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Topics: Medical research

  • A single cell type map of human tissues

    In a study published in the US journal Science Advances, a single cell type map of human tissues is presented. An open access atlas has been launched with more than 250,000 interactive plots to allow researchers to explore the expression in individual single cell types for all protein-coding genes in these tissues.

  • New model aims to promote better-adapted bladder cancer treatment in the future

    Uppsala University scientists have designed a new mouse model that facilitates study of factors contributing to the progression of human bladder cancer and of immune-system activation when the tumour is growing. Using this model, they have been able to study how proteins change before, while and after a tumour develops in the bladder wall. The study has now been published in PLOS ONE.

  • Structures discovered in brain cancer patients can help fight tumours

    Researchers at Uppsala University have discovered lymph node-like structures close to the tumour in brain cancer patients, where immune cells can be activated to attack the tumour. They also found that immunotherapy enhanced the formation of these structures in a mouse model. This discovery suggests new opportunities to regulate the anti-tumour response of the immune system.

  • Epigenetic mechanism can explain how chemicals in plastic may cause lower IQ levels in children

    The chemical bisphenol F can induce changes in a gene that is vital for neurological development. This discovery was made by researchers at the universities of Uppsala and Karlstad, Sweden. The mechanism could explain why exposure to this chemical during the fetal stage may be connected with a lower IQ at seven years of age – an association previously seen by the same research group.

  • How bullying and obesity can affect girls’ and boys’ mental health

    Depressive symptoms are more common in teenage girls than in their male peers. However, boys’ mental health appears to be affected more if they suffer from obesity. Irrespective of gender, bullying is a considerably greater risk factor than overweight for developing depressive symptoms. These conclusions are drawn by researchers at Uppsala University who monitored adolescents in a new study.

  • Decrease in prostate cancer diagnoses due to pandemic

    During the first wave of the corona pandemic, 36 per cent fewer men were diagnosed with prostate cancer in Sweden than in previous years. On the other hand, the number of patients receiving curative treatment for prostate cancer was unaffected. This is shown by a new register study led by Uppsala University researchers, whose results are published in the Scandinavian Journal of Urology.

  • Newly discovered immune cell function vital to healing

    Researchers at Uppsala University have now discovered that one of the most common immune cells in the human body, macrophages, play an important role in re-establishing and controlling blood flow, something that can be used to develop new drugs.

  • ​Mutations in the neurochondrin gene linked to epilepsy

    Mutations in the neurochondrin (NCDN) gene can cause epilepsy, neurodevelopmental delay and intellectual disability. The gene mutation significantly impairs contacts and signalling between neurons in the brain. This is the conclusion of a study led from Uppsala University and published in the American Journal of Human Genetics.

  • New model can predict how bacteria develop antibiotic resistance

    Using theoretical models of bacterial metabolism and reproduction, scientists can predict the type of resistance that bacteria will develop when they are exposed to antibiotics. This has now been shown by an Uppsala University research team, in collaboration with colleagues in Cologne, Germany. The study is published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution.

  • Sound-frequency map for inner ear created with advanced X-ray technology

    Researchers at Uppsala University have created the first 3D map of the hearing nerve showing where the various sound frequencies are captured. Using what is known as synchrotron X-ray imaging, they were able to trace the fine nerve threads and the vibrating auditory organ, the cochlea, and find out exactly how the frequencies of incoming sound are distributed.

  • Beta blockers can repair malformed blood vessels in the brain

    Propranolol, a drug that is efficacious against infantile haemangiomas (“strawberry naevi”, resembling birthmarks), can also be used to treat cerebral cavernous malformations, a condition characterised by misshapen blood vessels in the brain and elsewhere. This has been shown by researchers at Uppsala University in a new study published in the scientific journal Stroke.

  • Innate immune system worsens the situation in severe COVID-19

    In patients with severe COVID-19, the innate immune system overreacts. This overreaction may underlie the formation of blood clots (thrombi) and deterioration in oxygen saturation that affect the patients. This is shown in an Uppsala University study published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology.

  • Metabolic response behind reduced cancer cell growth

    Researchers from Uppsala University show in a new study that inhibition of the protein EZH2 can reduce the growth of cancer cells in the blood cancer multiple myeloma. The reduction is caused by changes in the cancer cells’ metabolism. These changes can be used as markers to discriminate whether a patient would respond to treatment by EZH2 inhibition.

  • New improved dog reference genome will aid a new generation of investigation

    Researchers at Uppsala University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences have used new methods for DNA sequencing and annotation to build a new, and more complete, dog reference genome. This tool will serve as the foundation for a new era of research, helping scientists to better understand the link between DNA and disease, in dogs and in their human friends.

  • New clues to how SARS-CoV-2 infects cells

    The molecular details of how SARS-CoV-2 enters cells and infects them are still not clear. Researchers at Uppsala University have tested the bioinformatic predictions made by another research group and have identified receptors that could be important players in the process. The results are presented in the journal Science Signaling and at the AAAS Annual Meeting held this week.

  • ​Uppsala University Joins Wellcome Leap Global Network

    Uppsala University has joined the Leap Health Breakthrough Network, a global group of 21 leading academic and research institutions committed to solving the world’s most serious health challenges — such as cancer and infectious diseases — at record speed. Wellcome Leap is a US-based non-profit organisation founded by the Wellcome Trust to accelerate innovations that benefit global health.

  • Tough childhood damages life prospects

    An adverse upbringing often impairs people’s circumstances and health in their adult years, especially for couples who have both had similar experiences. This is shown by a new study, carried out by Uppsala University researchers, in which 818 mothers and their partners filled in a questionnaire one year after having a child together. The study is now published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE.

  • ​Disrupted immune cell navigation in lymph nodes of breast cancer patients

    In breast cancer, tumours of different types have divergent effects on the functioning of the lymph nodes. In patients with invasive breast cancer, the blood vessels and supporting tissue of the lymph nodes change, but this does not occur in patients with a non-invasive form of breast cancer. This is shown in a new study from Uppsala University, published online in the scientific journal Cancers.

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