news 2018

Having identified the complex physicochemical fingerprint of the parasitic hookworm, Necator americanu s, researchers at the University of Nottingham set about changing the diet of a 'friendly' microscopic worm to assess the effectiveness of immune responses to anti-parasitic vaccines currently under development.

Many deadly and newly emerging viruses like Ebola and Zika circulate in wild animal and insect communities long before spreading to humans and causing severe disease. However, finding these natural virus hosts - which could help prevent the spread to humans - currently poses an enormous challenge for scientists.

Group cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) could be the best choice of psychotherapy for anxiety disorders in children and adolescents, according to a new network meta-analysis study from Oxford University, Department of Psychiatry. CBT is a talking therapy designed to help people manage problems by encouraging positive changes in the way they think and behave.

A study in mice has shown that it may be possible to detect the early signs of atherosclerosis, which leads to blocked arteries, by looking at how cells in our blood vessels change their function. The muscle cells that line the blood vessels have long been known to multi-task. While their main function is pumping blood through the body, they are also involved in 'patching up' injuries in the blood vessels.

Societal acceptance of domestic violence against women is widespread in developing countries, with 36 per cent of people believing it is justified in certain situations. Using Demographic and Health Surveys conducted between 2005-2017, researchers at the University of Bristol analysed data from 1.17 million men and women in 49 lowand middle-income countries.

A scientist involved in creating the ultra-sensitive detectors needed to glimpse gravitational waves for the very first time has been awarded a prestigious Philip Leverhulme Prize. Dr Katherine Dooley, from Cardiff University's School of Physics and Astronomy, has picked up the £100,000 prize for scientific work 'that has had a significant international impact'.

Conversations are more responsive in natural environments such as parks and gardens than indoors, finds new research by the University of Manchester and Cardiff University. The researchers recorded conversations between threeand four-year-old children and their parents while they explored a city park and the park's indoor education centre and found that the conversations in the park were more responsive and connected compared to those recorded indoors.

UCL has held an independent special inquiry into regenerative medicine research at UCL which was published in full in September 2017. The panel, chaired by Professor Stephen Wigmore from the University of Edinburgh, carried out a thorough investigation of the involvement of UCL and its personnel in regenerative medicine research but with particular focus on the field of tracheal and large airway tissue engineering.

Children in Northern Ireland are 80% less likely to be in foster or residential care than children in Wales, according to a study. Professor Jonathan Scourfield and Dr Martin Elliott from Cardiff University contributed to the UK-wide research that analysed the data of 36,000 children in contact with child protection services.

Researchers from the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR) have received funding from EU Horizon 2020 to support research into how institutions, including the police and social work, respond to domestic abuse. SCCJR will work in partnership with Police Scotland to carry out the Scottish strand of the €2.9 million IMPRODOVA project, a three-year study which will see Professor Michele Burman and Dr Oona Brooks-Hay conduct extensive fieldwork across the country.

Artificial intelligence can help us to better understand the causes of religious violence and to potentially control it, according to a new Oxford University collaboration. The study is one of the first to be published that uses psychologically realistic AI - as opposed to machine learning. The research published in The Journal for Artificial Societies and Social Stimulation , combines computer modelling and cognitive psychology to create an AI system able to mimic human religiosity.

Freya, a Springer Spaniel, is one of the dogs who has been trained to sniff out the scent of malaria. Freya's highly sensitive nose could help provide the first non-invasive test for the disease. Sniffer dogs could potentially be deployed at ports of entry to identify passengers carrying malaria to prevent the spread of the disease across borders and to ensure people receive timely antimalarial treatment.

Increasing age, perceptions and multiple health conditions are among the reasons why over-50s find it difficult to return to work, according to new research which compared this age-group with the experiences of the under-50s.‌ The study, led by the University of Glasgow and published in the BMJ Open , identified the significant challenges facing people over the age of 50 who have health problems and who have lost their job.

Researchers have discovered that exposing people with phobias to their fear - for examples, spiders for those who have arachnophobia - at the exact time their heart beat, led to the phobia reducing in severity. Professor Hugo Critchley , Chair of Psychiatry at Brighton and Sussex Medical School ( BSMS ) and principal investigator, said: "Many of us have phobias of one kind or another - it could be spiders, or clowns or even types of food.

The largest study of people with mild hypertension shows that medical treatment may not be worthwhile in those who are at low risk of heart attack and stroke. An observational study of patients with mild hypertension has found no evidence to support recent US guideline recommendations that encourage doctors to offer treatment to patients with low-risk mild hypertension.

A new study from the University of Nottingham has revealed the Twitter habits of UK politicians and how they use social media to influence and participate in public debate. Dr Roderick MacKenzie from the Faculty of Engineering conducted the research over a 12-month period, while based as a parliamentary fellow in the House of Commons Library.

Evidence has been building in recent years that our diet, our habits or traumatic experiences can have consequences for the health of our children - and even our grandchildren. The explanation that has gained most currency for how this occurs is so-called 'epigenetic inheritance' - patterns of chemical 'marks' on or around our DNA that are hypothesised to be passed down the generations.

29 October 2018 Injecting drug use, through the sharing of needles, syringes and other injecting equipment, is a primary route of transmission for both HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV), blood-borne infections that cause considerable morbidity and mortality worldwide. New research led by the University of Bristol has found among people who inject drugs, that recent incarceration was associated with an 81 per cent and 62 per cent increase in HIV and HCV acquisition risk, respectively.

Cyber-security researchers have   identified a total of at least 57 different ways in which cyber-attacks can have a negative impact on individuals, businesses and even nations, ranging from threats to life, causing depression, regulatory fines or disrupting daily activities. Researchers, from the  Department of Computer Science  at the University of Oxford and Kent's  School of Computing  set out to define and codify the different ways in which the various cyber-incidents being witnessed today can have   negative outcomes.

A new sensing device can provide early warning of potential failure of breast reconstruction surgery, making it easier to take effective action. An international team led by Imperial College London and funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) have developed the wireless 'bio-patch' as part of the Smart Sensing for Surgery project.