical-detectives/2014/schoenebeck Recorded 25 September 2014 at the...

Professor Charles ffrench-Constant, Professor of Multiple Sclerosis Research, presents the Medical Detectives lecture, "Why Doesn't the Brain Repair Itself?". The patient disabled by spinal cord injury or multiple sclerosis illustrates the consequences of the failure of repair in the brain after injury. But why does this fail? Other tissues such as skin repair very well, so what factors make the brain different? This talk examines the clues that experiments have given us as to the identity of...

Professor Stephen Lawrie, Professor of Psychiatry and Head of the Division of Psychiatry at the University of Edinburgh, delivers his Medical Detectives lecture entitled "Scanning for a Diagnostic Test for Schizophrenia". Brain imaging can be used to distinguish patients with schizophrenia from their relatives, and from other patients with major psychiatric disorders such as bipolar disorder and autism. This talk takes a journey through these investigations, lay out the evidence and show how...

Professor Stephen Wigmore, Professor of Transplantation Surgery and Honorary Consultant Surgeon at The University of Edinburgh, delivers his Medical Detectives lecture entitled "The Case of the Vanishing Yellow Man". In this talk, Professor Wigmore examines approaches to management of liver failure, particularly liver transplantation and will also look to future prospects for cell therapy. Recorded on 10 October 2013 at The University of Edinburgh's Anatomy Lecture Theatre.

Dr Angela Thomas is an honorary senior lecturer within Child Life and Health at the University of Edinburgh. From First World War observations that mustard gas caused lymphoid tissue to dissolve and that folate seemed to accelerate the leukaemic process, carefully chosen chemicals were used to tackle leukaemia, sometimes with startling success. In the early days, some children were cured with this minimal therapy. As more drugs were discovered, so treatment intensified and more children were...

Professor Siddharthan Chandran is Director of the Euan MacDonald Centre for Motor Neurone Disease Research at the University of Edinburgh. Stem cells have heralded a revolution in research, offering genuine possibilities for the discovery and delivery of new treatments. Professor Chandran will explore the myths and hype surrounding stem cells and present the potential promise research in this area could bring to patients with neurodegenerative conditions. This lecture is part of the Medical...

Great strides have been taken in preventing and treating heart disease, yet it remains one of the biggest serial killers and our understanding of its causes is incomplete. This lecture describes how clues from population databases, modern genetics, and detailed investigations in patients have implicated steroid stress hormones in heart disease and how this has led to the development of new drug treatments. Brian Walker is Professor of Endocrinology at the University of Edinburgh. This lecture...

Professor Jean Manson is Head of the Neuropathogenesis Division of The Roslin Institute at the University of Edinburgh. This lecture is part of the Medical Detectives, a series of public lectures that show how keen detective work is still essential for 21st century doctors: http://www.ed.ac.uk/news/events/medical-detectives/ Recorded on 4 October 2012 in the Anatomy Lecture Theatre at the University of Edinburgh.

David Cunningham Owens is Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at the University of Edinburgh and honorary consultant psychiatrist, the Royal Edinburgh Hospital. This talk revealed how the development of neuronal communication at synapses is altered in Fragile X Syndrome (FXS). It also examines how basic research into the role of genetics has led to the development of new medicines for treating FXS and hopefully will result in treatment possibilities for some forms of autism. This lecture is part...

David Cunningham Owens is Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at the University of Edinburgh and honorary consultant psychiatrist, the Royal Edinburgh Hospital. This lecture is part of the Medical Detectives, a series of public lectures that show how keen detective work is still essential for 21st century doctors: http://www.ed.ac.uk/news/events/medical-detectives/ Recorded on 20 September 2012 in the Anatomy Lecture Theatre at the University of Edinburgh.

A public lecture presented by Professor Brendan Corcoran on Thursday 28 October 2010. This is the second lecture in the 2010 Medical Detectives lecture series. Brendan Corcoran is Professor of Veterinary Cardiopulmonary Medicine and Director of International Affairs in the University's Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies. Audio version.

A public lecture presented by Professor Jane Norman on Thursday 21 October 2010. This is the first lecture in the 2010 Medical Detectives lecture series. Jane Norman is Professor of Maternal and Fetal Health at the University and Director of the Tommy’s Centre of Maternal and Fetal Health. Audio version.

A public lecture presented by Professor James Ironside on Thursday 4 November 2010. This is the third lecture in the 2010 Medical Detectives lecture series. James Ironside is Professor of Clinical Neuropathology at the University and Director of the MRC Network of UK Brain Banks. Audio version.

The final in a series of public lectures which show that keen detective work is still essential for 21st Century doctors. Recorded on 19 November 2009 in the Anatomy Lecture Theatre at the University of Edinburgh. Inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the lectures highlight the University's acclaimed medical research. The speaker, David Argyle, is William Dick Professor of Veterinary Clinical Studies at the University.

The third in a series of public lectures which show that keen detective work is still essential for 21st Century doctors. Recorded on 12 November 2009 in the Anatomy Lecture Theatre at the University of Edinburgh. Inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the lectures highlight the University's acclaimed medical research. The speaker, John Iredale, is Professor of Medicine at the University.

The second in a series of public lectures which show that keen detective work is still essential for 21st Century doctors. Recorded on 5 November 2009 in the Anatomy Lecture Theatre at the University of Edinburgh. Inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the lectures highlight the University's acclaimed medical research. The speaker, Jonathan Seckl, is Moncrieff-Arnott Professor of Molecular Medicine.

The first in a series of public lectures which show that keen detective work is still essential for 21st Century doctors. Recorded on 29 October 2009 in the Anatomy Lecture Theatre at the University of Edinburgh. Inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the lectures highlight the University's acclaimed medical research. Dorothy Crawford is Professor of Medical Microbiology and Assistant Principal of the Public Understanding of Medicine. Audio version.