news 2013

Review showcases Sussex research The University's Research Review for 2013 - Excellence and Impact - has been published, showcasing some of Sussex's latest research findings and applications. The research activity covered this year includes neuroscience, energy policy, DNA replication and genetic stability, digital media and internet policy, consciousness and adoption research and practice.

A new Cochrane review led by King's College London has found that providing home palliative care doubles the odds that someone with a terminal illness can die at home if they want to, and leads to better control of their symptoms. Based on this evidence the researchers are calling for the development of specialist home palliative care services to be included in national healthcare strategies, to ensure people who wish to die at home receive the best possible care.

Prolonged use of some widely used painkillers increases the risk of heart attacks by a small but significant amount, a large international study led by Oxford University researchers has found. Professor Colin Baigent of Oxford's Clinical Trial Service Unit led the research on a class of painkillers called non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

Hernia surgery may offer good value for money and improved quality of life for patients, according to a new analysis. The government wants the NHS to make £20 billion worth of efficiency savings by 2015 and it has been suggested that money could be saved by performing fewer hernia operations. In a briefing by the Audit Commission in 2011, inguinal hernia repair surgery was included on a list of "low clinical value" treatments.

Government policies that boost the amount of home ownership in a country are likely to inflict severe damage on the labour market, new research from the University of Warwick suggests. Professor Andrew Oswald from the University of Warwick and Professor David ("Danny") Blanchflower from Dartmouth College examine a century of unemployment and home-ownership data for the states of the USA from 1900 to 2010.

Mephedrone bolsters illegal drug use Experienced clubbers are more likely to add the former 'legal high' mephedrone to their drug repertoires rather than use it to replace popular established club drugs such as ecstasy and cocaine, according to new research involving Durham University. Analysis of a survey from over 300 clubbers conducted just after the UK ban on mephedrone showed that clubbers will take ecstasy pills, cocaine and MDMA powder as well as mephedrone as part of their drug repertoires.

22 April 2013 University of Sydney researchers have discovered a new type of immune cell in skin that plays a role in fighting off parasitic invaders such as ticks, mites, and worms, and could be linked to eczema and allergic skin diseases. The team from the Immune Imaging and'T cell Laboratories at the University-affiliated Centenary Institute worked with colleagues from SA Pathology in Adelaide, the Malaghan Institute in Wellington, New Zealand and the USA.

UAlberta research shows prescribing stool softeners isn't effective in easing constipation for palliative-care patients. End-of-life patients typically struggle with constipation caused by the narcotics they are given to alleviate their pain, so doctors prescribe a stool softener called docusate twice a day to alleviate this uncomfortable problem.

The School of Social Sciences has secured significant new funding for research in the field of children's social care. This funding (more than £0.5M) comprises three research grants awarded to academics in the School. The first of these is a large, four nation project funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).

An experimental drug being investigated for the treatment of advanced breast cancer by researchers from the Revlon/UCLA Women's Cancer Research Program at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center this week received "breakthrough therapy" designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Cells from patients' blood could be developed as treatments for heart and circulatory diseases. Scientists have shed light on a common bleeding disorder by growing and analysing stem cells from patients' blood to discover the cause of the disease in individual patients. The technique may enable doctors to prescribe more effective treatments according to the defects identified in patients' cells.

A new international study has confirmed that self-testing for HIV is effective and could be the answer to controlling the global epidemic. This major systematic review, led by the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), shows HIV self-testing removes much of the fear and stigma associated with being tested for the disease.

Eight years ago, Dr. Diane Krause was one of only two scientists at the Yale School of Medicine whose work was specifically focused on stem cells. Today, more than 70 Yale faculty members are involved in some form of stem cell research, which since 2007 has been supported at Yale by more than $230 million in state and federal grants and funding foundations.

The Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police has said he will ensure his staff are treated fairly and that he will build a diverse workforce. Sir Peter Fahy has accepted the recommendations of a University of Manchester report, which found that ethnicity was a factor in internal misconduct and counter-corruption investigations involving police officers and staff.

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have shown that a new imaging dye, designed and developed at UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center, is an effective agent in detecting and mapping cancers that have reached the lymph nodes. The radioactive dye called Technetium Tc-99m tilmanocept, successfully identified cancerous lymph nodes and did a better job of marking cancers than the current standard dye.

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a chronic disease which affects around 0.8% of the population; and its causes are of great interest to the medical world. Research led by Ian Bruce, NIHR Senior Investigator and Professor of Rheumatology at The University of Manchester and consultant at Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, looked into the association between lifestyle factors and the risk of developing RA.

Plant cells communicate information about the time of day to their chloroplasts, the part of their cells that underpins all agricultural productivity on Earth, researchers at the University of Bristol have demonstrated in a study published today in Science. Plant cells contain an internal clock (the circadian clock), which is able to regulate cellular processes so that they occur at the optimal time of day, causing a big increase in plant productivity.

Research shows that intimate personal attributes can be predicted with high levels of accuracy from 'traces' left by seemingly innocuous digital behaviour, in this case Facebook Likes. Study raises important questions about personalised marketing and online privacy.

Species of seabirds could successfully return to their natural foraging habits following changes to European fisheries policies, scientists have suggested. The European Parliament recently voted to scrap the controversial discards policy, which has seen fishermen throwing thousands of edible fish and fish waste back into the sea because they have exceeded their quotas.

In Africa and Thailand, communities that worked together on HIV-prevention efforts saw not only a rise in HIV screening but a drop in new infections, according to a new study presented this week at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Atlanta.