Nestling in the foothills of the Ridgeway in Chilton, south Oxfordshire, Diamond Light Source is the UK’s national synchrotron facility. The shiny silver doughnut-shaped structure you glimpse as you head south down the A34 towards Newbury houses a high-tech machine called a synchrotron that accelerates electrons to just under the speed of light to create intense X-ray, ultraviolet and infrared beams.

These beams then enable scientists to study the world around us at the atomic and molecular scale.

With applications in virtually all fields of science, from the natural world to medicine, engineering and cultural heritage, Diamond is available for use by researchers from around the world.

The intense light generated is directed into a series of laboratories called beamlines, where it is used to probe deep inside the structure of solids, liquids or gases.

Funded 86 per cent by the Government through the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) and 14 per cent by the Wellcome Trust — the world’s largest biomedical charity— Diamond does not exist to make a profit, but rather to play its part in the advancement of knowledge and to position the UK at the forefront of scientific research.

The majority of the researchers who use the Diamond synchrotron are from academia, but ten per cent of its experimental time is available for use by industry.

Diamond welcomed its first industrial researchers in August 2008, when scientists from US-based global biotechnology company Vertex Pharmaceuticals collected their first set of data.

With a UK office in Milton Park, Vertex is well-positioned to use Diamond to advance its research programmes for the treatment of serious diseases.

By exploiting the facility’s extremely intense X-rays, Vertex scientists can investigate the atomic details of how drugs bind to proteins involved in human diseases.

These types of structural studies have become a cornerstone for the understanding of biological processes, and an invaluable element of modern medical research, leading to more rational design of therapeutic agents.

Dr Graham Cheetham, a research fellow at Vertex, is a regular user of Diamond.

He said: “Diamond’s synchrotron brings a novel tool for advancing our capabilities. To conduct cutting-edge science you need cutting-edge tools, and Diamond is a centre of excellence when it comes to its equipment and scientists.”

The exceptional quality and intensity of light produced at the facility enables scientists to generate data faster than ever before, speeding up the drug discovery process and allowing even the most complex drug targets to be tackled.

Evotec, also based at Milton Park, uses Diamond to help progress its alliances and research into pain relief and serious illnesses, such as Alzheimer’s disease.

But the relationship between the two organisations goes further than research and development. With support from Evotec, Diamond is in the process of creating the world’s largest diffraction pattern — a science and art initiative which seeks to involve more than 5,000 people.

This project provides a platform to explain a scientific concept to the public in an engaging and imaginative way.

Diffraction patterns are obtained by biomedical researchers during their experiments at Diamond, and lead to a 3D representation of the structure of a specific biological target, which can then be used to help design cures for specific diseases.

The world’s largest diffraction pattern is gathering thousands of cross stitches, ultimately depicting an enzyme called serine racemase — an important target in the fight against pain and neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease.

As part of Evotec’s ongoing use of Diamond, it is one of the first ever diffraction patterns collected for this specific biological target.

Dr John Barker, group leader of X-ray crystallography at Evotec, and his team achieved the featured diffraction pattern during beamtime at Diamond.

He said: “The information we gain from these diffraction patterns is vital to the progression of our studies.

“It is fantastic that part of our research is being used to create a unique work of art, while at the same time widening access to science.”

With 13 beamlines currently in operation and five more due to open for commissioning this year, Diamond’s portfolio of research is expanding, along with its industrial research opportunities.

Gerd Materlik, chief executive at Diamond, said: “Synchrotrons are well established as valuable aids to industrial research in many areas, from structural biology through to engineering.

“Diamond has a wide range of applications and is an essential tool to numerous fields of scientific research. This gives many companies the opportunity to benefit from using the outstanding tools and expertise that we have at this cutting-edge facility.”

o Contact: 01235 778000 Web: www.diamond.ac.uk o This page is compiled by Science Oxford: www.scienceoxford.com