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A Fulani woman with tent poles and part of her household on a donkey in central Mali. Photo: Viktor Černý

New study unravels the history of the largest pastoral population in Africa

Researchers have uncovered the ancestral origins and genetic diversity of the Fulani, one of Africa’s largest pastoral populations. The study reveals a complex genetic ancestry with influences from both North and West African groups, shaped by historical migrations that have left a lasting impact on their genetic landscape.

Painting of Ivan the Terrible, by Viktor Vasnetsov (1848-1926). Tretyakov Gallery. Rights: Public Domain

Should we stop saying ‘Russia’?

Should the world stop using the name ‘Russia’ and go back to the old name ‘Muscovy’? The question has been raised by critics of Russia in recent years and in his new book “Russia reverts to Muscovy”, Stefan Hedlund, Professor Emeritus of East European Studies, highlights several arguments in favour of a change of name.

Daniel Kane, Professor of American literature who has written a new book about Joe Brainard. Photo: Mikael Wallerstedt

Joe Brainard’s surprising letters

The American artist and author Joe Brainard (1942–1994) stood out with his strikingly unique style of writing, manifested among other ways in his many years of correspondence with other well-known artists and writers. Selections from his letters have now been published in a new volume with comments and analyses by Daniel Kane, professor of American literature at Uppsala University.

Thanks to new, advanced instruments, it is now possible to study the climate of planets far beyond our solar system. The image shows the night sky over ESO’s Very Large Telescope. Photo:  ESO/Y. Beletsky

Water and extreme winds detected on exoplanet

On the exoplanet WASP-127b, over 500 light years away, wind speeds can reach 33,000 kilometres per hour, according to a study by an international team of scientists. This is the first time winds of this type have been detected and it has been possible thanks to an instrument partly built at Uppsala University. The study is published in Astronomy & Astrophysics.

Frank Biermann and Aarti Gupta new Zennström Professors of Climate Change Leadership. Photo: Unmask Photography.

Frank Biermann and Aarti Gupta new Zennström Professors of Climate Change Leadership

Professor Aarti Gupta from Wageningen University and Professor Frank Biermann from Utrecht University will become Visiting Professors of Climate Change Leadership at Uppsala University. The ten-year visiting professorship, with a new professor invited each or every other year, is funded by a donation to Uppsala University by entrepreneur Niklas Zennström and his wife, Catherine Zennström.

None of the participants had been diagnosed with gastrointestinal diseases. Samples were taken from both their small and large bowel. The researchers then studied different types of immune cells in the mucous membrane. Illustration: Maria Lampinen

Inflammation may explain stomach problems in psoriasis sufferers

People with the skin condition psoriasis often have invisible inflammation in the small intestine with an increased propensity for ‘leaky gut’, according to new research at Uppsala University. These changes in the gut could explain why psoriasis sufferers often have gastrointestinal problems and are more prone to developing Crohn’s disease.

Miika Martikainen and Magnus Essand, researchers at Uppsala University. Photo: Private/Mikael Wallerstedt

Route of entry for Semliki Forest virus into the brain revealed

A recent study shows that the Semliki Forest virus enters the central nervous system by first entering the cerebrospinal fluid and then binding to a specific cell type before penetrating deeper into the brain. This finding could potentially be used to develop the Semliki Forest virus as an agent for treating brain cancer. The study has been published in the journal Nature Communications.

Self-help app "Min sorg" (my grief)

App helps alleviate mental health symptoms in bereaved parents

New study: An app can help parents who are mourning the loss of a child. Parents who used the app for three months reported reduced symptoms of prolonged grief and post-traumatic stress, and also had fewer negative thoughts. Some parents thought that in future, the app should be offered early in the process of mourning. The study is published in the scholarly journal Cognitive Behaviour Therapy.

Therese Johansson, postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology and WOMHER

Different menopausal hormone treatments pose different risks

Researchers have analysed the effects of seven different hormone treatments for menopausal symptoms, and the risk of blood clots, stroke and heart attack. The risks differ depending on the active substance and how the medicine is taken. The study involves around one million women aged 50-58 and is the largest and most comprehensive study of currently prescribed hormonal substances in the world.

A duo of sauropodomorphs; one munching on the newly evolved plants in a wet Early Jurassic environment whilst the other is looking up as if there was something hiding in the vegetation. Illustration: Marcin Ambrozik.

Fossil dung reveals clues to dinosaur success story

In an international collaboration, researchers at Uppsala University have been able to identify undigested food remains, plants and prey in the fossilised faeces of dinosaurs. These analyses of hundreds of samples provide clues about the role dinosaurs played in the ecosystem around 200 million years ago. The findings have been published in the journal Nature.

A seabird colony i Norway, on which this model could be applied. Photographer: Claus Rüffler

New model can help understand coexistence in nature

Different species of seabirds can coexist on small, isolated islands despite eating the same kind of fish. A researcher at Uppsala University has been involved in developing a mathematical model that can be used to better understand how this ecosystem works.

A graphical summary illustrates the strategy used to identify CYP2D6 as a target for collateral lethality, which is driven by the widespread occurrence of loss of heterozygosity in cancer genomes.

Genetic variation enhances cancer drug sensitivity

By exploiting the genetic variation in cancer cells, an already approved cancer drug demonstrated enhanced effects against cancer cells in specific patient groups. This is shown in a recent study from Uppsala University, published in the journal eBiomedicine. The findings suggest a potential for more individually tailored and more effective cancer therapies.

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Uppsala University - quality, knowledge, and creativity since 1477

Founded in 1477, Uppsala University is the oldest university in Sweden. With more than 50,000 students and 7,500 employees in Uppsala and Visby, we are a broad university with research in social sciences, humanities, technology, natural sciences, medicine and pharmacology. Our mission is to conduct education and research of the highest quality and relevance to society on a long-term basis. Uppsala University is regularly ranked among the world’s top universities.

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