News • Alternative to swab
COVID-19 infection detected in breath tests
Traces of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that causes COVID-19 can be detected in microscopically small fluid droplets exhaled during a very short time span.
News • Gamification
Is hyper-optimism good or bad for children?
Young children are more optimistic than adolescents, which stems from not learning enough from bad outcomes.
News • Prevention through infection
Vaccine against liver cancer and fibrosis shows promise
A new study offers hope against liver cancer: A vaccine proved to be safe and effective protection in premalignant and malignant liver diseases in preclinical mouse models.
News • Decrease in wellbeing
Covid-19 pandemic has devastating effect on mental health, study shows
The Covid pandemic might be responsible for a “substantial decrease” in mental wellbeing in the UK, according to new research from the University of East Anglia and University of York.
News • Reducing rejection and waiting times
Transplant organs with universal blood type on the horizon
A new study has proved that it is possible to convert blood type safely in donor organs intended for transplantation. This is an important step towards creating universal type O organs.
News • Coronavirus long term effects
Vaccination protects against long Covid, study shows
A new UK review shows that people who have had one or more doses of a coronavirus vaccine are less likely to develop long Covid than those who remain unvaccinated.
News • Neuropeptide research
Fluorescent biosensor to shed light on narcolepsy
Researchers in Zurich have developed a fluorescent orexin biosensor to observe on of the brain's signaling molecules "live" to gain insights into constant daytime sleepiness (narcolepsy).
News • Public transport
Down the tube: Is the Underground 'Covid safe'?
Is the Underground a safe means of transport in times of Covid-19? A computer simulation, developed at the University of Leeds, has calculated the infection risk.
News • COVID and E. coli
Futuristic coating for fabrics kills viruses
Researchers have developed an inexpensive, non-toxic coating for almost any fabric that decreases the infectivity of the virus that causes COVID-19 by up to 90 per cent.
News • New drivers and biomarkers
Cancer: Mapping mutation 'hotspots' reveals key players
Researchers have identified a previously unrecognized key player in cancer evolution: clusters of mutations occurring at certain regions of the genome.
News • Ultrasound
"Sonogenetics" researchers control mammalian cells with sound
Researchers pinpoint a sound-sensitive mammalian protein that lets them activate brain, heart or other cells with ultrasound.
News • Tissue regeneration
Repairing intestinal damage with 3D cell transplants
Researchers from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) develop a protocol to transplant 3D cellular structures that could regenerate damaged intestine.
News • Cancer treatment
Immunotherapy approach 'points' killer cells towards tumours
French researchers have found a way to facilitate access to tumours for killer lymphocytes, paving the way for more efficient immunotherapies against cancer.
News • Sealing the deal
Surgical 'duct tape' could be an alternative to suture
Engineers at MIT have developed a kind of surgical duct tape — a strong, flexible, and biocompatible sticky patch that can be applied to biological tissues and organs to help seal tears and wounds.
News • Hard to break down
Hepatitis E: Most common hand infectants no match for HEV
Scientists have investigated the effectiveness of various common hand disinfectants against hepatitis E. They were able to show that most formulations do not completely inactivate the virus.
News • Heart failure and organ fibrosis
RNA therapeutics: potential far beyond Covid-19
RNA has already been making an impact in the context of the vaccine program, but the potential of RNA-based compounds is far from being fully tapped, as RNA allows for entirely new therapeutic approaches.
News • Underrepresentation of women
Machine learning fixes gender bias in clinical trials
Researchers from Israel have developed a technology that rectifies the effects of underrepresentation of women in clinical trials using machine learning models.
News • Phantom sounds
Objective marker for tinnitus found in the brain
There has to date been no reliable objective method of diagnosing tinnitus. Now, Swedisch researchers may have found a way to measure changes in the brain associated with constant tinnitus.
News • Non-invasive indicator
3D-printed sensor 'sniffs' wound infection, changes colour
Scientists at Queen’s University Belfast have invented a tiny indicator that changes colour if a patient’s wound shows early signs of infection.
News • BRCA and prostate, pancreatic cancers
Faulty 'breast cancer gene' BRCA also dangerous for men
Faulty versions of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes are well known to increase the risk of breast and ovarian cancer. Now, they have been linked to several other cancers, including those that affect men.
News • Viral subtypes
Coronavirus evolution: 'Even Omicron has three variants'
Professor Richard Neher from the Biozentrum of the University of Basel is using his Nextstrain platform to investigate which variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus are currently circulating worldwide.
News • Coronavirus research
Why the Omicron variant causes less severe disease
A new study shows that the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant is less effective than Delta at blocking a cellular defence mechanism against viruses, the so-called 'interferon response'.
News • Brain study
Diagnosing neurological diseases before symptoms occur
Cleveland Clinic has launched a landmark study to better understand why millions of people around the world suffer from brain diseases, with the goal of pinpointing disease biomarkers early, well before clinical symptoms present themselves.
News • Bone healing
"Microrobots”: material morphs into bone
Researchers have developed a combination of materials that can morph into various shapes before hardening. The material is initially soft, but later hardens through a bone development process that uses the same materials found in the skeleton.
News • Multiple sclerosis
Epstein-Barr virus may be leading cause of MS
A connection between the Epstein-Barr virus and multiple sclerosis has long been suspected. A new study provides ‘compelling evidence of causality’.
