£1.6m boost for virtual model

Plans to build a virtual model of the human body to help doctors treat patients has taken a leap forward with the award of £1.6 million for research, a university has announced.

The University of Bedfordshire has been handed the extra cash by the European Commission to help create a Virtual Physiological Human (VPH).

The international project, which will model different aspects of the human body, is hoped to revolutionise healthcare in the next 20 years.

The VPH will create a complete picture of the way humans function, at all levels of activity from the whole body down to organs, cells, and molecular level.

Bedfordshire University is involved in five areas of the international project - covering osteoporosis, heart disease, cancer, brain aneurysms and the musculoskeletal system.

The university has spent the last two years working with its European partners to make a 'Roadmap' to define how VPH can be created and has announced the huge surge of funding to help move forward with the project.

Professor Gordon Clapworthy, head of the Centre for Computer Graphics and Visualisation (CCGV), said: "It's exciting to be working with scientists from all over Europe on a significant range of projects that will be pivotal for healthcare over the next 20 years.

"This will make a real difference to people's lives by introducing personalised medicine.

"It is a great achievement for the university to be part of so many successful research proposals in a highly competitive area."

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