news 2022

Severe covid 19 disease is characterized by excessive immune and inflammatory processes in the body. Conversely, long covid syndrome is likely to have a strong anti-inflammatory immune status. Scientists have now found this out with extensive blood plasma analyses of vaccinated persons without subsequent disease, persons with completely survived covid 19 infection and long covid patients.

People sleep less in mid-adulthood than they do in early and late adulthood, finds a new study led by UCL, University of East Anglia and University of Lyon researchers. Sleep duration declines in early adulthood until age 33, and then picks up again at age 53, according to the findings published in Nature Communications .

Drugs used to treat critically ill COVID-19 patients in hospital have long-term benefits, according to new research. The study, published in JAMA , found that treating critically ill patients with the drugs tocilizumab and sarilumab reduced the risk of dying over six months by a quarter, compared to those who did not receive these treatments.

The COVID-19 pandemic may have left people living with obesity more vulnerable to the cost-of-living crisis, warns a study led by UCL researchers. Adults with obesity surveyed in the study reported that their mental health - which is known to be associated with weight gain - had deteriorated between the end of the UK's first COVID-19 lockdown in July 2020 and September 2021.

On the trail of the body's largest protein: WWU researchers prove the role of titin in muscle contraction Münster (mfm/mew) - The term "titin" will not mean much to most people - which is actually a pity. Because titin is the largest protein in the body. With its approximately 35,000 amino acids, the muscle protein is huge, but its significance is still poorly understood.

International research team describes bone cancer in a large amphibian species from southwestern Poland More than 215 million years ago, a large amphibian species lived in floodplains in southwestern Poland: Metoposaurus krasiejowensis. On one of these fossils, Polish and American scientists, with the participation of researchers from the University of Bonn, detected bone cancer for the first time.

Researchers at the University of Sydney are embarking on an Australian first research trial into the use of psychedelics in combination with psychotherapy for the treatment of alcohol use disorder. The trial builds on a growing body of innovative research on psychedelic medications for substance use disorders supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council, Medical Research Future Fund and pharmaceutical industry partners.

Studies on diseases that affect the human brain are usually based on animal models which cannot reproduce the complexity of human neuropathies. Therefore, these methodologies often fail when applied in a clinical environment with patients. In this context, the findings of the cellular reprogramming techniques to generate cultures of human neurons using skin cells have revolutionised the study and development of innovative therapies in neurosciences.

A research team at the University of Lausanne has succeeded in preserving the memory of Alzheimer's mice by boosting the metabolic functions of glial cells rather than neurons, a striking shift in treatment strategies. The results can be found in the journal "Glia". Alzheimer's disease progressively affects the memory until the loss of autonomy of individuals.

Senescent cells, which emerge after tissue injury, create an aged-like inflamed microenvironment that is negative for stem cell function and tissue repair. The finding provides a basis for mitigating the loss of muscle regenerative capacity in elderly people and for improving muscle repair in young healthy people.

A newly developed rapid test needs only a few seconds to reliably detect pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2. It is based on specially designed magnetic nanoparticles. The current rapid tests for diagnosing infectious diseases are speedy, but not really fast. For example, antigen self-tests, PCR tests or ELISA tests for coronavirus take 15 minutes to several hours before a reliable result is available.

A new study by various Swiss universities shows that aerosols in indoor air can vary in acidity. This acidity determines how long viruses remain infectious in the air - with profound implications for virus transmission and strategies to contain it. Viruses such as SARS-CoV-2, influenza virus and others travel from person to person essentially by hitchhiking on aerosols.

Study by the Universities of Bonn and Heidelberg provides insights into a carefully choreographed dance Nerve cells need a lot of energy and oxygen. They receive both through the blood. This is why nerve tissue is usually crisscrossed by a large number of blood vessels. But what prevents neurons and vascular cells from getting in each other's way as they grow? Researchers at the Universities of Heidelberg and Bonn, together with international partners, have identified a mechanism that takes care of this.

Research finds chronic adolescent cannabis exposure may harm emotional and cognitive brain development through impact on separate brain regions   Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry researchers have shown that chronic exposure during adolescence to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive component of cannabis, may induce long-lasting memory impairments and increased anxiety levels.

University of Waterloo  researchers are developing a new patch that would offer diabetics an affordable, accurate, pain-free, round-the-clock alternative to traditional tests that require pricking a finger for a blood sample every few hours. University of Waterloo  researchers are developing a new patch that would offer diabetics an affordable, accurate, pain-free, round-the-clock alternative to traditional tests that require pricking a finger for a blood sample every few hours.

An interdisciplinary team led by University of Manchester scientists has adapted a technique originally developed to analyse data from stars to devise a way of accurately measuring the human body clock in hospital patients. The development of the method called ClinCirc could one day help doctors to target patients at risk of long term health problems caused by clock disruption, which is thought to be common in patients admitted to hospital.

Rectal artesunate, a promising antimalarial drug, has no beneficial effect on the survival of young children with severe malaria when used as an emergency treatment in resource-constrained settings. These are the results of a large-scale study conducted by the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute and local partners in three African countries.

Scientists at the CRCHUM find that a bacterium called Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus HA-114 prevents neurodegeneration in the C. elegans worm used to study amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. CONTENU - A probiotic bacterium called Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus HA-114 prevents neurodegeneration in the C. elegans worm , an animal model used to study amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

A large-scale study by the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) and partners has found that rectal artesunate (RAS) has no beneficial effect on the survival of young children with severe malaria when used as an emergency treatment in resource-constrained settings. The study, which took place under real-world conditions in three African countries, concludes that the use of RAS is unlikely to reduce malaria deaths unless underlying health system weaknesses are addressed.

2022 was another bumper year for news from the Faculty of Biology, Medicine and health. Here are some of our highlights: January we showed how early data for multivariant COVID-19 vaccine booster shows promise. The first results of an early trial of a multivariant COVID-19 vaccine booster, launched in Manchester in September 2021, showed it is driving a comprehensive immune response.