Press releases

The use of short flashes of X-ray light brings scientists one big step closer toward developing better catalysts to transform the greenhouse gas methane into a less harmful chemical. The result, published in the journal Science, reveals for the first time how carbon-hydrogen bonds of alkanes break and how the catalyst works in this reaction.

Complicated, hard-to-heal wounds are a growing medical problem and there are currently only two drugs approved with proven efficacy. In a new study on humans, researchers at Uppsala University show that treatment with a specific type of modified lactic acid bacteria works well and has a positive effect on the healing of wounds.

In a new study, researchers at Uppsala University have investigated how junk food affects sleep. Healthy participants consumed an unhealthier as well as a healthier diet in a randomised order. After the unhealthier diet, the quality of the participants’ deep sleep had deteriorated, compared with those who had followed the healthier diet. The results have been published in the journal Obesity.

In a new study, researchers from Uppsala University in Sweden, together with colleagues from the University of São Paulo, Brazil, have investigated the impact that a barren living environment for sows leaves on the next generation. The pigs in the study were bred in Brazil and kept according to breeding standards in that country. The sows’ uncomfortable and unstimulating environment brought with it several different types of changes in the epi...

The Johan Skytte Foundation is delighted to announce that Alexander Wendt and Martha Finnemore have been jointly awarded the Johan Skytte Prize in Political Science. The prize is a recognition of their exceptional contributions to the field, particularly in advancing the constructivist approach to the study of international relations.

In the quest for fossil-free fuels for aircraft, a new study shows that isoprene could be part of a future solution. Isoprene can be produced by blue-green algae from sunlight, water and ordinary carbon dioxide. The productivity of the cyanobacteria increases if they are exposed to violet light or higher temperatures, and isoprene is ideally suited for photochemical processing into aviation fuels.

Researchers from Uppsala University have developed a method that helps immune cells exit from blood vessels into the tumour and kill cancer cells. The aim is to improve treatment of aggressive brain tumours. The study has been published in the journal Cancer Cell.

One strategy that viruses use to take over a host cell is to mimic small parts of the cell's proteins called motifs. In a new study coordinated from Uppsala University, researchers have used a new method and doubled the available information on how viruses mimic human binding motifs. The results suggest new targets for the development of antiviral inhibitors.

Why is it that certain mammals have an exceptional sense of smell, some hibernate, and yet others, including humans, are predisposed to disease? A major international research project, jointly led by Uppsala University, Sweden and the Broad Institute, USA, has surveyed and analysed the genomes of 240 different mammals. The results, now published in 11 articles in the journal Science, show how the genomes of humans and other mammals have develo...

A new study by researchers at Uppsala University and Uppsala University Hospital shows that men who have a neurodevelopmental disorder, such as autism and ADHD, also have a slightly increased risk of testicular cancer, or seminoma. This is the first study to show such a link, with the results to be published in the British Journal of Cancer.

A new study led by researchers from Uppsala University shows a clear link between economic inequality and mortality during severe flood disasters. Countries with an uneven distribution of income had many times higher mortality rates compared to countries with more evenly distributed income levels. The results are published in the scientific journal Nature Sustainability.

Patients treated with blood pressure-lowering drugs can experience much greater improvements from a change of medication than from doubling the dose of their current medication. This is shown by a new study from Uppsala University, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). In this study, 280 patients tested four different blood pressure-lowering drugs over the course of a year.

Rich elites with large swimming pools and well-maintained lawns are leaving poorer communities without basic access to water in cities across the world. New research, led by Uppsala University, published in Nature Sustainability has found social inequalities are driving urban water crises more than environmental factors, such as climate change or the growth of urban populations.

When the human remains found on board the warship Vasa were investigated, it was determined that the skeleton designated G was a man. New research now shows that the skeleton is actually from a woman.

The sharp increase in heatwaves in southern Europe in recent years is not only due to the greenhouse effect. Climate change has made a particular type of atmospheric circulation pattern more common, and this has contributed to extreme weather and been the underlying cause of nine out of ten heat-related deaths. This is according to a new study by researchers from Uppsala University and CNRS in France.

A new study from researchers at Uppsala University and Karolinska Institutet shows that children who go on to develop symptoms of autism have different activity in their brain's visual cortex from as early as five months when looking at certain types of movement. This finding may indicate that autistic people perceive their surroundings in a different way even from a very young age, which could affect their development and learning.

Churches are preserved by an antiquarian system that risks killing them instead of keeping them alive. The Swedish State and the Church of Sweden therefore need to define new joint visions and goals to enable the ecclesiastical cultural heritage to be used and developed. This is shown by historian of art Henrik Lindblad in a new doctoral thesis from Uppsala University.

Scientists from Uppsala University have used cryo-electron microscopy to reveal details of the protein synthesis mechanism in the parasite Giardia intestinalis, which causes diarrhoeal disease. The new insights could be valuable for screening specific drugs against Giardia and other protozoan parasites.

For nearly 190 years, scientists have searched for the origins of ancient sea-going reptiles from the Age of Dinosaurs. Now a team of Swedish and Norwegian palaeontologists has discovered remains of the earliest known ichthyosaur or ‘fish-lizard’ on the remote Arctic island of Spitsbergen.

Thanks to a gift from an American donor to Uppsala University, Sweden, research into immune reactions in cases of transplantation, autoimmunity and cancer will receive a major boost. The donation, totalling USD 4.5 million, will increase opportunities to develop new treatment strategies in this vital area over the long term.

Overweight and obesity among four-year-olds increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study by Uppsala University involving over 200,000 children in Sweden. The number of children with obesity increased by some 30 percent, and there are large regional differences. The study was published in the journal Acta Paediatrica.

Detailed images of illness, death and cancelled activities; these were some of the common themes of children’s drawings during the COVID-19 pandemic. A new study from Uppsala University, in which researchers studied 91 drawings made by children aged between 4 and 6, shows that the pandemic affected the children significantly and that they had extensive knowledge about the disease.

A research group at Uppsala University has developed a simple and effective artificial blood-brain barrier model that can be used to determine how well antibody-based therapies can enter the brain. Today animal experimentation is the most common method for testing an antibody’s function and the new model could reduce the need for animal testing.

On 23 February the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, Amina J Mohammed, will give the Dag Hammarskjöld lecture in Uppsala. The lecture is open to the public.

The use of broad-spectrum antibiotics increased drastically in intensive care at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. At first, this helped patients avoid urinary tract infections and seemed to prevent the growth of most bacteria. However, it also contributed to a sharp growth in enterococci, an antibiotic-tolerant group of bacteria, which rendered the treatment of urinary tract infections more difficult.

Thanks to a new prognostic method for detecting cancers including cancer of the large intestine, doctors could provide clearer disease prognoses and predict which patients will respond best to immunotherapy. The method consists of a combination of two types of immune cells that characterise certain forms of cancer. This has been shown in a new study by researchers at Uppsala University to be published in the journal eBioMedicine.

The earlier infants begin to taste small samples of solid food, the earlier they eat more food and stop breastfeeding. This is shown in a new study from Uppsala University and Sophiahemmet University, in which the mothers of 1,251 infants from all over Sweden participated. Almost half of the infants received tastings at the age of four months.

Bacterial perseverance is a new phenomenon that helps explain how bacteria adapt to survive antibiotic treatments. A group of researchers at Uppsala University have studied how individual bacteria react when exposed to different antibiotics. The result underlines the importance of adhering strictly to antibiotic prescriptions.

A new study from researchers at Uppsala University presents novel findings on why human lymph nodes lose their function with age and the consequences for the effectiveness of our immune system. The article has been published in The Journal of Pathology.

In a new scientific study, researchers at Uppsala University have shown that Scandinavian wolves carry around 100,000 harmful mutations in their genome. As long as the harmful mutations can be compensated by a healthy genetic variant, this does not need to pose a problem. However, as there has been a high level of inbreeding in the wolf population, the occurrence of double harmful variants has increased with each generation.

Men are at an increased risk of a severe bout of COVID-19 compared to women. Researchers at Uppsala University have now shown that this may be due to loss of the Y chromosome in part of their white blood cells. The findings could eventually be used to assess the risk of developing severe COVID-19 and perhaps to improve treatment.

Using new gene mapping methods, researchers have found connections between atopic dermatitis (eczema) in dogs and several regions of the genome. Some of the genes identified coincide with genes linked to similar problems in humans. The filaggrin gene region, for example, which is regarded as the most powerful risk factor for atopic eczema in humans, has now also been linked to this disease in Labrador retrievers.

Researchers at Uppsala University have discovered and characterised a DNA sequence found in jawed vertebrates, such as sharks and humans, but absent in jawless vertebrates, such as lampreys. This DNA is important for the shaping of the joint surfaces during embryo development.

The European robin’s closest relatives are found in tropical Africa. The European robin is therefore not closely related to the Japanese robin, despite their close similarity in appearance. This is confirmed by a new study of the Old World flycatcher family, to which these birds belong. The study comprises 92 per cent of the more than 300 species in this family.

Preschool children's play involving tablets is less creative and imaginative compared to their play involving physical toys. This is shown in a new study by Uppsala University, and the difference is substantial. The results counter occasional claims that new technology would make children more creative.

An international team of surgeons and scientists from, among others, Uppsala University has confirmed secure surgical access to the central core of the human cochlea. The research, published today in Scientific Reports, is critical to the first in-human trials of new cell, gene and drug therapies for the inner ear, and will assist with treatment for improving hearing loss and deafness over the long-term.

The malignant brain tumour type medulloblastoma can become resistant to therapy which can cause relapse. Researchers at Uppsala University have discovered a certain protein that makes tumour cells resting and insensitive to radiation treatment. The research group hopes that the results could eventually lead to better treatments for children that have the highest risk to develop relapses.

Food lies at the heart of both health and sustainable development. This year’s Uppsala Health Summit takes on the challenges associated with our food systems and how to make them healthier, more inclusive, equitable and sustainable.

Neurochemical changes in the brain differ among patients with social anxiety treated using both SSRIs and CBT, compared to those treated using only CBT. While the combined treatment involving the medicine blocked the serotonin transporters, availability of such transporters increased in patients who only received CBT.

Vertebrate genomes are repositories for retrovirus code that was deposited into germ line as inherited endogenous retroviruses during evolution. Researchers from Uppsala University and Princeton University now provide new findings about retroviral establishment and distribution among Darwin’s finches. The findings are being published in Nature Communications.

The current nuclear threat is the most serious since the end of the Cold War. How did we get here and what role can the new Alva Myrdal Centre for Nuclear Disarmament play? On 19 October, Uppsala University will inaugurate this highly relevant centre. Speakers at the inauguration include Beatrice Fihn, Executive Director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017, and Rupal N. Me...

A new dissertation on surrogacy highlights Thai women's experiences of having acted as surrogate mothers. The dissertation shows the women's vulnerability in a global surrogacy industry, but also provides a more nuanced picture of what makes women seek surrogacy and how they relate to the process.

Using state of the art techniques, researchers from Uppsala University have shown that the metabolism in patients with type 2 diabetes and prediabetes was much more disturbed than previously known, and that it varied between organs and with the severity of the disease. The study, which is a collaboration with Copenhagen University and AstraZeneca, among others, has been published in the journal Cell Reports Medicine.

A new study from Uppsala University shows that using a weighted blanket at bedtime increases melatonin in young adults. This hormone increases in response to darkness, and some evidence suggests that it promotes sleep. The findings are published in the Journal of Sleep Research.

On 1 October this year, it will be 400 years since Johan Skytte founded a professorship in eloquence and political science. His intention was to strengthen the state administration by providing the highly qualified diplomats and civil servants that Sweden needed to maintain its position as a European great power. The Johan Skytte Professorship is the oldest active chair in political science in the world. To mark the 400th anniversary, a lectur...

Researchers from Uppsala University and elsewhere have been studying the effect of rising temperatures on the lifespan of pollinating fig wasps. The findings show that the wasps lived much shorter lives at high temperatures, which would make it difficult for them to travel the long distances between the trees they pollinate.

There are strong links between bacteria living in the gut and the levels of small molecules in the blood known as metabolites. Such is the finding of a new study led by researchers from Uppsala University and Lund University, which is now published in the journal Nature Communications.

In just 30 minutes, their test can determine which antibiotic is required to treat a urinary tract infection. Johan Elf and Özden Baltekin are recognised for their innovation, which will help reduce antibiotic resistance and advance personalised care. 

In a large international study, researchers at Uppsala University have identified DNA regions that are associated with physical activity or leisure screen time. The findings confirm that physical activity is beneficial for health and suggest that a more sedentary lifestyle can be explained by how muscles respond to exercise.

Uppsala University is now handing over the remains of a man contained in the University’s collections to Arjeplog’s Sami association. He will be interred at a ceremony in Arjeplog on 9 September, along with other remains contained in Lund University’s collections.