What’s in It? Understanding Drug Safety and Risk

The illicit drug market is changing faster than ever, with new compounds constantly appearing and disappearing. In this talk, we explore how scientists try to keep up with an evolving drug landscape where the contents of a pill, powder, or vape are often far from what people expect. From mysterious new psychoactive substances to complex drug mixtures, researchers are working to identify unknown compounds and understand how they behave in the body. Join us to look inside the science of drug detection and explore why, when it comes to illicit drugs, the “ingredients list” is often anyone’s guess

Much of the R&D carried out in our universities and hospitals is truly ground‑breaking—tackling unmet medical and technical needs with everything from new drug targets and medical devices to advanced manufacturing materials, agricultural, AI, quantum technologies, and even ultra‑precise positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) systems for use in space and defence.

However, getting these discoveries from the lab bench into users' hands requires a very different skill set. It means navigating complex regulatory and industrial standards to ensure products are safe and effective, while also convincing investors of their value and securing the substantial funding needed to turn research into reality.

Paracetamol is one of the UK’s most used medicines: affordable, available and safe for treating pain and fever when taken at the recommended dose. Yet around 50,000 people, including children, are admitted to hospital each year after taking too much. Despite clear warnings and packaging regulations, accidental and intentional overdoses remain high. My talk explores why this happens and how we can communicate about medicine safety with the community. Why we take too much paracetamol, what happens when the dose becomes dangerous, and which organs are affected when the body can no longer cope.

Smoking was banned in Scottish prisons in 2018, and vapes were introduced as a harm-reduction alternative. But what happens when those vapes are tampered with to consume drugs? This talk presents findings from real casework at the Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science, where drug seizures from Scottish prisons are routinely analysed. From synthetic cannabinoids to benzodiazepines, the story of what is found reveals how the drug supply behind bars is constantly evolving, and why that matters for the health of everyone inside.