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Oxford scientists report exciting new insights into the structure and function of the brain using genetic information and detailed brain images from UK Biobank. The researchers took data from detailed MR images from 10,000 UK Biobank participants, which are freely available from the resource to researchers around the world, to examine thousands of different measurements of the brain.

A global shift towards healthy and more plant-based diets, halving food loss and waste, and improving farming practices and technologies are required to feed 10 billion people sustainably by 2050, a new study finds. Adopting these options reduces the risk of crossing global environmental limits related to climate change, the use of agricultural land, the extraction of freshwater resources, and the pollution of ecosystems through overapplication of fertilizers, according to the researchers.

Oxford University's Future of Humanity Institute (FHI) is to benefit from a donation of up to £13.3 million from the philanthropic organisations Good Ventures and the Open Philanthropy Project. The donation, which includes a £6 million up-front commitment, with further funds earmarked for the recruitment of staff, is the largest in the history of the Faculty of Philosophy at Oxford.

Positive results of the world's first gene therapy trial for a genetic cause of blindness known as choroideremia have been reported . The trial involved 14 patients receiving a single injection into the back of the eye of a virus containing the missing gene and began in 2011 at the Oxford Eye Hospital - part of the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

A study published used genetic data from nearly a million people across Europe and North America to highlight some of the key ways in which type 2 diabetes develops, and to find several genes which could be attractive targets for the creation of new therapeutic drugs.

Clinical and research teams at Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) NHS Foundation Trust, using infection prevention and control best practice, whole genome sequencing and electronic patient data, have halted an outbreak of a potentially deadly fungal pathogen after detecting that multi-use patient equipment was responsible.

Using machine learning and optimisation to find refugees' new homes can significantly improve their chances of finding work within three months, according to new research. The international collaboration, conducted by researchers at the Universities of Oxford and Lund, Sweden as well as the Worcester Polytechnic Institute, involved developing Annie MOORE, an AI-powered software.

Research from Oxford University has revealed that bold male birds focus on forming strong relationships with their future breeding partners while shy male birds play the field. A new study from the Department of Zoology, Oxford University, has found that the individual personalities of male great tits influences how they bond with their future breeding partner.

Researchers at MRC HIU examined the large intestine using sophisticated single cell technology, in work that paves the way for better treatments for IBD. Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disease with limited treatment options. The two main forms of the disease, Crohn's disease and Ulcerative Colitis, affect more than 300,000 people in the UK.

Replacing food with a diet of soups, shakes and bars starting at 810 calories per day alongside regular sessions with a counsellor is a safe and clinically effective way to treat obesity in primary care, finds a study from Oxford University researchers. Total diet replacement programmes are not generally funded by the NHS in England but the authors of this study, published in the BMJ , suggest that there is now enough evidence for these programmes to be one of the treatments recommended for people who are obese.

New research from an international team led by Oxford University's Department of Zoology and the National-Kapodistrian University of Athens shows that an ancient retrovirus - HK2 - is more frequently found in drug addicts and thus is significantly associated with addiction. The human genome is "littered" with remnants of ancient retrovirus infections that invaded the germline of our primate ancestors.

Researchers from the University of Oxford's Department of Zoology have demonstrated pre-clinical success for a universal flu vaccine. Influenza is thought to be a highly variable virus, able to mutate and escape immunity built up in the population due to its circulation in previous seasons. However, influenza seasons tend to be dominated by a limited number of antigenically and genetically distinct influenza viruses.

Researchers at the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford have discovered a new molecule that plays a key role in the immune response that is triggered by influenza infections. The molecule, a so-called mini viral RNA, is capable of inducing inflammation and cell death, and was produced at high levels by the 1918 pandemic influenza virus.

When assessing the moral character of others, people cling to good impressions but readily adjust their opinions about those who have behaved badly, according to new research. This flexibility in judging transgressors might help explain both how humans forgive - and why they sometimes stay in bad relationships.

Women that have undiagnosed sexually transmitted infections may be at greater risk of experiencing negative premenstrual symptoms (PMS), according to new Oxford University research. The study was conducted as part of a long term partnership with the female health, fertility and period-tracking app, CLUE.

Using a combination of AI and weather forecasting can help scientists to predict the movements of millions of birds and support their conservation goals, according to new Oxford University research. Conducted in collaboration with Cornell University, the study published , reports that scientists can now reliably predict these waves of bird migration across the United States, up to seven days in advance.

Research from Oxford University published in the journal  Genome Research  has found that a special combination of epigenetic modifications crucial to stem cell growth evolved in animals much earlier than previously appreciated. These findings imply that our stem cells, and those of simple animals such as planarian worms, have much more in common at the epigenetic level than previously thought.

Parenting interventions for helping children with behavioural problems are just as effective in school age, as in younger children, according to new Oxford University research. There is a predominant view amongst scientists and policy-makers that, for greatest effect, interventions need to be applied early in life, when children's brain function and behaviour are thought to be more malleable.

Spending more time in quality early years' education between ages two to four can have a positive impact on the cognitive development and social and emotional wellbeing of children - regardless of their social background, new research suggests. Children in this age bracket who spent more time with childminders, were also found to have fewer emotional difficulties, such as fears and worries.

Research from the Oxford Internet Institute has found that the proportion of 'junk news' shared on social media during the ongoing Swedish election campaign is higher than any other European country studied - and second only to the US in recent major elections. With Sweden going to the polls on 9 September, the study shows that Swedish social media users have shared two links to professional news content for every one link to junk news, with junk sources accounting for 22% of all URLs shared with political hashtags.