Overview

I am a research fellow in the BioSpec Team in the Biophysics Group working with Prof Nick Stone at The University of Exeter. My current work is to develop novel Raman in vivo devices for disease diagnosis. I am investigating neuromuscular  diseases, lymphomas and oesophageal cancers, as well as other cancers. I have experience of applying for and gaining HRA Ethics and MHRA device approvals.

Our devices use fibre optics to deliver and collect near infrared light from tissue, in vivo. We measure Raman spectra of tissues that allows us to see the "biochemical fingerprint". This is known to change as cancers or other diseases develop.

Our Optical-EMG (electromyography) project is developing a Raman needle combined with EMG to diagnose neuromuscular disease. Funded by the MRC. The project, led by the University of Sheffield, is a collaboration between the University of Exeter, University of Bristol, and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Our DOLPHIN-VIVO project (Diagnosis Of LymPHoma IN-VIVO project) is seeking to develop an in vivo device to diagnose lymphomas with a fibre-optic needle, avoiding the need for an invasive surgical biopsy. Funded by the NIHR. The project is led by Exeter, collaborating with the University of Bristol and Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

The RaPIDE project (RAman Probe for In-vivo Diagnostics (during oesophageal) Endoscopy) successfully performed first in vivo Raman measurements of the oesophagus in 25 humans. We gained HRA and MHRA approval. Majority-funded by the NIHR. The project is led by Exeter, collaborating with the University of Bristol and Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

In my PhD at Durham University with Professor Colin Bain, I designed and built a total-internal reflection Raman spectrometer. This technique utilises the evanescent field produced during total-internal reflection to excite molecules close to the interface. Using the spectrometer I studied the adsorption of surfactants to liquid-solid interfaces. The research focused on the kinetics of adsorption, obtaining isotherms and forming mono/bi-layers of various ionic and nonionic surfactants on surfaces including silica, polyester and zeolite. A major part of the project was the design and construction of the spectrometer, during which I developed the skills needed to design and manipulate optics to obtain good signal to noise levels.

My other interests include badminton, cycling, first aid, squash, technical stagecraft, singing, sailing, skiing, and programming.

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Publications

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| 2024 | 2022 | 2021 | 2018 | 2016 | 2013 |

2024

• Alix JJP, Plesia M, Dudgeon AP, Kendall CA, Hewamadduma C, Hadjivassiliou M, Gorman GS, Taylor RW, McDermott CJ, Shaw PJ. (2024) Conformational fingerprinting with Raman spectroscopy reveals protein structure as a translational biomarker of muscle pathology, The Analyst, DOI:10.1039/d4an00320a. [PDF]

2022

• Alix JJP, Plesia M, Schooling CN, Dudgeon AP, Kendall CA, Kadirkamanathan V, McDermott CJ, Gorman GS, Taylor RW, Mead RJ. (2022) Non‐negative matrix factorisation of Raman spectra finds common patterns relating to neuromuscular disease across differing equipment configurations, preclinical models and human tissue, Journal of Raman Spectroscopy, volume 54, no. 3, pages 258-268, DOI:10.1002/jrs.6480.
• Alix JJP, Plesia M, Lloyd GR, Dudgeon AP, Kendall CA, Hewamadduma C, Hadjivassiliou M, McDermott CJ, Gorman GS, Taylor RW. (2022) Rapid identification of human muscle disease with fibre optic Raman spectroscopy, Analyst, volume 147, no. 11, pages 2533-2540, DOI:10.1039/d1an01932e.
• Mohamed MSN, Almond M, Kendall C, Dudgeon A, Mansfield J, Stone N, Barr H. (2022) 417Vibrational Spectroscopy: A Rapid Tool for Soft Tissue Sarcoma Assessment, BRITISH JOURNAL OF SURGERY, volume 109, DOI:10.1093/bjs/znac039.283. [PDF]
• Alix JJP, Plesia M, Lloyd GR, Dudgeon AP, Kendall CA, McDermott CJ, Gorman GS, Taylor RW, Shaw PJ, Day JC. (2022) The application of Raman spectroscopy to the diagnosis of mitochondrial muscle disease: A preliminary comparison between fibre optic probe and microscope formats, JOURNAL OF RAMAN SPECTROSCOPY, volume 53, no. 2, pages 172-181, DOI:10.1002/jrs.6273. [PDF]

2021

• Hubbard T, Dudgeon A, Ferguson D, Shore A, Stone N. (2021) P100. High wavenumber Raman spectroscopy tissue differentiation for intraoperative margin analysis, European Journal of Surgical Oncology, volume 47, no. 5, DOI:10.1016/j.ejso.2021.03.104.
• Hubbard TJE, Dudgeon AP, Ferguson DJ, Shore AC, Stone N. (2021) Utilization of Raman spectroscopy to identify breast cancer from the water content in surgical samples containing blue dye, Translational Biophotonics, volume 3, no. 2, DOI:10.1002/tbio.202000023. [PDF]

2018

• Pahlow S, Weber K, Popp J, Wood BR, Kochan K, Rüther A, Perez-Guaita D, Heraud P, Stone N, Dudgeon A. (2018) Application of Vibrational Spectroscopy and Imaging to Point-of-Care Medicine: A Review, Appl Spectrosc, volume 72, no. 1_suppl, pages 52-84, DOI:10.1177/0003702818791939. [PDF]

2016

• Fullwood LM, Iping Petterson IE, Dudgeon AP, Lloyd GR, Kendall C, Hall C, Day JCC, Stone N. (2016) Evaluation of a multi-fibre needle Raman probe for tissue analysis, Progress in Biomedical Optics and Imaging - Proceedings of SPIE, volume 9704, DOI:10.1117/12.2230005.

2013

• Woods DA, Dudgeon AP, Bain CD. (2013) Total internal reflection Raman spectroscopy of organic films at solid-water interfaces, ABSTRACTS OF PAPERS OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY, volume 245. [PDF]

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