The tumour form multiple myeloma is very challenging to treat and is still considered incurable. In a recently published study in the scientific journal Oncotarget, researchers at Uppsala University show how inhibition of the protein BMI-1 could be used as a new strategy to treat the disease. Multiple myeloma is a type of blood cancer where immune cells grow in an uncontrolled manner in the bone marrow.

  A study led by researchers at Uppsala University, which included more than 13,000 patients, has resulted in a new tool that will facilitate the treatment of patients with stable coronary artery disease.

Online support can help parents of children with cancer to cope with symptoms of post-traumatic stress and depression. This finding emerges from a study by researchers at the Department of Women’s and Children’s Health at Uppsala University. Previous research has shown that a substantial proportion of parents of children being treated for cancer experience symptoms of post-traumatic stress and depression.

A unique pathology atlas is now being launched and made available to researchers all over the world. It maps cancer-related genes and opens up a new route towards personalised cancer treatment. The atlas project has been led by Professor Mathias Uhlén, SciLifeLab, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, in cooperation with colleagues from Uppsala University and elsewhere. The new pathology atlas is a major step forward for the dream o...

Researchers at Uppsala University have developed a new method for very rapidly determining whether infection-causing bacteria are resistant or susceptible to antibiotics. The findings have now been published in the US journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Antibiotic resistance is a growing medical problem that threatens human health globally. One important contributory factor in the development of resistance is...

Traditionally, tissue regeneration research uses limited design criteria and a single goal approach. Despite regenerative medicine moving to the forefront of therapeutic strategies, the final product is frequently disappointing, meaning lengthy repetition of costly trials. The part EU-funded BIODESIGN (Rational bioactive materials design for tissue regeneration) project has completed an outcome-driven initiative with first class academic and...

In a major international collaboration led by Imperial College, London, researchers at Uppsala University and elsewhere have found a way to facilitate future measurements using advanced free-electron lasers with a spectrometer. The Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS), the free-electron laser (FEL) at Stanford University, California, produces X-ray pulses that are millions of times stronger than other sources.

Epigenetic changes are chemical modifications that turn our genes off or on. In a new study from Uppsala University, researchers show that tea consumption in women leads to epigenetic changes in genes that are known to interact with cancer and estrogen metabolism. The results are published in the journal Human Molecular Genetics. It is well known that our environment and lifestyle factors, such as food choices, smoking and exposure to c...

In an article in the journal Energy and Environmental Science, researchers from Uppsala University, Sweden, presented a type of low-cost and environmental-friendly organic polymer nano-material as photocatalysts for hydrogen generation, and propose the working mechanism of the photocatalytic reactive site. Development of photocatalysts for light driven hydrogen generation from water is an ideal way to convert and store solar energy.

Dried blood on filter paper stored for future diagnostic purposes – considerably easier than the present-day, resource-consuming method using frozen blood samples in plastic tubes. In a new study, Uppsala researchers have successfully measured 92 different proteins in millimetre-sized circles punched out of dried samples. They have shown that this method has great potential to save resources, to the benefit of early diagnostics and treatmen...

Researchers from Uppsala University have studied beta cells of type-2 diabetic donors, and find that a mislocalised calcium channel contributes to the failed insulin secretion associated with the disease. After a meal, the blood sugar rises. To counteract this and to make the sugar available to the body, specialised cells in the pancreas get activated to secrete insulin. In people with diabetes this mechanism fails, which leads to elevated b...

Resistance to malaria drugs means that pregnant women are unable to overcome the anaemia caused by the malaria parasite – and their babies are born undersized. A study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and Uppsala University however, exposes the effects of malaria in pregnant women and shows how the PTEF protein is central to the infection. The study opens the way for new malaria drugs.

Kidney dysfunction affects more than 50% of all cancer patients, and is directly linked to poor survival. Despite the high occurrence, it is still not clear how presence of a tumour contributes to kidney dysfunction and how this can be prevented. A new study from researchers at Uppsala University shows that kidney dysfunction can be caused by the patient’s own immune system, ‘tricked’ by the tumour to become activated.

  Bianca and Rackham are the two new supercomputers to be inaugurated at Uppsala University’s UPPMAX on 24th April. They are both unique in different ways and together they enable new, cutting-edge research in fields such as bioinformatics and materials science.

In rheumatoid arthritis, antibodies are formed that affect the inflammation in the joints. In an article published today in the journal Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, researchers at Uppsala University show that antibodies against the cartilage protein collagen II are associated with a good prognosis. “Analysing these antibodies, in combination with other relevant antibodies, could be used for predicting prognosis and choosing therap...

With their measurements and samples, nearly 3,500 schoolchildren have assisted a research study on lakes and global warming. The results show that water temperatures generally remain low despite the air becoming warmer. This helps to curb the outflow of greenhouse gases (GHGs). How often is water warmer than air? Gesa Weyhenmeyer, Professor of Aquatic Biogeochemistry at Uppsala University, asked herself this question when she analysed thousa...

When many genes regulate a single trait, they commonly work together in large clusters or ‘networks’. Taking this into account allows better predictions of how an individual’s genetic make-up affects the trait concerned. The risk of perceiving the importance of an individual gene incorrectly is also reduced. This has been shown by researchers at Uppsala University, through a detailed analysis of thousands of related yeast cells.

Researchers have now found an explanation for what triggered the largest volcanic eruption witnessed by mankind. The volcano’s secret was revealed by geochemical clues hidden inside volcanic quartz crystals. The deadliest volcanoes on earth are called supervolcanoes, capable of producing cataclysmic eruptions that devastate huge regions, and cause global cooling of the climate.

Researchers have discovered minerals from 43 meteorites that landed on Earth 470 million years ago. More than half of the mineral grains are from meteorites completely unknown or very rare in today’s meteorite flow. These findings mean that we will probably need to revise our current understanding of the history and development of the solar system.

Researchers at Uppsala University plan to manufacture a type of coronagraph for the VLT, the Very Large Telescope in Chile. The coronagraph is a key component of the telescope which will be used to search for planets in the neighbouring star system Alpha Centauri. The Uppsala researchers’ participation is a result of the European Southern Observatory (ESO) signing a deal with Breakthrough Initiatives for adapting the instrument of the ...