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Topics: Science, technology

  • UCDP: Number of deaths in armed conflicts has doubled

    At least 237,000 people died in organised violence in 2022. A new report from UCDP at Uppsala University shows that this is a 97 per cent increase compared with the previous year, and the highest number since 1994. UCDP is the world’s main provider of data on organised violence. Its definition of armed conflict has become the global standard of how conflicts are systematically defined and studied

  • X-rays visualise how one of nature’s strongest bonds breaks

    The use of short flashes of X-ray light brings scientists one big step closer toward developing better catalysts to transform the greenhouse gas methane into a less harmful chemical. The result, published in the journal Science, reveals for the first time how carbon-hydrogen bonds of alkanes break and how the catalyst works in this reaction.

  • A pro-viral human protein is critical for embryo development

    A new study has discovered that the pro-viral host protein ZC3H11A has a critical role to maintain embryo viability during early development. The study has uncovered a previously unknown function of ZC3H11A in the intricate process of embryonic growth and highlights its impact on development. The study is led by Uppsala University and INRAE/Université Paris-Saclay, now published in journal PNAS.

  • New type of drug candidate effectively accelerates wound healing in clinical study

    Complicated, hard-to-heal wounds are a growing medical problem and there are currently only two drugs approved with proven efficacy. In a new study on humans, researchers at Uppsala University show that treatment with a specific type of modified lactic acid bacteria works well and has a positive effect on the healing of wounds.

  • Junk food may impair our deep sleep

    In a new study, researchers at Uppsala University have investigated how junk food affects sleep. Healthy participants consumed an unhealthier as well as a healthier diet in a randomised order. After the unhealthier diet, the quality of the participants’ deep sleep had deteriorated, compared with those who had followed the healthier diet. The results have been published in the journal Obesity.

  • Barren habitat for sows leaves imprint on piglets’ brains

    In a new study, researchers from Uppsala University in Sweden, together with colleagues from the University of São Paulo, Brazil, have investigated the impact that a barren living environment for sows leaves on the next generation. The pigs in the study were bred in Brazil and kept according to breeding standards in that country. The sows’ uncomfortable and unstimulating environment brought with i

  • Alexander Wendt and Martha Finnemore awarded the Johan Skytte Prize in Political Science

    The Johan Skytte Foundation is delighted to announce that Alexander Wendt and Martha Finnemore have been jointly awarded the Johan Skytte Prize in Political Science. The prize is a recognition of their exceptional contributions to the field, particularly in advancing the constructivist approach to the study of international relations.

  • Aviation fuel directly from carbon dioxide, water and sunlight

    In the quest for fossil-free fuels for aircraft, a new study shows that isoprene could be part of a future solution. Isoprene can be produced by blue-green algae from sunlight, water and ordinary carbon dioxide. The productivity of the cyanobacteria increases if they are exposed to violet light or higher temperatures, and isoprene is ideally suited for photochemical processing into aviation fuels.

  • New therapy helps immune system eradicate brain tumours

    Researchers from Uppsala University have developed a method that helps immune cells exit from blood vessels into the tumour and kill cancer cells. The aim is to improve treatment of aggressive brain tumours. The study has been published in the journal Cancer Cell.

  • XFELs show the final milliseconds of oxygen formation

    Using serial femtosecond crystallography performed with the XFEL technique, scientists have been able to see the crucial final step in the reaction cycle of Photosystem II, and managed to obtain more information on the interaction between Photosystem II and the Mn/Ca cluster. "Such a development is important for scaling up hydrogen production from water by sunlight or renewable electricity."

  • Hijacking strategy mapped for hundreds of viruses

    One strategy that viruses use to take over a host cell is to mimic small parts of the cell's proteins called motifs. In a new study coordinated from Uppsala University, researchers have used a new method and doubled the available information on how viruses mimic human binding motifs. The results suggest new targets for the development of antiviral inhibitors.

  • Genomes from 240 mammal species explain human disease risks

    A major international research project, jointly led by Prof Kerstin Lindblad-Toh at Uppsala University and Broad Institute has surveyed and analysed the genomes of 240 different mammals. The results, now published in 11 articles in the journal Science, show how the genomes of humans and other mammals have developed over the course of evolution.

  • Increased risk of testicular cancer in people with neurodevelopmental disorders

    A new study by researchers at Uppsala University and Uppsala University Hospital shows that men who have a neurodevelopmental disorder, such as autism and ADHD, also have a slightly increased risk of testicular cancer, or seminoma. This is the first study to show such a link, with the results to be published in the British Journal of Cancer.

  • Wide income gaps lead to higher mortality rates during flood disasters

    A new study led by researchers from Uppsala University shows a clear link between economic inequality and mortality during severe flood disasters. Countries with an uneven distribution of income had many times higher mortality rates compared to countries with more evenly distributed income levels. The results are published in the scientific journal Nature Sustainability.

  • Personalised blood pressure treatment more effective

    Patients treated with blood pressure-lowering drugs can experience much greater improvements from a change of medication than from doubling the dose of their current medication. This is shown by a new study from Uppsala University, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. In this study, 280 patients tested four different blood pressure-lowering drugs over the course of a year.

  • Swimming pools of the rich make cities thirsty

    Rich elites with large swimming pools and well-maintained lawns are leaving poorer communities without basic access to water in cities across the world. New research, led by Uppsala University, published in Nature Sustainability has found social inequalities are driving urban water crises more than environmental factors, such as climate change or the growth of urban populations.

  • One of Vasa’s crewmen was a woman

    When the human remains found on board the warship Vasa were investigated, it was determined that the skeleton designated G was a man. New research now shows that the skeleton is actually from a woman. "It is very difficult to extract DNA from bone which has been on the bottom of the sea for 333 years, but not impossible”, says Marie Allen, Professor at Uppsala University.

  • Atmospheric circulation patterns contribute to extreme weather events

    The sharp increase in heatwaves in southern Europe in recent years is not only due to the greenhouse effect. Climate change has made a particular type of atmospheric circulation pattern more common, and this has contributed to extreme weather and been the underlying cause of nine out of ten heat-related deaths. This is according to a new study by researchers from Uppsala University and CNRS.

  • Autism may be linked to different perceptions of movement in infancy

    A new study from researchers at Uppsala University and Karolinska Institutet shows that children who go on to develop symptoms of autism have different activity in their brain's visual cortex from as early as five months when looking at certain types of movement. This finding may indicate that autistic people perceive their surroundings in a different way even from a very young age.

  • From living heritage to zombie churches

    Churches are preserved by an antiquarian system that risks killing them instead of keeping them alive. The Swedish State and the Church of Sweden therefore need to define new joint visions and goals to enable the ecclesiastical cultural heritage to be used and developed. This is shown by historian of art Henrik Lindblad in a new doctoral thesis from Uppsala University.

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