Researchers at Uppsala University have shown that Scandinavian wolves carry around 100,000 harmful mutations in their genome. As long as the harmful mutations can be compensated by a healthy genetic variant, this does not need to pose a problem. However, as there has been a high level of inbreeding in the wolf population, the occurrence of double harmful variants has increased with each generation
Men are at an increased risk of a severe bout of COVID-19 compared to women. Researchers at Uppsala University have now shown that this may be due to loss of the Y chromosome in part of their white blood cells. The findings could eventually be used to assess the risk of developing severe COVID-19 and perhaps to improve treatment.
Using new gene mapping methods, researchers have found connections between atopic dermatitis in dogs and several regions of the genome. Some genes identified coincide with genes linked to similar problems in humans. The filaggrin gene region, for example, which is regarded as the most powerful risk factor for atopic eczema in humans, has now also been linked to this disease in Labrador retrievers.
Researchers at Uppsala University have discovered and characterised a DNA sequence found in jawed vertebrates, such as sharks and humans, but absent in jawless vertebrates, such as lampreys. This DNA is important for the shaping of the joint surfaces during embryo development.
The European robin’s closest relatives are found in tropical Africa. The European robin is therefore not closely related to the Japanese robin, despite their close similarity in appearance. This is confirmed by a new study of the Old World flycatcher family, to which these birds belong. The study comprises 92 per cent of the more than 300 species in this family.
Preschool children's play involving tablets is less creative and imaginative compared to their play involving physical toys. This is shown in a new study by Uppsala University, and the difference is substantial. The results counter occasional claims that new technology would make children more creative. Tha study is published in Learning, Media and Technology.
An team of surgeons and scientists from, among others, Uppsala University has confirmed secure surgical access to the central core of the human cochlea. The research, published in Scientific Reports, is critical to the first in-human trials of new cell, gene and drug therapies for the inner ear, and will assist with treatment for improving hearing loss and deafness over the long-term.
The malignant brain tumour type medulloblastoma can become resistant to therapy which can cause relapse. Researchers at Uppsala University have discovered a certain protein that makes tumour cells resting and insensitive to radiation treatment. The research group hopes that the results could eventually lead to better treatments for children that have the highest risk to develop relapses.
Food lies at the heart of both health and sustainable development. This year’s Uppsala Health Summit takes on the challenges associated with our food systems and how to make them healthier, more inclusive, equitable and sustainable.
Neurochemical changes in the brain differ among patients with social anxiety treated using both SSRIs and CBT, compared to those treated using only CBT. While the combined treatment involving the medicine blocked the serotonin transporters, availability of such transporters increased in patients who only received CBT. In a double-blind positron emission tomography (PET) study, 24 participants.
Vertebrate genomes are repositories for retrovirus code that was deposited into germ line as inherited endogenous retroviruses during evolution. Researchers from Uppsala University and Princeton University now provide new findings about retroviral establishment and distribution among Darwin’s finches. The findings are being published in Nature Communications.
Uppsala University is inaugurating the Alva Myrdal Centre for Nuclear Disarmament, a national centre for global knowledge on disarmament issues. UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu will address the inauguration ceremony remotely, while speakers attending the event include Beatrice Fihn, ICAN, recipient of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize.
A new dissertation on surrogacy highlights Thai women's experiences of having acted as surrogate mothers. The dissertation shows the women's vulnerability in a global surrogacy industry, but also provides a more nuanced picture of what makes women seek surrogacy and how they relate to the process.
Using state of the art techniques, researchers from Uppsala University have shown that the metabolism in patients with type 2 diabetes and prediabetes was much more disturbed than previously known, and that it varied between organs and with the severity of the disease. The study, a collaboration with Copenhagen University and AstraZeneca, among others, has been published in Cell Reports Medicine.
A new study from Uppsala University shows that using a weighted blanket at bedtime increases melatonin in young adults. This hormone increases in response to darkness, and some evidence suggests that it promotes sleep. The findings are published in the Journal of Sleep Research.
It is 400 years since Johan Skytte founded a professorship in eloquence and political science. His intention was to strengthen the state administration that Sweden needed to maintain its position as a European great power. The Johan Skytte Professorship is the oldest active chair in political science in the world. To mark the 400th anniversary, lecture and panel debate will be held 1 October.
Researchers from Uppsala University and elsewhere have been studying the effect of rising temperatures on the lifespan of pollinating fig wasps. The findings show that the wasps lived much shorter lives at high temperatures, which would make it difficult for them to travel the long distances between the trees they pollinate.
There are strong links between bacteria living in the gut and the levels of small molecules in the blood known as metabolites. Such is the finding of a new study (Uppsala University/Lund University). The study is based on analyses of both fecal and blood samples from 8,583 participants in the Swedish CArdioPulmonary bioImage Study (SCAPIS).
Sverker C Jagers, Professor of Political Science and Director of the Centre for Collective Action Research at the University of Gothenburg, will hold Uppsala University's fifth Zennström Visiting Professorship in Climate Change Leadership. The ten-year visiting professorship, through which a new professor is invited every year or every other year, is funded by an earlier donation to Uppsala Univ
In a large international study, researchers at Uppsala University have identified DNA regions that are associated with physical activity or leisure screen time. The findings confirm that physical activity is beneficial for health and suggest that a more sedentary lifestyle can be explained by how muscles respond to exercise.