Latest Biomedical Catalyst investments will transform patient outcomes
Cutting edge projects have received £23 million of government funding under the Biomedical Catalyst, it has been announced.
MRC scientists discover unique tau filament structures in head-injury associated dementia
Researchers at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) have revealed the atomic structures of the abnormal tau filaments associated with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a head injury-associated neurodegenerative disease, and found that they differ in structure from those seen in Alzheimer’s disease.
Using music as a force for change
Could combining medical research with the arts help develop effective health interventions? Dr Cressida Bowyer, Senior Research Fellow in the Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries at the University of Portsmouth, is figuring out how to combat harmful air pollution in a community in Sub-Saharan Africa using wonderfully creative means.
High blood pressure, diabetes and obesity each linked to unhealthy brains
Factors that influence the health of our blood vessels, such as smoking, high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes are linked to less healthy brains, according to new research part-funded by the MRC.
New genetic data on 50,000 UK Biobank participants available for global health researchers
A vast tranche of new UK Biobank genetic data becomes available to health researchers today, offering an unprecedented resource to enhance understanding of human biology and aid in therapeutic discovery.
Prospective drug found by testing in human heart muscle grown from stem cells
Scientists have found a potential new drug for treating the heart damage caused by a heart attack by targeting the way the heart reacts to stress, according to new research published in the journal Cell Stem Cell and funded by the MRC, the British Heart Foundation and Wellcome.
HIV remission achieved in second patient
A second person has experienced sustained remission from HIV-1 after ceasing treatment, according to new research part-funded by the MRC.
Distorted, stretched DNA may increase risk of off-target changes with CRISPR-Cas9
Distortions to DNA, which occur routinely during gene expression and other cellular processes, could lead to off-target changes to the genome when using CRISPR-Cas9, a new study suggests. The Medical Research Council scientists behind the research say that their findings may help to pave the way to improve on the accuracy of gene editing for clinical applications.
New clues as to why non-smokers, as well as smokers, develop COPD
MRC-funded researchers led by the Universities of Leicester and Nottingham have discovered genetic differences that put some people at higher risk than others of developing chronic lung disease.
MRC-funded research reveals extent of trauma and PTSD in young people
MRC-funded research from King’s College London suggests one in 13 young people in the UK have had post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) before reaching age 18.
UKRI ‘One Health’ AMR research priorities showcased in Parliament
The UKRI Cross-Council AMR Initiative and Stephen Metcalfe MP, Chair of the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee and member of the Science and Technology Committee (Commons), yesterday (Weds) hosted a parliamentary panel and Q&A on Antimicrobial Resistance: How Research is Tackling the Challenge.
New research suggests a simple blood test could improve the early detection of lung cancer
New research led by scientists at the MRC Toxicology Unit suggests that by analysing levels of DNA in the blood, the early detection of lung cancer could be improved.
Researchers develop new technique to analyse cancer cells’ life history
A team of researchers from the MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine at Oxford University has developed a new technique that allows scientists to reliably track genetic errors in individual cancer cells, and find out how these might lead to uncontrollable growth.
Higher dose of chemotherapy reduces risk of breast cancer recurrence and death
Giving chemotherapy drugs every two weeks instead of the usual every three weeks reduces the risk of breast cancer recurrence and death, according to new research.
Origins of depression brought into focus in large-scale gene study
Hundreds of genes have been newly linked to depression, shedding light on the origins of the condition and highlighting personality types that could be at risk.
Statin therapy reduces cardiovascular disease risk in older people
Statin therapy reduces major vascular events, such as heart attacks and strokes, in a wide range of people, including those over the age of 75, according to new research from MRC scientists.
New 3D imaging technique reveals how pancreatic cancers start
A new technique to study tissue samples in 3D has revealed that pancreatic cancers can start and grow in two distinct ways, solving a decades-old mystery of how tumours form.
Research sheds light on body clock and links to mental health and disease
A large-scale genomic analysis has revealed some of the inner workings of the body clock, shedding new light on how it links to mental health and disease.
New era for UK superbug research: 20 year vision and five year action plan
The UK’s new 20 year vision and five year National Action Plan (2019-2024) for containing, controlling and mitigating antimicrobial resistance has been announced by Health Secretary Matt Hancock at the World Economic Forum at Davos today.
Virtual reality in research
Computational scientist Stephen Taylor and his team at the MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine (MRC WIMM) are helping scientists and surgeons explore biological structures up closer than ever before.
A new role for the brain’s support cells in controlling circadian rhythms of animal behaviour
Astrocytes, ‘caretaker’ cells that surround and support neurons in the brain, play a much more important role in circadian rhythms, the body’s 24-hour internal clock, than previously understood.
Scientists find a new way to target norovirus family
MRC scientists have taken a major step forward in understanding how a family of viruses, including norovirus, initiate infections.
Gene variations linked to higher risk of diabetes and heart attacks
People who are less likely to put on excess fat around their hips due to their genes are at higher risk of type 2 diabetes and heart attacks, according to a new study led by scientists from the Medical Research Council (MRC) Epidemiology Unit at the University of Cambridge.
MRC researcher stars in the BBC RI Christmas Lectures
MRC researcher Professor Bobby Gaspar, whose gene therapy trial into the rare ‘Bubble baby’ disease has been supported by the MRC since 2007, will be interviewed on stage by Professor Aoife McLysaght, the programme’s Genetics Society Special Guest Lecturer.
UKRI Physics of Life call for proposals
The first of two calls for proposals associated with the UKRI Physics of Life initiative is now open. The aim is to support ambitious interdisciplinary research that brings together physics and the life sciences.