Author Archives: Science Media Centre
expert reaction to study of sugar in children’s drinks
The amount of sugar in the food and drink we consume is subject to an ongoing debate and researchers publishing in BMJ Open have looked at levels of sugar in juices and smoothies marketed to children. read more
expert reaction to study on the use of PET-CT scans to detect remaining cancer cells in neck and head cancer patients
The practice of neck dissection in the treatment of advanced head and neck cancer has been associated with complications for some patients. A randomised trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine reports that neck dissection is avoidable in 80% of cases and that the alternative application of PET-CT guided surveillance has similar survival rates and is more cost-effective. read more
expert reaction to study investigating the role of environmental factors and ethnicity in the prevalence of multiple sclerosis
A study looking at the prevalence of multiple sclerosis (MS) in different ethnic groups has been published in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal. The authors report higher prevalence in the white population compared to the black and South Asian populations of the same area of east London, which was in turn higher than the prevalence of MS in Africa and South Asia. read more
autism mortality report: personal tragedies, public crisis
Around 700,000 people in the UK have autism, many of whom are affected so severely that they do not speak, or only speak a few words, and the overwhelming majority will never work full-time. Despite being one of the costliest medical conditions and with controversy around its possible causes and treatments, there has been relatively little research into autism. A new report details how people with autism die much earlier than we realised and highlights how severe the illness is. The report, Personal tragedies, public crisis, has been put together by the research charity Autistica. read more
expert reaction to study investigating bariatric surgery, lifestyle and medication interventions and remission of type 2 diabetes
Publishing in the journal Diabetologia a group of researchers have compared gastric surgery with lifestyle and medical interventions for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. In the trial with 32 patients the authors report that the group which received surgery saw greater remission of diabetes. read more
bariatric surgery, lifestyle and medication interventions and remission of type 2 diabetes
Publishing in the journal Diabetologia a group of researchers have compared gastric surgery with lifestyle and medical interventions for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. In the trial with 32 patients the authors report that the group which received surgery saw greater remission of diabetes. read more
expert reaction to research letter on plant respiration and climate change
The rate of plant respiration (conversion of photosynthetic materials to carbon dioxide and energy) can change with temperature. A paper published in the journal Nature has reported that increasing temperatures due to climate change may increase plant respiration and hence atmospheric carbon dioxide, which they report to be the case in their experimental models. read more
expert reaction to retrieving memories in mice
A study published in the journal Nature has investigated mechanisms which control memory in mouse models of the disease. read more
expert reaction to announcement in Budget of a soft drinks industry levy targeted at producers of soft drinks that contain added sugars, to be introduced in two years’ time
The chancellor George Osborne has announced in the Budget a tax on the producers of certain sugary soft drinks which will come into effect in two years time. read more
expert reaction to editorial commenting on lessons that can be learned from the French clinical drug trial tragedy
The British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology has published an editorial which discusses possible failings and implications of the French drug trial earlier in the year which led to the deaths of several participants. read more
expert reaction to modelling study looking at Zika infection and microcephaly cases in the 2013-14 Zika outbreak in French Polynesia
A group of scientists have published their work in The Lancet journal in which they retrospectively analysed data from a previous Zika outbreak in French Polynesia. In their follow up modelling study they reported Zika virus infection during the first trimester of pregnancy led to higher than expected rates of microcephaly. The association between Zika virus infection and microcephaly, however, has not been precisely quantified. read more
expert reaction to reports of high levels of chlorine in Derbyshire water
The water company Severn Trent has advised thousands of customers in Derbyshire and Leicestershire not to use its water following the detection of high levels of chorine. read more
expert reaction to study investigating levels of ‘good’ cholesterol and heart disease risk in people with a rare genetic variant
A study published in the journal Science reported the discovery of a rare genetic variant associated with high levels of HDL cholesterol (HDL-C), normally termed ‘good cholesterol’, and also associated with an increased risk of heart disease. read more
expert reaction to two studies on stem cells and eyes
Two papers have been published in Nature examining the use of stem cells in eye research. The first reported stimulating the body’s own stem cells in the eye, in rabbits and separately in human infants, to promote regeneration of a surgically removed lens during treatment for cataracts. The second study used induced pluripotent stem cells and reported the ability to grow several types of eye tissue in a dish in a lab. read more
expert reaction to editorial suggesting microbes may be linked to Alzheimer’s disease
An editorial published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease has called for more research to investigate the role of microbes in the development of Alzheimer’s disease. read more
expert reaction to two studies investigating peanut allergy and peanut consumption in early years
Publishing in the New England Journal of Medicine two groups of researchers have investigated the effects of consumption of certain foods as a baby on allergy later in life. read more
expert reaction to ‘Fukushima – Five Years On’
The fifth anniversary of the Fukushima nuclear disaster is on 11th March 2016 and is being marked by a special edition of the journal Clinical Oncology. read more
expert reaction to research on climate change and food/health
The effect that climate change could have on future food production and wider health is the subject of a paper published in The Lancet journal, with the authors reporting their use of a model which suggests reductions in global food availability and an increase in related deaths by 2050. read more
expert reaction to study investigating vitamin D supplementation in pregnancy and bone health in babies
Publishing in The Lancet journal, a group of scientists have looked at whether babies born to mothers whose diets were supplemented with vitamin D during their pregnancy have a greater whole-body bone mineral content (BMC) than those whose mothers diets were unchanged, and report no difference in neonatal whole-body BMC between these two groups. read more
British scientists win the world’s largest prize for neuroscience
Next week three neuroscientists will be awarded the world’s most valuable prize for brain research. The Brain Prize, awarded by the Grete Lundbeck European Brain Research Foundation in Denmark is worth one million Euros. Awarded annually, it recognises one or more scientists who have distinguished themselves by an outstanding contribution to neuroscience with the world’s most valuable prize for neuroscience. This will be the first time that British scientists have won the prize. read more