Dr. Anastasios Koulaouzidis is Associate Specialist in the Centre of Liver & Digestive Disorders in the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, clinical lead of the capsule endoscopy service, and Honorary Clinical Fellow of School of Clinical Sciences, the University of Edinburgh. He obtained his MD from the Medical School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Greece), in 1995 and his Doctorate in Medicine (DM) from the University of Edinburgh (2014) with the title "Optimising the use of capsule endoscopy in the detection of small-bowel pathology". He currently works towards his Doctorate in Philosophy (on innovative aspects of capsule endoscopy) at the university of Lund, Sweden. Dr Koulaouzidis became a Member of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (UK) in 2004 and ascended to the Fellowship of the same College in 2013. He is also a Fellow of the European Board of Gastroenterology (2009), the Royal Society for Public Health (2013) & the American College of Gastroenterology (2015). He is the co-author of three book chapters and more than 100 PubMed-listed publications, out of which at least 45 are in capsule endoscopy (clinical and development field). His research interests include clinical applications of capsule endoscopy, quality improvement and software diagnostics as well as hardware and concept development in capsule endoscopy. Other specialty interests include anaemia and soluble transferrin receptors, faecal calprotectin, microscopic colitis, and conventional small-bowel endoscopy/enteroscopy. He is member of the editorial and/or advisory board of several specialty journals and associate editor or Editor-in-Chief of at least 3 Gastroenterology/Hepatology journals. Dr Koulaouzidis was awarded the Given®Imaging-ESGE Research grant 2011, an innovation Initiative-University of Edinburgh grants in 2011 and one of the ESGE postgraduate visiting Fellow grants (2010). His full profile is available via the following site: www.drkoulaouzidis.com.
Beneficiary 6

The University of Edinburgh is one of the largest and most successful universities in the UK with an international reputation as a centre of academic excellence. Its international character is reflected in its student population, which comprises of 2.000 European students and 3.442 International students (out of a total population of around 24.500 students) from over 120 different countries worldwide. It can also be found in its truly international staff and in its joint research and other links with overseas universities, institutes, companies and governments.
The University is the leading research university in Scotland and is amongst the top ten in the United Kingdom. Almost all members of staff at the university are research active. Following the announcement of the results of the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise some 63% of the University’s research activity is in the highest categories (4* and 3*), of which one third is recognised as “world-leading”. A total of 1.684 individuals, more than 90% of the institution’s academic staff, saw their research assessed across 39 subject areas. The results place the University in the top 5 in the UK and number one in Scotland by volume of 4* “world-leading” research. The University is home to 37% of Scotland’s 4* research.
It is the University's stated aim that it wishes as far as possible to conduct its research and development activities on a trans-national basis. The pooling of research expertise, equipment and database resources contributes to major advances in science, technology and medicine.
University of Edinburgh is working with Lothian Health Board (LHB) as a linked third party. Offering experience and medical expertise and facilities for the ex-vivo, in-vivo animal studies together with the other 2 partners, i.e. The Skane University Hospital and the Hôpital Lariboisière, 2 rue Ambroise Paré Paris.
Main responsibilities within Endoo, from a medical point of view, are the following: i) setting-up experimental protocols and tests together with OVE and UNITO; ii) preparing test protocols and performing phantom tests in series; iii) medical validation of the platform by defining and preparing ex-vivo tests (e.g., contributing to the comparison study of the Endoo platform with standard colonoscopy); iv) performing dependability studies and training / education on the Endoo platform; v) preparing the clinical protocol and documents for ethical committee; and vi) contributing to risk assessment, dissemination and intellectual proprieties definition.
On a European level, traditionally the University has been very successful in participating in European Framework Programmes. The success continued during the Sixth Framework Programme with the University collaborating in some 190 projects, total award value of approximately €74M, and in the Seventh Framework Programme the University participates in some 398 projects with an award value of €222m. This includes a large number of FP7 multi partner collaborative projects where the University takes a lead role as Project Co-ordinator. This also includes 115 Marie Curie Awards of which we are partner in 26 ITNs and lead 5.
People
Prof. John Tallach Murchison MBChB, BSc, DMRD, FRCR, FRCP, PhD is a Consultant Radiologist at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and Honorary Professor in Edinburgh University Medical School He took up his post as a Consultant radiologist at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary in January 1994. with the remit of supporting the Hospital GI service and developing CT scanning service. He previously provided radiology support for the Hospital Upper GI and Hospital Colorectal Multidisciplinary Group Meetings. Professor Murchison started a CT colonography service at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary in 1997 and developed the service as CT technology improved. Although he has maintained an interest in GI imaging, particularly of the small and large bowel, his main interests now lie in respiratory imaging and CT scanning. Within chest radiology he has particular interests in thromboembolic disease, emphysema, interstitial lung disease, lung cancer and bronchiectasis. He runs the respiratory radiology weekly meeting, and is the radiology lead for the weekly lung cancer multidisciplinary team .Professor Murchison is the lead radiologist for the Hospital Interstitial Lung Disease Multidisciplinary Team, a member of the East of Scotland Interstitial Lung Disease Group and a member of the Scottish Interstial Lung Disease (ScILD) Group and is a founding member of the above four groups. He is also the radiology representative on the South of Scotland Cancer Network (SCAN) Lung Cancer Group. Prof. Murchison has authored/ co-authored around 80 papers, one book and several book chapters. He is a member of two editorial boards and has reviewed papers for multiple journals. He was awarded a PhD by publication on the topic ‘New Insights into the Natural History of thrombo-embolic Disease provided by imaging and Disease Quantification’ by Edinburgh University. As Royal College of Radiologists Roentgen Professor 2012 he visited radiology training schemes around the UK promoting radiology research. He was an Examiner for the RCR and was Senior FRCR 2B Examiner and Chair of FRCR SBA panel in 2011. He has also acted as the external examiner for the Sri Lankan Radiology Exam Board on several occasions. He has served as a National Panellist and on several SIGN guideline committees and was Treasurer for the Scottish Radiological Society 2010-15.
Prof. Peter Clive Hayes is Professor of Hepatology and Honorary Consultant Gastroenterologist, the Scottish Liver Transplant Unit and the GI & Liver Unit Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh. He is also Head of Division of Health Sciences Chairman of Phase I/FIH Study Review Committee and Co-Director Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Facility. He is considered international authority in portal hypertension and – for years – an active advocate for innovative GI endoscopy. Prof. Hayes received his BSc in 1977, and Doctorate in Medicine in 1986. He then went on to become Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (same year he obtained his Phd). Prof Hayes has received multiple grants from the European Union & the Wellcome trust in between them, the 2012- 2015 Development of a bio-artificial liver therapy in acute liver failure grant (EU FP7) and the 2011-2014 Wellcome Trust/Scottish Translational Medicine and Therapeutics Initiative grant on Relaxin as a therapeutic haemodynamic modulator in liver disease. He has more than 300 PubMed listed publications, countless lectures and a citation index of 40.