news 2016

Supposed 'junk' DNA, found in between genes, plays a role in suppressing cancer, according to new research by Universities of Bath and Cambridge. Not 'junk' The human genome contains around three metres of DNA, of which only about two per cent contains genes that code for proteins. Since the sequencing of the complete human genome in 2000, scientists have puzzled over the role of the remaining 98 per cent.

Dog owners are being urged to remember to be vigilant with their pets when walking near cows in the countryside, following a new review into cattle attacks by the University of Liverpool. Anecdotal media and hospital reports of cattle causing injury or death to members of the public have existed for many years, but until now no further investigation has been carried out examining why these events may occur.

The genes that cause parasitism in a group of intestinal worms, responsible for one of most prevalent tropical diseases in the developing world, have been identified by an international team of scientists, led by the University of Bristol. More than a billion people are infected with intestinal worms (nematodes).

A technique called "mito-priming" is the latest method to be developed by researchers in the fight against cancer. Scientists at the University of Glasgow's Cancer Research UK Beatson Institute have developed the technique as a research tool to understand how cancer cells die. The significant discovery means Mito-priming can be applied to identify new anti-cancer drugs to screen their effectiveness.

Human stem cells that are capable of becoming any other kind of cell in the body have previously only been acquired and cultivated with difficulty. A team of European scientists including researchers from the University of Bath has now developed a method to detect such pluripotent cells in a cell culture and preserve them in the laboratory.

A new way of using MRI scanners to look for evidence of multiple sclerosis in the brain has been successfully tested by researchers at The University of Nottingham and Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neurological condition which affects around 100,000 people in the UK.

Proteins in the blood called histones, which are released from damaged tissues during sepsis, can cause life-threatening heart failure, according to new research from the University of Liverpool. The finding that histones affect the heart's ability to pump, points the way toward a new treatment against the deadly effects of a septic infection.

HIV drug resistance to tenofovir, an antiretroviral drug vital to most modern HIV treatment and prevention strategies, is surprisingly and worryingly common according to a large study led by UCL and funded by the Wellcome Trust. The research, co-authored by researchers at Stanford University and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and published in the Lancet Infectious Diseases journal, studied 1,926 HIV patients across the world with uncontrolled HIV despite being prescribed antiretrovirals.

Eighteenth-century thieves, paupers, prostitutes and highwaymen helped shape the evolution of modern justice and welfare systems, according to new evidence uncovered by historians. London Lives, a landmark project led by Professor Bob Shoemaker from the University of Sheffield and Professor Tim Hitchcock from the University of Sussex, has uncovered a mass of extraordinary new evidence which reveals how the lives of thousands of 18th-century poor and criminal Londoners helped shape modern Britain.

Human-induced climate change increased the risk of severe storms like those that hit the south of England in the winter of 2013/14, causing devastating flooding and costing several people their lives. That's according to new analysis from an international team of climate scientists led by researchers at Oxford University.

It has long been observed that some volcanoes erupt with little prior warning. Now, scientists have come up with an explanation behind these sudden eruptions that could change the way observers monitor active or dormant volcanoes. Previously, it was thought eruptions were triggered by a build-up of pressure caused by the slow accumulation of bubbly, gas-saturated magma beneath volcanoes over tens to hundreds of years.

Researchers have shown that graphene can be used to make electrodes that can be implanted in the brain, which could potentially be used to restore sensory functions for amputee or paralysed patients, or for individuals with motor disorders such as Parkinson's disease. We are just at the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the potential of graphene and related materials in bio-applications and medicine.

Research at King's College London has revealed subtle brain differences in adult males with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which may go some way towards explaining why symptoms persist into adulthood in some people with the disorder. ASD affects around 1 in 100 people in the UK and involves a spectrum of conditions which manifest themselves differently in different people.

Research led by UCL, Yale and University of California, San Francisco has shown that the hormone estrogen alleviates the sleep disruption experienced by zebrafish genetically designed to help understand the biology of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The scientists set out to investigate the function of genes linked to autism and seizures in humans by using zebrafish as a model system.

Wheat yields could be significantly increased thanks to varieties with a superior form of a common enzyme, according to new research. Plant Scientists at Lancaster University, Rothamsted Research and The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) have been investigating a naturally occurring plant enzyme known as Rubisco to explore its ability to boost photosynthesis and increase crop yields.

As the west coast of Britain emerges from yet another battering - this time caused by the "remnants" of the United States' Winter Storm Jonas blizzards - new research has been published which reveals the extent to which our rocky coastline is being reshaped by extreme weather. Dr Larissa Naylor, a Lecturer in Physical Sciences at the University of Glasgow, has just published research in a special issue of Earth Surface Processes and Landforms on Stormy Geomorphology.

Women who take antidepressants during pregnancy do not appear to be at greater risk of giving birth to children with congenital heart defects compared to women who are not exposed to the drugs , according to new research from UCL. The study, which analysed data from over 200,000 pairs of women and children in the UK between 1990 and 2011, showed that other characteristics , including diabetes, a body mass index of more than 30 and a history of alcohol and drug use did pose a greater risk of having a baby with congenital heart problems.

Underwater noise can negatively impact anti-predator behaviour in endangered eels and increase stress in both eels and European seabass, a new study published in Royal Society Open Science confirms. However, there is also some more positive news. The researchers, from the University of Exeter, the University of Bristol and HR Wallingford found that directly following two-minute exposures to noise, both fish species quickly recovered in behaviour and physiology, suggesting rapid recovery.

Ancient Aboriginals' use of fire did not cause much erosion of Australian land, according to new research. Aboriginal populations arrived on the Australian continent around 50,000 years ago. They used fire to improve access through thick vegetation, encourage new growth to attract game for hunting, and cultivate useful food plants.

The first ever measurement of the temperature of electrons in a nanoelectronic device a few thousandths of a degree above absolute zero was demonstrated in a joint research project performed by Lancaster University, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd, and Aivon Ltd. The team managed to make the electrons in a circuit on a silicon chip colder than had previously been achieved.