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  • ​Hidden oxygen gas has prevented higher voltages in batteries

    Researchers at Uppsala University have made a breakthrough in the understanding of energy storage in sodium ion batteries by using ultra-high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy. These findings will aid the development of new materials for future battery generations with significantly higher and more stable voltages than previously, shows an article published in the research journal Nature.

  • New evolutionary insights into the early development of songbirds

    An international team led by Alexander Suh at Uppsala University has sequenced a chromosome in zebra finches called the germline-restricted chromosome (GRC). The researchers found that the GRC is tens of millions of years old and plays a key role in songbird biology, having collected genes used for embryonic development.

  • ​Epilepsy drug inhibits brain tumour development

    Medication prescribed for a certain type of epilepsy may offer a new method for treating malignant infantile brain tumours. A specific mTOR inhibitor has the ability to cross the blood–brain barrier to both reach and attack the tumour at source. This has been demonstrated by researchers from Uppsala University, in collaboration with US and UK colleagues, and is published in Cell Stem Cell.

  • Whole-genome sequencing analysis helps in finding more exact biomarkers

    A new study from Uppsala University shows that whole-genome sequencing increases the precision of genetic studies, which in turn can improve our understanding of how to use biomarkers to discover disease. The results are published in the scientific journal Scientific Reports.

  • Marked divergence in inhalers’ carbon footprint

    In a new study, researchers at Uppsala University compared the carbon footprint of two kinds of inhaler used for treating asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: dry powder inhalers and sprays containing propellants. The results show that treatment with spray inhalers has a carbon footprint 20 times greater than that of using dry powder inhalers.

  • New method takes analysis of genetic libraries to next level

    Uppsala researchers have developed a new method for investigating dynamic processes in large genetic libraries. By using this method to study cell cycle regulation, they help paint a clearer picture of the elusive control mechanism. The study is published in the journal Nature Methods.

  • A genetic tug-of-war between the sexes begets variation

    In species with sexual reproduction, no two individuals are alike and scientists have long struggled to understand why there is so much genetic variation. In a new study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution, a team of researchers from the University of Uppsala in Sweden now show that a genetic tug-of-war between the sexes acts to maintain variation.

  • ​Connecting the brain and consciousness

    What is consciousness? What does it mean to be ‘aware’, and how is our consciousness connected to the physical brain? A recent thesis from Uppsala University explores the philosophical aspects of the issue, and proposes a solution: the ‘intrinsic consciousness’ theory.
    “We need to combine empirical and conceptual work to assess the significant issues raised by these developments in brain resear

  • ​Variability in the molecules of life

    How variable are gene transcripts and proteins, the molecules of life, across the tissues and organs of the human body? Furthermore, how variable are they within the same tissue type from different people? These questions are the focus of a new study led by researchers from Uppsala University, which is published in NAR Genomics and Bioinformatics.

  • The earliest well-preserved tetrapod may never have left the water

    Superbly preserved fossils from Russia, excavated with support of a grant from the National Geographic Society and described today by an international team in the leading scientific journal Nature, cast new and surprising light on one of the earliest tetrapods – the group of animals that made the evolutionary transition from water to land.

  • How rare earth element (REE)-rich deposits in central Sweden formed

    In the ancient Bergslagen ore province of central Sweden lies a zone of ‘Bastnäs-type’ rare earth element deposits, and in a new study, scientists from Uppsala University and the Geological Survey of Sweden (SGU) show how these deposits originally formed.

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