Running Mad Professor

05/06/2026

Congratulations to everyone involved in securing approval for the new University of Liverpool campus in Bengaluru, which received its Letter of Approval from the Government of India this week at an event attended by UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper and senior ministers from both countries. This is a fantastic development for both the UK and India.

I have worked in Bengaluru since the early 2000s (when it was still Bangalore!) in partnership with National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bengaluru. It is a brilliant place to work - home to fantastic scientists, highly motivated teachers, and incredibly dedicated healthcare professionals.

Bengaluru is one of the world's great centres for innovation, research and education. This new campus represents an exciting opportunity to strengthen academic links, foster new research collaborations, and help develop the next generation of scientists, clinicians and global leaders.

I look forward to seeing the impact it will have in the years ahead.

https://news.liverpool.ac.uk/2026/06/05/bengaluru-campus-receives-approval-from-government-of-india-at-event-attended-by-uk-foreign-secretary/

Government of India approves Bengaluru campus at event attended by UK foreign secretary

04/06/2026

04/06/2026

The Call for Abstracts for Encephalitis Conference 2026 is still open! 🧠

If you have been working on encephalitis research and are ready to share your findings, this is your opportunity to present to a global community of encephalitis professionals and advocates.

Submit your abstract, help shape the future of encephalitis research, and compete for the Best Presentation and Best Poster prize. 🏆

Every submission takes us one step closer to better outcomes for people living with encephalitis around the world. Don't miss your chance to be part of that story. 💙

🔗 Submit here: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=7UKsvTiLykWXkJOtslcAkjv33vRfQqdNoPorLojXuBFURENSRDk2RFJDWFNJUUxONDdFMUU0R1MxTC4u"

03/06/2026

Pastries. Bacon. Hans Christian Andersen.

And, of course, some outstanding discussions on the diagnosis and treatment of neurological infections.

If you're interested in CNS infections and the latest developments in diagnosis, management, and long-term outcomes, do join us in Denmark this September for the ESCMID ESGIB course - 'Diagnosis and treatment of CNS infections'.

The programme covers everything from CSF interpretation to difficult-to-treat CNS infections and emerging therapies.

Registration details here: https://www.escmid.org/event-detail/diagnosis-and-treatment-of-cns-infections/

02/06/2026

Are you a clinician-researcher with a translational research project that could make a real difference to patient care?

The Dwyer-Hart RCP Medical Research Grant is currently open for applications, offering up to £60,000 in funding to support a 12-month research project focused on bridging scientific discovery and real-world healthcare delivery. Projects from all areas of health and medicine are welcome, provided they demonstrate a clear pathway to tangible patient benefit.

The grant is open to eligible Royal College of Physicians members and fellows based at UK academic or clinical institutions and is designed to support impactful, clinician-led translational research.

⏳ Application deadline: Sunday 7 June 2026, 23:59

For researchers looking to advance innovative ideas from bench to bedside, this is an excellent opportunity to secure funding and contribute to improving patient outcomes.

For full details and application information, visit: https://www.rcp.ac.uk/membership/research-funding-prizes-and-lectureships/the-dwyer-hart-rcp-medical-research-grant/

The Dwyer-Hart RCP medical research grant has been established through the generous support of the Dwyer-Hart medical research charitable incorporated organisation (CIO) to support impactful research and create a lasting legacy for patient benefit.

01/06/2026

Ever struggled with a patient with a brain infection? Then the NeuroID course is for you!

The Liverpool Neurological Infectious Diseases Course (NeuroID) is an approved 2-day CPD course aimed at clinicians of all grades (including medical students) working in Adult and Paediatric Neurology, Infectious Diseases, Acute Medicine, Emergency Medicine and Medical Microbiology who want to update their knowledge and improve their skills.

The NeuroID has taken place every year in Liverpool since 2007, and has now trained more than 1000 delegates from 40 countries. Delivered by experts in the field, the course, has been oversubscribed every year.

We now have the last few places remaining for 17th and 18th June!

Learn more here - https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/neuroidcourse/

28/05/2026

I spent most of Medicine 2026 dashing between parallel sessions trying to hear everything - from the impact of TikTok and ChatGPT on symptom-based disorders, to lessons from RCP invited reviews, to global health challenges at mass gatherings like the Hajj.

Thankfully, the catch-up sessions are now available on MedPlayer, so you can watch the ones you missed (or revisit the best bits properly this time). You won’t want to miss them!

27/05/2026

Following the recent Andes hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius expedition ship, UK researchers have launched a rapid-response study using ISARIC’s pre-approved outbreak protocol.

The work will help researchers better understand how the virus spreads, why some infections become severe, and how outbreak responses can be improved in future.

An important example of research readiness and collaboration in action.

Read more: https://news.liverpool.ac.uk/2026/05/21/uk-launches-a-study-of-andes-hantavirus-using-a-pre-approved-outbreak-protocol/

UK launches a study of Andes hantavirus using a pre‑approved outbreak protocol

26/05/2026

Anti-malarial tablets from 1988; my first overseas work trip, as a medical student joining Professor Nick White in Thailand who was studying malaria and meliodosis in Ubon Ratchathani. He was an inspirational and brilliant doctor and researcher, sorely missed by all those who knew him. And that was my first foray into tropical medicine and global health. Even back then, I think I was aware that those few weeks in Thailand were setting the direction for the rest of my life. Mentors and role models are so important in research and medicine.

I never needed the antimalarials, and they’ve been lying in an old medicine bag ever since.

Should I throw them away? My family accuse me of being a terrible hoarder! What do you think?

22/05/2026

Yesterday's UK Health Security Agency One Health annual vector-borne disease surveillance report is a timely reminder that tick- and mosquito-borne infections are an increasing public health concern in the UK. Lyme disease remains the most common vector-borne infection in England, and tick-borne encephalitis is another important emerging threat that our work has helped to identify in the UK.

We are proud that our work in the NIHR Health Protection Research Unit in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections, a partnership with UKHSA, is contributing to this nationally important agenda. Established in 2014, the Unit has brought together UKHSA, the University of Liverpool, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine - LSTM, University of Oxford and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine to strengthen the evidence base for predicting, preventing, and responding to emerging and zoonotic infections.

That includes research on tick-borne infections such as Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis, as well as other vector-borne and emerging infection threats. The report underlines why this kind of surveillance matters and why a One Health approach is so important for understanding and controlling infection risks across humans, animals, and the environment.

The Health Protection Research Unit provides a perfect platform for public health authorities and academia to work closely together on high-impact research that helps protect the UK from emerging infection threats.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/ukhsa-and-partners-publish-first-one-health-annual-vector-borne-disease-surveillance-report