Author Archives: Science Media Centre
expert reaction to study looking at soft drinks and diabetes
Publishing in the European Journal of Endocrinology a group a scientists have examined the effect of sweetened and artificially sweetened drinks on type 2 diabetes and latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA) and report that increased consumption was associated with an increased risk of the disease. read more
expert reaction to taurine reducing symptoms of psychosis – unpublished poster presentation from the International Early Psychosis Association (IEPA) meeting in Milan
An unpublished poster presentation presented at the International Early Psychosis Association (IEPA) meeting in Milan has reported the use of the chemical taurine as able to reduce the symptoms of psychosis. read more
expert reaction to study looking at the relationship between cortisol levels in hair and saliva and IVF success
A group of researchers have examined the levels of cortisol in hair and saliva in women undergoing fertility treatment and publish their work in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology. They report that hair, but not saliva, cortisol concentrations predicted pregnancy. read more
expert reaction to study reporting production of functional mouse eggs in culture
Scientists publishing in the journal Nature reported the production of functional mouse eggs from embryonic and induced stem cells in mice. read more
strong voice sounds great – but will we all hear it?
By Fiona Fox This blog contains the thoughts of the author rather than representing the work or policy of the … read more
expert reaction to poster presentation (unpublished work) on artificial sweeteners and fertility from the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) meeting
A poster presented at the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) meeting in Salt Lake City has examined the effect of artificial sweeteners on the success of IVF treatment. read more
expert reaction to international efforts to curb hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) gases
The US secretary of state John Kerry has said that there are international efforts to cut hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) greenhouse gases such as those used in air conditioners and refrigerators. read more
Higher Education and Research Bill
There are some things that the scientific community are generally agreed on. That we need a stronger voice for science in government, most especially after Brexit, that what government spends on science is still too low (0.49% of GDP compared to the EU average of 0.67%) and that decisions about what research is conducted need to be free from government interference. But is the new U.K. Higher Education and Research Bill going to deliver all these goals? Unusually the scientific community is divided with Paul Nurse and the Royal Society believing that the bill presents the best chance of achieving some of the changes desperately needed, while others think it poses new risks. A strongly worded leader in Nature this week called on scientists to oppose the bill on the grounds that it opens the door to political interference and called on the scientific community to address the issues in public as well as negotiating behind closed doors. read more
expert reaction to study looking at neonicotinoid pesticides and bumblebees in the field
Publishing in Journal of Applied Ecology, a group of researchers examined the effect of exposure to three specific neonicotinoid pesticides on bumblebee colonies in a field setting and reported changes to colony numbers with some pesticides (for imidacloprid or thiamethoxam) more than with others (clothiandin). read more
expert reaction to University of Edinburgh study on dementia and environmental factors
Based on a review of previous studies a group of researchers have shortlisted a number of environmental risk factors for dementia in a paper published in the journal BMC Geriatrics. read more
expert reaction to antidepressants and risk of suicide and violence in healthy people
A review of published evidence on the effect of antidepressants on suicidal behaviour and violence in healthy people is published in Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine with the authors reporting ‘antidepressants double the occurrence of events in adult healthy volunteers that can lead to suicide and violence.’ read more
expert reaction to new study on climate forcing from aerosols
Publishing in the journal PNAS a group of researchers have analysed mechanisms of formation of atmospheric aerosols and their effect on climate change. read more
expert reaction to mouse study of gene therapy for Alzheimer’s disease
A group of scientists have described their use of a specific gene therapy to treat Alzheimer’s disease in a mouse model. Publishing in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences the scientists report that the upregulation of the PGC-1α gene brought about reduced biological markers of the disease and improved function in the mice. read more
expert reaction to a study using stem cell therapy to regenerate damaged primate hearts
Transplants often fail because of immune reactions of the patient against the donated organ or tissue. A paper published in the journal Nature has described attempts to use modified transplanted stem cells to regenerate the damaged hearts of five monkeys. read more
expert reaction to review of the health effects of natural alternatives to oestrogen therapy
A review of published evidence on the health effects of plant-derived compounds (phytoestrogens) similar in structure to oestrogen is published in the British Journal of Pharmacology. The review reported that, when used as an alternative to hormone replacement therapy, phytostrogens had the potential for harmful effects which are not at this stage outweighed by the health benefits. read more
expert reaction to decision on fracking in Lancashire
The government has given the go ahead for horizontal fracking at a site in Lancashire. read more
expert reaction to a study looking at semen quality of adult ICSI offspring
A group of researchers have examined the sperm quality of the world’s oldest group of young men conceived by of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) fertility treatment and report their results in the journal Human Reproduction. The authors report that sperm quantity and quality of these man was lower than average. read more
expert reaction to paper on the health effects of e-cigarettes
Publishing in The New England Journal of Medicine a group of researchers have examined the health effects of e-cigarettes. read more
expert reaction to MRSA in pork
The Guardian newspaper has reported that their investigations have shown a number of supermarket pork products to be contaminated with a strain of MRSA bacteria. read more
Childhood cancer incidence around Dounreay and Sellafield
Childhood leukaemia is rare, affecting approximately 500 children every year in the UK. There have been numerous studies and reports on the possible risks of childhood leukaemia in the vicinity of nuclear installations and there are acknowledged historical clusters of childhood leukaemia around both Sellafield and Dounreay nuclear sites. Recent reports of raised thyroid cancer incidence following reactor accidents in other countries have led to increased interest in the possible consequences of the 1957 Windscale fire. The Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment (COMARE) is publishing its 17th report, ‘Further consideration of the incidence of cancers around the nuclear installations at Sellafield and Dounreay’ – a comprehensive review of the incidence of leukaemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) and other cancers among young people around the Sellafield and Dounreay nuclear installations, updating its previous work. COMARE is a Department of Health Expert Committee providing independent advice to all government departments and agencies. read more