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Health - 12:08

The key to understanding asthma may lie in our body clock
Our body clock allows bodily processes to occur at certain times of the day, like eating, sleeping and body temperature. But did you know that monitoring a person's body clock (or circadian rhythm) could help diagnose and treat asthma? New research supported by Asthma UK, a charity which provides health advice and a helpline to people with asthma as well as funding research into the condition, has revealed that asthma is "highly rhythmic", meaning it is impacted by a person's body clock.

Health - 11:07

Blood flow simulations may improve the monitoring of atrial fibrillation
A team of physicians and researchers from UPF and from the hospitals Santa Creu i Sant Pau and Clínic de Barcelona, shows that the use of this innovative technique can help patients suffering from this disease not to develop thrombotic episodes Atrial fibrillation (AF) is one of the most common arrhythmias, especially among the elderly, occurring in the left atrium.

Health - Life Sciences - 19.10.2021

New values for better diagnoses
MHH study develops reference tool for blood tests Lymphocytes belong to the white blood cells. They consist of several subgroups with different tasks in immune defence. Which and how many lymphocytes are in the blood provides information about our current state of health as well as congenital or acquired immune deficiencies.

Health - Pharmacology - 19.10.2021

Cell fitness used to determine outcomes in COVID patients
Cell fitness has been identified as a way of predicting health outcomes in COVID patients, according to a University of Queensland study. The study investigated a cellular fitness marker, known as hfwe-Lose, to identify sub-optimal cells in patients who had been hospitalised or died from COVID at the start of the pandemic.

Life Sciences - Health - 19.10.2021

DNA tangles can help predict evolution of mutations
Researchers from the Milner Centre for Evolution have identified evolutionary hotspots in DNA where mutations are more likely. Last updated on Tuesday 19 October 2021 Tangles in unwound DNA can create mutational hotspots in the genomes of bacteria, according to a new study by the Milner Centre for Evolution at the University of Bath.

Health - Life Sciences - 18.10.2021

The human immune system is an early riser
Swiss and German scientists show that activation of the immune system oscillates throughout the day, with a peak just before the start of the day. Circadian clocks, which regulate most of the physiological processes of living beings over a rhythm of about 24 hours, are one of the most fundamental biological mechanisms.

Life Sciences - Health - 18.10.2021

New active agent against parasites
Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI have identified a chemical compound that may be suitable as an active agent against several different unicellular parasites. Among these are the pathogens that cause malaria and toxoplasmosis. The point of attack for this promising substance is the protein tubulin: It helps cells divide and therefore is essential for the multiplication of the parasites.

Health - 18.10.2021

Wastewater testing takes flight in the fight against COVID-19
Researchers from The University of Queensland and Australia's national science agency CSIRO have found SARS-CoV-2 virus in wastewater samples from long haul flights of returning Aussies, proving they can detect it before passengers show symptoms. The CSIRO and UQ scientists worked with Qantas to demonstrate that wastewater surveillance can provide valuable data for public health agencies and help improve confidence in Australia's safe reopening to the world.

Life Sciences - Health - 18.10.2021

So-called junk DNA plays critical role in mammalian development
Viral elements called transposons have invaded mammalian genomes for millions of years and currently make up nearly half the DNA in the genomes of all living mammals. The image depicts species-specific transposon integrations as unique events in the evolutionary history of each species. (UC Berkeley image by Kerry Lin) Nearly half of our DNA has been written off as junk, the discards of evolution: sidelined or broken genes, viruses that got stuck in our genome and were dismembered or silenced, none of it relevant to the human organism or human evolution.

Health - Life Sciences - 17.10.2021

How the microbiome affects human health, explained
The term "microbiome" is shorthand for the vast and still largely unexplored worlds of bacteria, viruses, fungi and other microorganisms that inhabit every corner of the planet. Bacteria form tiny ecosystems side by side with our own cells on our skin, in our mouths and along our airways and digestive tracts, as well as on all the surfaces we interact with-including our homes, workplaces, and hospitals, and the air, water, and soil.

Life Sciences - Health - 14.10.2021

A rapid mechanism for muscle self-repair independent of stem cells
Researchers led by Pura Muñoz-Cánoves, ICREA professor and principal investigator at UPF and the CNIC, describe a new mechanism for muscle repair after physiological damage relying on the rearrangement of muscle fibre nuclei, and independently of muscle stem cells. This protective mechanism paves the way to a broader understanding of muscle repair in physiology and disease.

Health - Life Sciences - 14.10.2021

Delhi outbreak highlights challenge of herd immunity in the face of Delta variant | University of Cambridge
The severe outbreak of COVID-19 in Delhi, India, in 2021 showed not only that the Delta variant of SARS-CoV2 is extremely transmissible but that it can infect individuals previously infected by a different variant of the coronavirus, say a team of international scientists writing in Science .

Health - Life Sciences - 14.10.2021

Severe Delhi outbreak highlights challenge of reaching herd immunity in face of Delta variant | University of Cambridge
The severe outbreak of COVID-19 in Delhi, India, in 2021 showed not only that the Delta variant of SARS-CoV2 is extremely transmissible but that it can infect individuals previously infected by a different variant of the coronavirus, say a team of international scientists writing in Science .

Health - 14.10.2021

Swissuniversities warns of a medicine and research ban
The adoption of the initiative for a ban on animal and human experimentation would prevent biomedical research and new medical treatments in particular. The high quality of healthcare and responsible research in Switzerland to the benefit of the population and the environment are at stake.

Health - Event - 14.10.2021

Research on detecting cancer in primary care wins RCGP Research Paper of the Year award
Dr Garth Funston and colleagues including professor Emma Crosbie from The University of Manchester have won the 2020 Research Paper of the Year for Clinical Research, awarded by the Royal College of General Practitioners, for their paper on detecting cancers in primary care. The research shows that CA125, a simple blood test available in primary care, is useful for ovarian cancer detection in symptomatic women attending their GP and could help identify other types of cancer.

Health - Pharmacology - 14.10.2021

Help for the weakened heart
MHH research team demonstrates how inflammatory cells improve the function of diseased heart muscle cells Heart failure or cardiac insufficiency is one of the most common causes of death in Germany and is caused by heart attacks, high blood pressure or heart valve defects. The heart is then no longer able to pump a sufficient amount of blood through the body and supply organs, muscles or other tissues with enough oxygen and nutrients.

Health - Environment - 14.10.2021

Pesticide linked to chronic kidney disease
A commonly available pesticide has been associated with an increased risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in a University of Queensland study. Researchers analysed links between pesticide exposure and the risk of kidney dysfunction in 41,847 people, using data from the USA National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

Health - Life Sciences - 14.10.2021

Lateral flow tests detect most people at risk of transmitting Covid-19
Lateral flow tests are more accurate than previously reported and cannot be compared directly to how PCR tests work, finds a new paper led by UCL researchers. The peer-reviewed paper, published today in Clinical Epidemiology, uses a new formula to show that lateral flow tests (LFTs) are likely more than 80% effective at detecting any level of Covid-19 infection and likely more than 90% effective at detecting those who are most infectious when using the test.

Chemistry - Health - 14.10.2021

Let there be Light: Photoinitiators for Dental Fillings, Contact Lenses and Dentures etc
Photoinitiators ensure that liquid plastic - for example for dental fillings - hardens quickly by means of light. Thanks to a new synthesis method developed by TU Graz, these initiators can be produced cheaply, something which will open up further doors for the technology. Anyone who has ever been in the dentist's chair with a hole in their tooth is probably familiar with the procedure.

Health - Pharmacology - 14.10.2021

Why Sydney’s COVID numbers didn’t get as bad as the modelling suggested
COVID-19 case numbers and hospitalisations in NSW are better than expected. Professor Jamie Triccas and Dr Megan Steain propose two key factors that could account for this: vaccine effectiveness and real-time protection. Last Monday, Sydney emerged from a lockdown of more than 100 days after reaching the milestone of having 70 percent of the over-16 population fully vaccinated.