Researchers have developed a strategy that has the potential to improve vision in patients with macular degeneration in the future. Using a gene therapy, they sensitized blind retinas of mice and human organ donors to near-infrared light. The team based at the Institute of Molecular and Clinical Ophthalmology Basel (IOB) has published its results in the journal Science.
Atomically thin layers of the semimetal tungsten ditelluride conduct electricity losslessly along narrow, one-dimensional channels at the crystal edges. The material is therefore a second-order topological insulator. By obtaining experimental proof of this behavior, physicists from the University of Basel have expanded the pool of candidate materials for topological superconductivity. The findings have been published in the journal Nano Letters.
From itching, abdominal pain and exhaustion to unconsciousness: the drug midostaurin can help alleviate these symptoms and improve quality of life in patients with mastocytosis. This has been proven by a research group at the University of Basel.
The Botnar Research Centre for Child Health (BRCCH) is supporting 11 research projects on Covid-19. Within the framework of the “Fast Track Call for Acute Global Health Challenges” (FTC), Fondation Botnar is financing the projects at the BRCCH's partner institutions with a total of around CHF 15 million over two and a half years.
The University Council at the University of Basel has selected six new professors: Professor Roland Bingisser for emergency medicine, Professor Petr Broz for immunology, Professor Annette Brühl for affective disorders, Professor Ruth Delzeit for global and regional land use change, Professor Scott McNeil for nanopharmaceutical and regulatory sciences, and Professor Corinne Zellweger-Gutknecht for private law.
For the first time, researchers have succeeded in creating strong coupling between quantum systems over a greater distance. They accomplished this with a novel method in which a laser loop connects the systems. In the scientific journal Science, the physicists from the University of Basel and University of Hanover reported that the new method opens up new possibilities in quantum networks and quantum sensor technology.
Certain bacteria, including the dangerous nosocomial pathogen MRSA, can protect themselves from acidic conditions in our body and thus ensure their survival. Researchers at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel have now elucidated an important mechanism in this process.
A survey by the University of Basel of over 10,000 people from throughout Switzerland has shown that around half of respondents feel more stressed in lockdown than they did before the coronavirus crisis. In the lockdown phase under study, the frequency of severe depressive symptoms almost tripled. On the other hand, 26% of respondents reported a drop in stress during lockdown. The survey also identified behaviors that can help reduce stress.
The fight against Covid-19 is far from over. People working in healthcare are more aware of this than most. In an interview, Prof. Michael Simon, Professor in Nursing Science at the University of Basel, speaks about the challenges faced by staff in hospitals and nursing homes.
