news 2023

Researchers have discovered that misreading of therapeutic mRNAs by the cell's decoding machinery can cause an unintended immune response in the body. They have identified the sequence within the mRNA that causes this to occur and found a way to prevent 'off-target' immune responses to enable the safer design of future mRNA therapeutics.

The emissions pathways of most companies in high-emitting sectors are not aligned with the climate targets of the Paris Agreement. To better contribute to national and global sustainability efforts, corporate behaviour must change. This is the main message of a new study by Imperial College Business School published in Nature Communications.

A new study, by an international team of scientists, has found the presence of seabirds on islands near to tropical reefs helps corals to 'bounce back' much quicker from bleaching events. Bleaching can cause mass die off of corals when seas are too hot. The research, led by Lancaster University, with support from the University of Southampton, shows that this accelerated recovery is a result of faster coral growth near seabird colonies.

A paper from the University of Southampton examining how best to treat psychosis has concluded that a greater range of individually targeted therapies could improve outcomes for patients. The research questions if Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBTp) for psychosis should remain the dominant treatment and suggests that, in the future, big data and artificial intelligence may help to develop a range of more bespoke therapies.

Scientists at the University of Manchester Unveil Inorganic Stamp Technology for Creating Atomically Clean Interfaces Key Highlights Atomically clean interfaces: The new stamp design has enabled the creation of atomically clean interfaces between stacked 2D materials over extended areas, a significant improvement over existing techniques.

Researchers have discovered magnetic monopoles - isolated magnetic charges - in a material closely related to rust, a result that could be used to power greener and faster computing technologies. If monopoles did exist, and we were able to isolate them, it would be like finding a missing puzzle piece that was assumed to be lost Mete Atatüre Researchers led by the University of Cambridge used a technique known as diamond quantum sensing to observe swirling textures and faint magnetic signals on the surface of hematite, a type of iron oxide.

Researchers develop a blood test to identify individuals at risk of developing Parkinson's disease Research carried out at Oxford's  Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences  has led to the development of a new blood-based test to identify the pathology that triggers Parkinson's disease before the main symptoms occur.

Eating fatty foods during stressful periods can impair the body's 'recovery' from the effects of stress, new research suggests. Different findings from a study, published recently in Frontiers in Nutrition and Nutrients , have shown that consuming foods high in fat before a mentally stressful episode can reduce brain oxygenation and cause poorer vascular function in adults.

A radical theory that consistently unifies gravity and quantum mechanics while preserving Einstein's classical concept of spacetime is announced today in two papers published simultaneously by UCL physicists. Modern physics is founded upon two pillars: quantum theory on the one hand, which governs the smallest particles in the universe, and Einstein's theory of general relativity on the other, which explains gravity through the bending of spacetime.

Following an 18-month meditation programme can improve the wellbeing of older adults, finds a new randomised controlled trial by an international team co-led by UCL. The findings, published in PLOS ONE , show that meditation can improve people's awareness, connection to others, and insight. While the meditation training did not confer significant benefits on two commonly used measures of psychological wellbeing and quality of life, the researchers say their findings may reveal limitations in existing methods of tracking wellbeing.

A radical theory that consistently unifies gravity and quantum mechanics while preserving Einstein's classical concept of spacetime is announced today in two papers published simultaneously by UCL physicists. Modern physics is founded upon two pillars: quantum theory on the one hand, which governs the smallest particles in the universe, and Einstein's theory of general relativity on the other, which explains gravity through the bending of spacetime.

People interacting with social robots disclosed more about themselves over time and reported feeling less lonely, according to a new study. People interacting with social robots disclosed more about themselves over time and reported feeling less lonely, according to a new study. The research - led by the University of Glasgow and published in the International Journal of Social Robotics - also found that interacting with a social robot improved people's moods over time, suggesting social robots could be used as an effective intervention to support peoples' emotional health in the future.

Contrary to current understanding, the brains of human newborns aren't significantly less developed compared to other primate species, but appear so because so much brain development happens after birth, finds a new study led by UCL researchers.

New genetic research has revealed how British otters were able to recover from species loss in the 1950s with the help of their counterparts from Asia. Using genome sequencing data, a team from Cardiff University's Otter Project showed that much of the genetic diversity of British otters was lost when chemical pollution led to severe population declines in the 1950-1970s.

Researchers find that babies don't begin to process phonetic information reliably until seven months old which they say is too late to form the foundation of language. We believe that speech rhythm information is the hidden glue underpinning the development of a well-functioning language system. Professor Usha Goswami Parents should speak to their babies using sing-song speech, like nursery rhymes, as soon as possible, say researchers.

Patients given transitional care before and during discharge from hospital - such as joint discharge planning follow up visits or phone calls - are less likely to be readmitted according to University of Manchester researchers. meta study of data from 126trials with 97, 408participants, published in JAMA Network Open today (30/11/23) showed the interventions were associated with significant reductions in the odds of readmissions at 180 days after discharge.

Increasing the amount of folate through our diet or taking supplements could help to reduce bowel cancer risk. These are the findings of new research , co-led by Dr Konstantinos Tsilidis from the School of Public Health at Imperial College London. It suggests that increasing the intake of folate - which can be found in leafy greens, such as spinach, cabbage and broccoli - could help to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer by up to 7%.

Slow waves that usually only occur in the brain during sleep are also present during wakefulness in people with epilepsy and may protect against increased brain excitability associated with the condition, finds a new study led by researchers at UCL.

Remote teams are less likely to make breakthrough discoveries compared to those who work onsite, according to published in Nature [29 Nov], led by the universities of Oxford and Pittsburgh into the international rise of remote collaborations among scientists and inventors. The researchers' key finding was that, while remote collaboration has the potential to deliver new and creative scientific ideas through easier access to a global knowledge pool, it is harder for such teams to integrate effectively to deliver breakthroughs.

Levels of banned chemicals in UK-stranded orcas are 30 times over the toxic threshold, uncovers new research. Levels of banned chemicals in UK-stranded orcas are 30 times over the toxic threshold, uncovers new research. The finding is just one alarming discovery from the investigation into the scale at which chemical pollution threatens the future of marine mammals.