All UK & Rest of Europe articles – Page 7
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NewsCan this biotech innovation halt the destructive march of a cereal killer?
Researchers explored a recently discovered class of plant defence receptors, showing at molecular level how they function to limit blast pathogen attacks and how they might be bioengineered to introduce broader more durable immunity into wheat, barley, and rice.
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NewsA shorter, better-tolerated treatment for chagas disease is possible
A 30-day course of benznidazole taken once a day could offer people with chronic Trypanosoma cruzi infection a safer and more practical option than the current standard treatment, taken twice a day for 60 days.
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NewsSimple cleaning reduced bacteria on single-use medical devices
Three simple cleaning methods reduced bacterial levels on used single-use medical devices, according to a study. The findings could prove useful as a last-resort measure during severe shortages of medical supplies in a crisis or war.
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News€8 million Horizon Europe grant to launch next-generation initiative to detect, assess and respond to pandemics
Led by the University of Oxford in partnership with the WHO and an international consortium the three-year PANDAI project will develop and deploy advanced AI models to transform the detection, assessment, prediction and response to global disease threats.
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NewsScientists uncover genetic changes in the bacteria causing severe Kent meningococcal disease outbreak
Scientists have used bacterial genome sequencing to understand why the meningococcal disease outbreak in Kent earlier this year was so severe. The outbreak bacteria had picked up genetic material from other, less harmful bacteria found naturally in the throats of many healthy people.
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NewsNew standardised, contemporary strain panels address a long-standing barrier in AMR research
PACE and the UK Health Security Agency have released five new contemporary antimicrobial resistance (AMR) strain panels, giving innovators worldwide a resource to test novel therapeutics and diagnostics against today’s resistance patterns.
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NewsA tiny bacterium with a huge impact
Researchers have discovered that gut bacteria and the compounds they produce trigger biological processes that the human body on its own can only activate with difficulty. They help suppress inflammation and may also have beneficial effects on fatty liver disease.
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NewsNew study uncovers how the malaria parasite boosts its transmission potential under stress conditions
Researchers reveal the molecular mechanism by which Plasmodium falciparum responds to stress by increasing the production of the sexual forms required for transmission.
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NewsNew study uncovers the complex history of the plague after the Black Death
A new study sheds fresh light on the long and complex history of the plague by analysing the DNA of the bacterium. Researchers reconstructed 26 genomes of Yersinia pestis from archaeological sites in Estonia, Russia, England, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.
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NewsVaccination: why don’t we all experience the same side effects?
Researchers have found that, even before vaccination, some people’s innate immune systems are more reactive than others, showing a heightened response to interferons. The stronger this response, the more likely individuals are to experience these transient symptoms.
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NewsLong-acting antibodies may work with the immune system to control HIV and help reduce the reservoir
Results from a clinical trial have offered a new HIV strategy, suggesting that just one or two doses of broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs) can suppress the virus long-term, keeping it at undetectable levels for months and even years.
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NewsSuccession of colonising fungi reveals the dynamic nature of herbivore dung
Scientists investigating fungi colonising the dung of African herbivores, including rhinoceros, giraffe and zebra, have revealed how different groups of fungi succeed one another as dung decomposes.
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NewsTwo coronavirus master keys: new study unveils the mechanisms Covid-19 virus uses to enter our cells
To enter our cells, the Covid-19 virus fuses its surrounding membrane with the membrane of the target cell. The fusion peptides of the spike protein function as molecular keys that allow the virus to open the door to the target cell . A new study shows that SARS-CoV-2 does not have just one key, but two.
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NewsNew method reveals how virus particles can build themselves, molecule by molecule
Researchers have captured the step-by-step assembly of individual virus-like particles, revealing how simple molecular interactions can reliably build these complex biological structures. The process works rather like finding a route through a maze in which only the productive turns lock into place.
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NewsHow a pathogen turns flowers into leaves
Scientists have found how a protein produced by bacteria disrupts the mechanism that controls flower development in plants, turning reproductive organs into leaf-like structures. These findings shed light on a plant disease that is expected to spread as climate change expands the range of its insect vectors in northern latitudes.
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NewsWas Nîmes depopulated by the Plague of Cyprian?
Analyses of the carbonate deposits in the aqueduct featuring the famous Pont du Gard shed light on the water supply of the ancient city of Nîmes - and support the theory that the city was depopulated by the plague.
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NewsAn IBEC device simulates natural conditions to grow biofilms and test their antibiotic susceptibility more accurately
Researchers have developed XpertBiofilm, a simple and accessible device that allows biofilms to be grown under continuous, controlled liquid flow, similar to what bacteria encounter in the human body — for example, in lung mucus, blood or urine.
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NewsFungi neutralize spruce defense mechanisms with sugar
A newly discovered detoxification strategy employed by fungi disarms spruce defense compounds by binding a sugar to them, which makes spruce trees more susceptible to bark beetle attacks.
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NewsMolecular insight into biological nitrogen fixation close to the boiling point
Scientists have purified a nitrogen-fixing enzyme from a deep-sea microorganism that shows extreme heat-stability and is possibly of ancient origin. The molybdenum-containing enzyme has been captured in a “turnover” state, highlighting a universal mechanistic principle among nitrogenases.
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CareersMeet the Global Ambassadors: our Q&A with Sanjib Bhakta
The Microbiologist gets to know our Global Ambassador for the UK, Professor Sanjib Bhakta who is Professor of Molecular Microbiology and Biochemistry at Birkbeck, University of London.