news

Findings from a trial comparing the real-world effectiveness of asthma inhalers could reshape how children with asthma are treated. In the first randomised controlled trial to investigate the use of a 2-in-1 inhaler as the sole reliever therapy for children aged 5 to 15, an international team found the combined treatment to be more effective than salbutamol, the current standard for asthma symptom relief in children, with no additional safety concerns.

A new study combining archaeological and genetic research offers fresh insights into social organisation and population dynamics in the Late Bronze Age (approximately 1500 to 1000 BCE). Conducted by an international team of researchers-including scholars from the Leibniz-Zentrum für Archäologie (LEIZA) in Mainz and the University of Bonn, both in Germany-the study focuses on burial practices in Mongolia.

The yeast fungus Candida albicans not only uses the toxin candidalysin to cause infections, but also to colonize the oral mucosa inconspicuously-but only in finely balanced amounts. Too little toxin prevents oral colonization, too much triggers the immune system and leads to an inflammatory defense reaction, as an international research team from Zurich, Jena, and Paris discovered.

Discrimination How can we get the majority to recognise the discrimination experienced by minorities? A new study examines this question. The results show that both cold facts and warm stories can change perceptions - but in different ways. Researchers from the University of Copenhagen and Aarhus University have investigated how to raise awareness of discrimination.

Max Planck chemists develop novel substance with unique inhibition mode targeting the unfolded protein response highjacked by cancer cells Cancer cells: A novel substance disrupts stress management in cancer cells. This substance targets the protein IRE1, which is crucial for the survival of cancer cells.

Earth scientists from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Lanzhou University in China have uncovered an ancient archive of floods in the floodplains of the River Meuse. Drill cores taken from old, abandoned river channels show that flooding of the Meuse does not occur randomly, but has followed certain climate-driven patterns for thousands of years.

Being racially or ethnically discriminated against may increase the risk of later developing psychotic symptoms, finds a major review of international evidence led by UCL researchers. The authors of the new umbrella review, published in PLOS Mental Health , found consistent evidence from numerous studies that racial and ethnic discrimination appears to contribute to the development of psychosis.

The discovery opens up new perspectives for the study of exchange networks in the Mediterranean during the Copper Age. Archeology Researchers at the Prehistoric Studies and Research Seminar (SERP) of the University of Barcelona have identified the oldest piece made of hippopotamus ivory in the Iberian Peninsula.

Research team investigates farmers' willingness to implement options to protect grazing animals on pasture Wolves had long been extinct in parts of Central Europe. Thanks to strict regulations to protect species, in recent decades they have become more widespread again. This brings new challenges: in many areas, protecting farm livestock is essential to prevent animals such as sheep, goats and cattle from being killed by hungry wolves.

It is highly likely that the female menstrual cycle was originally synchronized with the lunar cycle. This has changed significantly with the rise of artificial light and smartphones, as a new study by the University of Würzburg shows. There is no question that the moon has a significant influence on Earth.

Hydrogen damages steels. High-strength steels, particularly those used to construct bridges, high-rise buildings and oil and gas infrastructure, are susceptible to embrittlement caused by atomic hydrogen coming from the environment. The complex mechanisms behind this are not yet fully understood. Native oxide films on steel can act as barriers to block hydrogen from entering the steel workpiece.

Global study reveals why some animals shine bright and others disappear in plain sight Conspicuous or camouflaged: Animals use conspicuous colours or camouflage to protect themselves from predators. A new study examines the factors that influence these decisions. Influence of the environment: The predator community and habitat influence whether camouflage or warning colours are more successful.

Researchers at ETH Zurich have been able to measure - for the first time - how the amount of dissolved organic carbon in the sea has changed over geological time. The results reveal that our explanations of how the ice ages and complex life forms came about are incomplete. Earth scientists often face huge challenges when researching the earth's history: many significant events occurred such a long time ago that there is little direct evidence available.

The coiled structure of the umbilical cord - the vital link between a baby and its mother during pregnancy - plays an important role in helping to keep babies healthy in the womb, according to new research led by The University of Manchester. Working with colleagues at Manchester St Mary's Hospital and the University of Malaysia , the researchers used mathematical modelling to understand how the cord's unique twisted shape affects the way oxygen, nutrients and heat are exchanged before birth.

A German-Austrian team led by Friedrich Schiller University Jena and Leibniz-HKI has been able to biochemically demonstrate for the first time that different types of mushrooms produce the same mind-altering active substance, psilocybin, in different ways. Both Psilocybe mushrooms and fiber cap mushrooms of the genus Inocybe produce this substance, but use completely different enzymes and reaction sequences for this process.

Researchers from Friedrich Miescher Institute have uncovered how the freshwater polyp Hydra decides whether a cell becomes part of its stinging tentacles or its anchoring foot, shedding light on some of the fundamental rules of body patterning - or how cells organize into distinct tissues. Body patterning is fundamental to development, and Hydra - with its simple tube-like body, stinging tentacles and anchoring foot - offers a clear view of this process.

Astrocytes are found throughout the brain. Each astrocyte is in contact with several neurons and more than 100'000 synapses. A new study shows that, at the microscopic level, dozens of synapses from distinct neural circuits gather around a single specialized astrocyte structure called a leaflet, which is capable of detecting and integrating the activities of multiple synapses.

A collaborative French-Swiss study reveals a previously unknown role for astrocytes in the brain's information processing. A collaborative study between the Universities of Lausanne (UNIL) and Geneva (UNIGE), the Grenoble Institute of Neuroscience (GIN) and the Wyss Centre for Bio and Neuroengineering reveals a previously unknown role for astrocytes in the brain's processing of information.

Waterloo study shows routine blood samples may give doctors early insights into injury severity and patient survival after spinal cord damage    Routine blood samples, such as those taken daily at any hospital and tracked over time, could help predict the severity of an injury and even provide insights into mortality after spinal cord damage, according to a recent University of Waterloo study.

An international team of researchers, including Western's Gordon Osinski, discovered and successfully dated - for the first time ever - the birth of microorganisms in a meteorite crater, confirming that life established itself millions of years after the space rock's initial impact with Earth. The discovery, which supports the theory that meteorite impacts can create habitable environments on Earth and other planetary bodies, was made in the 78-million-year-old Lappajärvi impact crater in Finland.