Category: Research in Edinburgh
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The Million Pound Brain Prize: Edinburgh University Researcher Celebrated as 2020 Prizewinner
Fundamental and pioneering. This is how the selection committee for the prestigious and internationally-recognised Lundbeck Foundation Brain Prize has described the work of 2020 prize-winners Prof. Sir Adrian Bird and Prof. Huda Zoghbi. Having both made outstanding contributions to the field of neuroscience, they will now share the 10 million DKK (around £1.17 million) prize,…
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Changing the perception of distance
HYPED is the University of Edinburgh’s Hyperloop Team, dedicated to developing the world’s fifth mode of transport. The Hyperloop concept, developed by Elon Musk, consists of a long evacuated tube through which levitated capsules, called pods, travel through, propelled by electromagnetic forces. It is predicted to be the fastest mode of ground transportation, reducing the…
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New evidence suggests climate change is affecting animal behavior
Weather and climate have a significant influence on life on Earth. Weather is the condition of the atmosphere at a specific time and place. It is described by several elements such as temperature, precipitation, wind, and clouds. Climate refers to the long-term pattern of weather in a particular area. When we talk about climate change,…
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The rediscovery of a prehistoric crocodile species
Two and a half centuries after their discovery, the fossil remains of a mysterious creature has been identified as a new species. The remains turned out to belong to Mystriosaurus Iaurillardi – a Jurassic relative of modern-day crocodiles. The fossils were discovered in Altdorf, a town in southern Germany, in the 1770s, and were established…
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Mapping the human synaptome: the origins of thought?
The field of neuroscience has grown exponentially since it began. From the humble works of Ramón y Cajal, delicately hand-drawing the first images of human cortical neurons, to the advances by Karl Deisseroth manipulating neural activity using light. This progress is driven by one goal: a complete understanding of the most complex organ in the…
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J.K. Rowling Donates £15.3 Million to Multiple Sclerosis Research
Author J.K. Rowling has recently donated £15.3 million to research at the University of Edinburgh’s Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic. The Clinic was opened in 2010 in the name of J.K. Rowling’s mother, who had died of complications relating to multiple sclerosis (MS) in 1990. When Rowling turned 45, the age at which her mother…
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Scale of suicides by pesticide poisoning revealed by new study
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), pesticide self-poisoning is one of the most frequent means of suicide across the globe, killing an estimated 115,000 people a year and around 15 million people since 1960. The ingestion of highly hazardous pesticides (HHPs) affects Asia in particular, with it accounting for 60-90% of suicides in China,…
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Protein power: Dementia study reinforces role of damaging proteins in Alzheimer’s disease
A study, led by Professor Tara-Spires Jones at the University of Edinburgh, has elucidated the role of clusterin, a protein that accumulates at synapses in the brain, characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers studied brain tissue from deceased Alzheimer’s patients, which showed that the accumulation of clusterin occurs at synapses in addition to the aggregation of…
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Research reveals how the body can detect cancerous cells
Cancer is a group of diseases characterised by excessive cell division due to DNA damage, and can afflict many different cell types. Mutations often arise in genes involved in cell growth and survival, which makes cancer difficult to target and treat. However, the field of cancer therapy is moving forward at a swift pace, thanks…
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Video GP appointments: The new alternative to face-to-face consultations
A pilot study conducted by researchers at the University of Edinburgh in collaboration with the Universities of Warwick and Exeter has suggested that video consultations with a GP could be an alternative to face-to-face GP visits. This is a particularly contentious issue in most areas of work, as new technology is often used as a…