Press releases

Fungi do not have sexes, just so-called mating types. A study published in the prestigious journal PLoS shows that there are great similarities between the parts of DNA that determine the sex of plants and animals and the parts of DNA that determine mating types in certain fungi. This makes fungi interesting as new model organisms in studies of the evolutionary development of sex chromosomes.

This autumn a unique educational program will start, directed from Uppsala University and with eight institutions of higher education in six countries providing students from all over Europe with an opportunity to learn the best from each university. As a bonus, they will acquire a broad knowledge about how various lakes and waterways can function depending on local conditions.

The Swedish magazines Ny Teknik (New Technology) and Affärsvärlden (Business World) have jointly identified the 33 most interesting new technology companies in Sweden.

The discovery of the brain’s so-called melanocortin system and its central role in controlling appetite has paved the way for entirely new possibilities for treating obesity and anorexia.

APS-1 is an rare hereditary disease where the immune system attacks the body’s own organs. Within the framework of a major EU project, coordinated by Professor Olle Kämpe at Uppsala university, scientists have now managed to identify a protein that opens new possibilities of understanding APS-1 and other autoimmune disorders. The discovery is being published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Charles Darwin maintained that the domesticated chicken derives from the red jungle fowl, but new research from Uppsala University now shows that the wild origins of the chicken are more complicated than that.

Contrary to our previous beliefs, identical twins are not genetically identical. This surprising finding is presented by American, Swedish, and Dutch scientists in a study being published today in the prestigious journal American Journal of Human Genetics. The finding may be of great significance for research on hereditary diseases and for the development of new diagnostic methods.

The cultivation of shrimp and fish in tropical coastal areas is often described as an environmentally friendly way to alleviate poverty, but in fact this cultivation has negative consequences for both the local population and the environment. Daniel A. Bergquist of Uppsala University, Sweden, has studied how policies for sustainable development can go so wrong.

On June 13 and 14 2008 the opera Tosca will be performed in a unique production that recreates and brings to life much of its origin. The three acts will be staged in three historic venues in Uppsala with some of Sweden’s most prominent soloists.

VINNOVA and the Swedish National Space Board are making a major investment in research and development of pioneering space technology at Uppsala University’s Ångström Laboratory. It involves a three- to five-year commitment to extremely miniaturized subsystems for space applications.

With the aid of computerized image analysis, it may be possible in the future for radiologists to feel images with the help of a three-dimensional mouse. Erik Vidholm at Uppsala University has been involved in developing the new technology, which makes it easier to diagnose and plan the treatment of cancer, for instance.

Researchers at Uppsala University and the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Stockholm present in today's web edition of the journal Science evidence that their theory about the core of the earth is correct. Among other applications, the findings may be of significance for our understanding of the cooling down of the earth, and of the stability of the earth's magnetic field.

Uppsala University Education, the University’s unit for commissioned education, is making major commitments in the form of custom-tailored courses and international commissions.

The disease familial combined hyperlipidemia (FCH) is a common cause of disturbed metabolism of fat and early heart attacks. Uppsala University scientists have now developed a pioneering method and can show for the first time what genes are regulated by the gene USF1, which is known to cause the disease. These findings are being presented today in the leading journal Genome Research.

A comprehensive research evaluation Quality and Renewal carried out at Uppsala University has shown that many departments are world leaders in their research. Now the University is making a major commitment to create some 70 new research positions in especially strong and strategic areas.

A new study has mapped the risk factors behind the autoimmune disease SLE in the entire human genome. The findings of the study, in which researchers from Uppsala University took part, are being presented today in the Web edition of The New England Review of Medicine.

Uppsala researchers, in collaboration with foreign colleagues, have identified a number of new genes that can be tied to the disease SLE, including a gene that hopefully might be used to treat the disease in the future by regulating the production of antibodies. These unique findings are being published in three articles in the new issue of the journal Nature Genetics.

Uppsala University pools its resources and focuses on research ethics. This year a new Interfaculty Centre for Research Ethics & Bioethics has been established.

With the aid of various alarm calls the Siberian jay bird species tells other members of its group what their main predators - hawks - are doing. This evince situation-specific fleeing behaviors, which enhances their chances of survival. This discovery shows for the first time that animals can assess and communicate about the behavior of predators.