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APEX (Altitude Physiology Expeditions) is a registered charity, founded in 2001, by medical students at the University of Edinburgh with the aim to conduct high altitude medical research expeditions the with objective of gaining insight on the effects of hypoxia on human physiology.

Since 2001, APEX has successfully run 6 expeditions to South America - most recently APEX 6 in June/July 2022, with APEX 7 currently being planned.

Our expeditions are renowned for their high-quality, student-led research output and development of clinical academics. Previous APEX organising members and volunteers have gone on to become world-class researchers at a rate surpassing the specialist foundation program.

APEX 1 & 2

APEX 1 took place in March/April 2001 and was the first of the APEX expeditions, led by Kenneth Baillie with support from Roger Thomson, Matt Bates, Ali Simpson, Martin Schnopp, and Roland Partridge. The APEX 1 expedition went to the remote high-altitude laboratory at Chacaltaya (5200m).

APEX 1 explored numerous aspects of high-altitude physiology, including respiratory and cardiovascular function testing, as well as cognitive performance assessment.

APEX 1 was the feature of a feature-length documentary, entitled "Mountain Madness" shown on BBC1. You can watch the full documentary here.

The next expedition, APEX 2, took place from August to September 2003. The APEX 2 took a slightly different format to APEX 1, this time conducting 5 serial expeditions, each with around 22 expedition members. The organising team for APEX 2 was as follows:

Expedition Leader: Roger Thompson
Deputy Leader: Alistair Simpson
Research Coordinator: Kenneth Baillie
Team 1 Leader: Ian MacCormick
Team 2 Leader: Sorrel Cosens
Team 3 Leader: Nina Rzechorzek
Team 4 Leader: David Hope-Jones
Team 5 Leader: Alex Phythian-Adams

You can find a report from the APEX 2 expedition here.

APEX 3

The Affymetrix APEX 3 expedition took place in June 2011, taking 7 organisers, 21 volunteers, an expedition doctor, and an ultrasonographer back to Chacaltaya laboratory (5200m).

The organising committee for APEX 3 comprised of:

Expedition Leader Andrew Beck
James Barclay
Hannah Dunton
Rachel Ellis
Stuart Gallacher
Chris Pennington
Mark Williams

The APEX 3 expedition continued to explore under-researched areas of medicine, including the response of circulating white blood cells to hypobaric hypoxia, imaging changes to the lungs and heart under high-altitude conditions and more!

APEX 4

The next research expedition, APEX 4, took place in June 2014. APEX 4 took 28 University of Edinburgh students, 5 organising committee, 1 PHD student, and 2 expedition doctors to Chacaltaya research laboratory, a venue quickly becoming home away from home for the APEX expeditions!

The organising committee for APEX 4 comprised of:

Expedition Leader Shona Main
Research and Publicity Officer Calum Stannett
Research and Fundraising Officer Ally Rocke
Safety and Logistics Coordinator Sandy Jackson
Treasurer Georgie Barber

A brief clip from Radio Forth news can be found here.

APEX 5

APEX 5 took place in June 2017, taking 34 University of Edinburgh students on the trip of a lifetime, across the world to Bolivia! Due to difficulty accessing the Chacaltaya laboratory, the APEX 5 venue was relocated and took place nearby, at the Huayna Potosi Basecamp (4800m). Huayna Potosi basecamp would soon become the favourite for APEX expeditions, and is still used by APEX expeditions to this day!

The APEX 5 expedition was organised by the following:

Expedition Leader Christopher Graham
Research Coordinator Gordon Paterson
Research Coordinator Jason Young
Logistics Coordinator Greig Torpey
Volunteer Coordinator Ellie Lee
Fundraising Coordinator Becky Dru

APEX 6 explored the effects of hypoxia on six main research themes:

Neutrophil gene expression and survival
Platelet Reactivity
Globular macular function
Cognitive function via saccadic eye reflexes
Eye fundus
Expression quantitative trait loci on gene expression

APEX 6

Due to the disruption caused by the COVID-19 Global Pandemic, the APEX 6 expedition was twice postponed, finally taking place in June/July 2022. APEX 6 took 32 University of Edinburgh volunteers, 4 organising committee, and 2 expedition doctors to Huayna Potosi Basecamp (4800m)

Research on the APEX 6 expedition aimed to build on previous APEX projects as well as exploring new research areas including circadian rhythms at altitude, dark adaptation at altitude, the menstrual cycle at altitude, and lung oxygenation at altitude.

The APEX 6 expedition was organised by:

Expedition Leader Oliver Vick
Head of Research and Funding Alastair Woodhead
Head of Volunteers and Communications Suzanne Green
Head of Events and Sponsorship Isla Petrie

APEX 7 and the Future...

Following on from the legacy of previous APEX expeditions, the APEX 7 expedition is set to take place in June/July 2025. APEX 7 will build on previous, decades-long, research projects as well as exploring a number of new research areas.

APEX 7 is set to be the largest APEX expedition to date, taking a team of 100 simultaneously to Huayna Potosi Basecamp (4800m), enhancing the power and impact of our studies.

The APEX 7 expedition is being organised by:

Expedition Leader - Cameron Norton

Expedition Leader - David Geddes

Head of Research - Anya Tan

Head of Funding, Grants, and Sponsorship - Ben Harrison

Head of Funding, Grants, and Sponsorship - Camille Maezelle

Head of Volunteers and Publicity - Ella Andrea

Head of Volunteers and Publicity - Ella McElnea

Head of Communications - Colette Revadillo