news 2017

Using a computer model, Imperial researchers have come up with a better way to determine the dynamics of groups where dominance plays a role. Dominance hierarchies, where some individuals within a group monopolize resources and mating opportunities, are common throughout the animal kingdom. However, the 'steepness' of the hierarchy is different between species.

The theory that education protects against Alzheimer's disease has been given further weight by new research from the University of Cambridge, funded by the European Union. The study is published today in The BMJ . Many studies have shown that certain risk factors are more common in people with Alzheimer's disease, but determining whether these factors actually cause Alzheimer's is more difficult Hugh Markus Alzheimer's disease is the leading cause of dementia.

Scientists have identified a protein involved in the life cycle of the malarial parasite, paving the way for a new vaccine to reduce disease spread. Malaria, a disease caused by the transfer of the Plasmodium parasite from certain mosquitos to humans, is responsible for 429,000 deaths every year according to the World Health Organisation.

o Spinal muscular atrophy is a leading genetic cause of infant death worldwide o Approximately 1 in 40 of the general population are genetic carriers of SMA o Currently no screening programme for SMA in UK Research from the University of Warwick indicates that most people are in favour of newborn screening for the potentially deadly condition spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).

Tuberculosis could be fought more effectively with future drugs - thanks to new research into an old antibiotic by University of Warwick and Francis Crick Institute Deeper understanding of how simple but effective drug D-cycloserine attacks bacteria opens up possibility of development of new, desperately needed antibiotic drugs Bacterial infections are becoming increasingly resistant to drugs - new drugs needed to curb this deadly global crisis

Researchers from the University of Bristol studying wild dwarf mongooses have provided insight into what happens when immigrants join a new group. Researchers from the University of Bristol studying wild dwarf mongooses have provided insight into what happens when immigrants join a new group. The study published today in the journal Current Biology shows that, initially, recent immigrants rarely serve as lookout, which means they provide little information in this context to help the rest of the group.

University of Bristol research has revealed how cells rebuild their nucleus and organise their genome when they divide - a discovery which could have major implications for understanding cancer and degeneration. When cells divide, they need to rebuild their nucleus and organise their genome. New collaborative research from the University of Bristol demonstrates how cells achieve this through the unexpected deployment of filamentous actin (F-actin) to the nucleus.

In a surprise ecological finding, researchers discover medium-sized carnivores spend the most time looking for food, making them vulnerable to change. Mammalian predators (commonly called carnivores) spend a significant part of their day foraging for food, and the more time they spend, the more energy they use.

Scientists have found a direct link between physical contact and gut bacteria in red-bellied lemurs. Likely passed through 'huddling' behaviour and touch, the findings suggest implications for human health.

Residents and workers in a major Pakistan city are exposed to harmful levels of pesticides, new research reveals. Scientists from Pakistan's F Quaid-i-Azam University and Lancaster University have evaluated the organophosphate pesticide concentration in dust from farms and also from pesticide manufacturing plants in the megacity of Lahore.

New research led by the University of Bristol has resolved evolutionary biology's most-heated debate, revealing it is the morphologically simple sponges, rather than the anatomically complex comb jellies, which represent the oldest lineage of living animals. Recent genomic analyses have "flip-flopped" between whether sponges or comb jellies are our deepest ancestors, leading experts to suggest available data might not have the power to resolve this specific problem.

In stressed newborn babies, behaviour alone is not a reliable way of assessing pain, according to new UCL and UCLH research. The study, published today in Current Biology and funded by the Medical Research Council UK, found that hospitalised newborns, who are already stressed by their environment have a much larger pain response in their brain following a routine clinical skin lance than non-stressed babies.

An international collaboration has for the first time revealed the key drivers of seabird migration. The new study suggests that puffin colonies that travel great distances during the winter often find it more difficult to breed than others, and that escaping your habitat with far-flung migration therefore carries a cost.

The lifespans of flies and worms are prolonged by limiting the activity of an enzyme common to all animals, finds a UCL-led study. The enzyme - RNA polymerase III (Pol III) - is present in most cells across all animal species, including humans. While it is known to be essential for making proteins and for cell growth, its involvement in ageing was unexplored until now.

Making eye contact with an infant makes adults' and babies' brainwaves 'get in sync' with each other - which is likely to support communication and learning - according to researchers at the University of Cambridge.

A University of Bristol-led study has revealed new details about dinosaur feathers and enabled scientists to further refine what is potentially the most accurate depiction of any dinosaur species to date. Birds are the direct descendants of a group of feathered, carnivorous dinosaurs that, along with true birds, are referred to as paravians - examples of which include the infamous Velociraptor.

A team of scientists working at the University of Bristol have developed a new nanomapping microscope - powered by the laser and optics found in a typical DVD player. The new technology is being used to transform the way disease-causing genetic mutations are diagnosed and discovered. This microscope maps hundreds of chemically barcoded DNA molecules every second in a technique developed in collaboration with a team of US scientists led by Professor Jason Reed at Virginia Commonwealth University.

New King's College London research, published today in eLife , shows that adults born prematurely - who also suffered small brain injuries around the time of birth - have lower levels of dopamine in the brain. This chemical change has been linked to lack of motivation and enjoyment in normal life, and changes to attention and concentration, which could all be early signs of more serious mental health issues such as substance dependence and depression.

New research has estimated that each year five babies in every 1,000 born in England suffer a condition or sign linked to brain injury. The study, conducted by researchers at the Neonatal Data Analysis Unit at Imperial College London and Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust , analysed data on babies born between 2010 and 2015 to assess the number that may have sustained brain injury at or soon after birth.

As part of the ongoing commitment to greater openness about animal research, the ten universities which conduct the most animal procedures have publicised their figures today, revealing that they collectively conducted a third of all UK animal research in 2016. All ten universities appear in the QS World University Ranking Top 100.