news 2017

Using a molecule designed to overcome a roadblock formed by a common type of genetic flaw, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have made progress towards novel molecular treatments for Friedreich's ataxia - a rare but fatal disorder - in the laboratory dish and in animals. Friedreich's, like at least 40 other genetic diseases, is caused by stretches of repetitive DNA that prevent protein from forming correctly.

The lifespans of flies and worms are prolonged by limiting the activity of an enzyme common to all animals, finds a UCL-led study. The enzyme - RNA polymerase III (Pol III) - is present in most cells across all animal species, including humans. While it is known to be essential for making proteins and for cell growth, its involvement in ageing was unexplored until now.

Research news Key processes in the body are controlled by the concentration of calcium in and around cells. A team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and the Helmholtz Zentrum München have developed the first sensor molecule that is able to visualize calcium in living animals with the help of a radiation-free imaging technique known as optoacoustics.

Researchers from EPFL have developed a novel series of systems genetics tools to identify new links between genes and phenotypes. The work, a hallmark of EPFL's endeavors into the advancement of open science, brings biology to the cloud and sets the stage for the development of precision medicine. The study is published in Cell Systems.

In mammals, including humans, the cells that contract the heart muscle and enable it to beat do not regenerate after injury. After a heart attack, there is a dramatic loss of these heart muscle cells and those that survive cannot effectively replicate. With fewer of these contractile cells, known as cardiomyocytes, the heart pumps less blood with each beat, leading to the increased mortality associated with heart disease.

Making eye contact with an infant makes adults' and babies' brainwaves 'get in sync' with each other - which is likely to support communication and learning - according to researchers at the University of Cambridge.

A University of Bristol-led study has revealed new details about dinosaur feathers and enabled scientists to further refine what is potentially the most accurate depiction of any dinosaur species to date. Birds are the direct descendants of a group of feathered, carnivorous dinosaurs that, along with true birds, are referred to as paravians - examples of which include the infamous Velociraptor.

The ocean's deepest fish doesn't look like it could survive in harsh conditions thousands of feet below the surface. Instead of giant teeth and a menacing frame, the fishes that roam in the deepest parts of the ocean are small, translucent, bereft of scales - and highly adept at living where few other organisms can.

A team of scientists working at the University of Bristol have developed a new nanomapping microscope - powered by the laser and optics found in a typical DVD player. The new technology is being used to transform the way disease-causing genetic mutations are diagnosed and discovered. This microscope maps hundreds of chemically barcoded DNA molecules every second in a technique developed in collaboration with a team of US scientists led by Professor Jason Reed at Virginia Commonwealth University.

A new study by the Institute of Plant Sciences of the University of Bern and the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology shows how the Western corn rootworm puts the maize plants' defense strategies out of action. The results explain why biological control of the crop pest has not been efficient. The Western corn rootworm continues to be on the rise in Europe.

New King's College London research, published today in eLife , shows that adults born prematurely - who also suffered small brain injuries around the time of birth - have lower levels of dopamine in the brain. This chemical change has been linked to lack of motivation and enjoyment in normal life, and changes to attention and concentration, which could all be early signs of more serious mental health issues such as substance dependence and depression.

Research news How serious is the loss of species globally? Are material cycles in an ecosystem with few species changed? In order to find this out, the "Jena Experiment" was established in 2002, one of the largest biodiversity experiments worldwide. Professor Wolfgang Weisser from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) reports on two unexpected findings of the long-term study: Biodiversity influences almost half the processes in the ecosystem, and intensive grassland management does not result in higher yields than high biodiversity.

ERC Consolidator Grants for Physicist Stephanie Reich and Computer Scientist Frank Noé No 332/2017 from Nov 28, 2017 Researchers at Freie Universität Berlin have been awarded two prestigious grants from the European Research Council (ERC). Physicist Stephanie Reich and computer scientist Frank Noé won ERC Consolidator Grants, as the ERC announced on Tuesday in Brussels.

New research has estimated that each year five babies in every 1,000 born in England suffer a condition or sign linked to brain injury. The study, conducted by researchers at the Neonatal Data Analysis Unit at Imperial College London and Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust , analysed data on babies born between 2010 and 2015 to assess the number that may have sustained brain injury at or soon after birth.

UCLA bioengineers and their colleagues have discovered a new perspective on how cells regulate the sizes of mitochondria, the parts of cells that provide energy, by cutting them into smaller units. The researchers wrote that this finding, demonstrated with yeast proteins, could eventually be used to help address human diseases associated with an imbalanced regulation of mitochondria size — for example, Alzheimer's or Parkinson's diseases.

New research by McGill University biologists shows that milder winters have led to physical alterations in two species of mice in southern Quebec in the past 50 years - providing a textbook example of the consequences of climate change for small mammals. The findings also reveal a stark reversal in the proportions of the two mice populations present in the area, adding to evidence that warming temperatures are driving wildlife north.

New findings will help to identify the genetic causes of brain disorders: researchers at the Universities of Basel, Bonn and Cologne have presented a systematic catalog of specific variable locations in the genome that influence gene activity in the human hippocampus, as they report Communications. Individual differences in gene regulation contribute to the development of numerous multifactorial disorders.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A drug that spurs cancer cells to self-destruct has been cleared for use in a clinical trial of patients with anaplastic astrocytoma, a rare malignant brain tumor, and glioblastoma multiforme, an aggressive late-stage cancer of the brain. This phase Ib trial will determine if the experimental drug PAC-1 can be used safely in combination with a standard brain-cancer chemotherapy drug, temozolomide.

As part of the ongoing commitment to greater openness about animal research, the ten universities which conduct the most animal procedures have publicised their figures today, revealing that they collectively conducted a third of all UK animal research in 2016. All ten universities appear in the QS World University Ranking Top 100.

Researchers at Umeå University have made a novel discovery connecting genetic innate immunity deficiencies to rampant caries and increased risk of dental caries affecting about one in five children. The results could lead to a better way of identifying high-risk patients and treat their caries. The study has been published in the journal EBioMedicine .