The University Council of the University of Basel gained a new member at the start of the year: Dr. Michaela Kneissel. She heads the Musculoskeletal Disease Area at the Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research and is an experienced life sciences and drug development researcher.
Researchers from Basel and Spain have identified a novel SARS-CoV-2 variant that has spread widely across Europe in recent months, according to an un-peer-reviewed preprint released this week. While there is no evidence of this variant being more dangerous, its spread may give insights into the efficacy of travel policies adopted by European countries during the summer.
Researchers at the University of Basel have developed a precisely controllable system for mimicking biochemical reaction cascades in cells. Using microfluidic technology, they produce miniature polymeric reaction containers equipped with the desired properties.
A huge number of volunteers signed up to help people in coronavirus risk groups – primarily via online platforms. Such websites can have a positive impact with regard to the mobilization, willingness and satisfaction of volunteers, including in the longer term.
Researchers at the University of Basel have discovered a new mechanism by which bacteria ensure that their outer cell membrane remains intact and functional even under hostile conditions. This mechanism is important for the pathogen’s survival in the host. The study provides new insights underlying pathogenic virulence.
Bronze Age pastoralists in what is now southern Russia apparently covered shorter distances than previously thought. It is believed that the Indo-European languages may have originated from this region, and these findings raise new questions about how technical and agricultural innovations spread to Europe. An international research team, with the participation of the University of Basel, has published a paper on this topic.
This year’s Cloëtta Prize is awarded to researchers from Basel and Bern. Mohamed Bentires-Alj, Professor of Experimental Surgical Oncology at the University and University Hospital of Basel, and Nadia Mercader Huber, Professor in Anatomy, Developmental Biology and Regeneration at the University of Bern. They will each receive 50,000 Swiss francs.
The Dammann collection is one of the most extensive collections of languages and oral literatures of Namibia. To raise awareness of this unique archive and make it more visible to the Namibian public, students and faculty members of the University of Basel developed the online platform “Namibia 1953–54.”
Despite significant progress in prevention and therapy, millions of people still get infected with HIV every year. The main burden of HIV/AIDS falls on Africa. To contain the epidemic, innovative methods are needed to enable early diagnosis of all those affected. A Basel research group has now been able to significantly improve the success of "door-to-door" testing campaigns thanks to HIV self-tests.
