All University of British Columbia articles
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NewsSeventy-year-old Parkinson’s drug shows promise against tuberculosis
A medication developed in the 1950s to treat Parkinson’s disease may offer a powerful new tool in the fight against tuberculosis. The study found that benztropine can dramatically reduce levels of TB-causing bacteria by boosting the body’s natural immune response.
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NewsCommon food thickeners – long thought to pass right through us – are actually digested
It turns out cellulose-based thickening agents can be digested. Researchers have shown that our gut bacteria can feed on these large molecules – thought to not be possible – thanks to enzymes that normally help us break down dietary fibre.
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NewsResearchers discover cause of sea star wasting disease
Researchers have revealed the cause of sea star wasting disease (SSWD). The marine epidemic has killed billions of sea stars—representing more than 20 different species from Alaska to Mexico. SSWD is considered the largest marine epidemic ever documented in the wild.
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NewsThe new season of The Last of Us has a spore-ting chance at realism
The trailer for the hit HBO series appears to show the ’zombie fungus’ cordyceps infecting humans by releasing air-borne spores, instead of through tentacles — closer to scientific reality, according to experts.
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NewsClimate change could bring more severe bacterial infections, including in corals
A new study shows that climate warming can potentially make bacterial and fungal infections deadlier for cold-blooded animals like corals, insects, and fish, raising questions about the broader risks warming temperatures pose to ecosystems and biodiversity—and potentially humans.
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NewsNew study highlights rise in severe Shigella infections among homeless patients in Vancouver
A recent study has uncovered an increase in severe multidrug-resistant (MDR) Shigella sonnei infections, particularly among people experiencing homelessness (PEH) in Vancouver, Canada.
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NewsScientists develop tool to predict sepsis in apparently healthy newborns
This discovery could help with earlier recognition of critically ill babies to implement life-saving treatment.
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NewsTropical coral-infecting parasites discovered in cold marine ecosystems
Parasites thought only to infect tropical coral reefs have been discovered in a large variety of creatures in cold marine ecosystems along the Northeast Pacific, according to new research from University of British Columbia botanists.
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NewsStudy reveals surprising link between malnutrition and rising antibiotic resistance
Researchers have uncovered startling connections between micronutrient deficiencies and the composition of gut microbiomes in early life that could help explain why resistance to antibiotics has been rising across the globe.
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NewsBiological fingerprints in soil point the way to diamond-containing ore
Researchers have identified buried kimberlite, the rocky home of diamonds, by testing the DNA of microbes in the surface soil.
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NewsVaginal microbiome does not influence babies’ gut microbiome
New research is challenging a longstanding assumption that a baby’s gut microbiome is primarily shaped by their mother’s vaginal microbiome, while shedding new light on the factors that do influence its development.
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NewsThree compounds from sea sponge and marine bacteria offer Covid-blocking powers
University of British Columbia researchers have identified three compounds that prevent COVID-19 infection in human cells, derived from natural sources including a BC sea sponge.