Lay summaries
These examples give guidance about the sort
of language to use and the level of simplicity we’d like you to aim
for when summarising your work for lay summaries.
In the description of your study please include:
- Brief background/context
- Aim of study
- How you will go about the
research
- The information the research will
provide.
Study A
How your scientific text might look
Previous work has shown that pulmonary arterial vascular smooth
muscle cells (VSMCs) exhibit cytoskeletal variation. We hypothesise
that these translate into VSMC phenotypic differences in
contractile properties.
How it might be simplified
We have seen that muscle cells from lung artery walls differ
from each other in their ‘cytoskeleton’ – their structural
scaffolding. We believe that these cells have distinct and
important individual functions and behaviour.
Study B
How your scientific text might look
Blood macrophages play a crucial role in atherosclerosis due to
scavenging oxidised LDL. CD36 receptors bind and internalise OxLDL.
We will use whole genome microarrays to evaluate the
transcriptional profile of macrophages after stimulation of CD36
with OxLDL.
How it might be simplified
White blood cells known as macrophages are important in the
process of fatty build-up in the artery wall - atherosclerosis. A
specialized protein receptor, CD36, on the macrophage surface
sticks to ‘bad’ (LDL) cholesterol and brings the fatty deposit into
the cell. Using ‘gene chip’ technology, we will study the changes
that occur inside macrophages when CD36 recognises and interacts
with cholesterol.
Study C
How your scientific text might look
In patients with non-obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
whose symptoms are refractory to standard drug therapy, there are
no therapeutic options… We will randomise 50 patients with
medically refractory non-obstructive HCM to drug X or placebo for
six months. The primary end-point of the study will be peak oxygen
consumption.
How it might be simplified
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a relatively common
inherited heart muscle disease. Many patients experience symptoms
of breathlessness, fatigue and chest pain. These symptoms are not
always controlled with current therapies. We will test whether drug
X improves the ability to exercise in patients with HCM, compared
to placebo.