news from the lab 2017

Physical violence, war or a natural disaster can trigger posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Those affected keep reliving the traumatic event - through memories that hit them out of the blue or as recurring nightmares. As this psychological wound can't always be treated successfully with psychotherapy, scientists have long been looking for a way to influence trauma memory using drugs.

How dangerous does the general public consider mentally ill people to be? Scientists at the University of Basel and the University Psychiatric Clinics Basel have investigated the factors that influence social stigma.

The inflammatory response that is supposed to ward off pathogens that cause intestinal disease makes this even worse.

Huntington's disease is caused by a gene mutation that causes a protein to build up in the brain. In a world first, EPFL scientists have synthesized and studied modified forms of a mutant part of the protein, deepening our understanding of how it contributes to the disease, and pointing to new therapeutic strategies for treating it.

EPFL scientists have fully modeled the metabolism of the deadliest malaria parasite. The model offers unprecedented tools for developing a new generation of antimalarial therapies to overcome drug resistance. Image: Computational analysis of the malaria parasites' metabolism aids in the understanding of observed phenotypes.

'Is this your sister'' That's the kind of question asked by image-recognition systems, which are becoming increasingly prevalent in our everyday devices. They may soon be used for tumor detection and genomics, too. These systems rely on what is known as 'deep-learning' architectures - an exciting new development in artificial learning.

Chronic Granulomatous Disease is a hereditary disease of the immune system. Due to a gene defect, phagocytes of affected patients are unable to kill ingested bacteria and fungi.

A team of surgeons and engineers of Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, and the ARTORG Center for Biomedical Engineering Research, University of Bern (Switzerland), have developed a high-precision surgical robot for cochlear implantation.

Researchers from Empa in St. Gallen have succeeded in producing optic fibers for sensors that are ideal for textiles. This would enable hospitals to monitor whether a patient is developing pressure sores, for instance. Thanks to a melting technique, the team headed by Luciano Boesel from the materials research institution Empa produced what are known as polymer optic fibers in a particularly flexible form.

EPFL scientists have carried out a genomic and evolutionary study of a large and enigmatic family of human proteins, to demonstrate that it is responsible for harnessing the millions of transposable elements in the human genome. The work reveals the largely species-specific gene-regulatory networks that impact all of human biology, in both health and disease.

Researchers funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) studied laboratory mice growing up in a cowshed. This enabled them to investigate how the farm environment modifies the immune system and provides protection against allergies. Improved hygiene has largely eliminated infectious diseases from everyday life.

Until recently, genomics was a 'read-only' science. But scientists led by Rory Johnson at the University of Bern and the Centre for Genomic Regulation in Barcelona, have now developed a tool for quick and easy deletion of DNA in living cells. This software will boost efforts to understand the vast regions of non-coding DNA, or 'Dark Matter', in our DNA and may lead to discovery of new disease-causing genes and potential new drugs.

Around 3,000 heroin addicts currently receive opioids such as methadone, buprenorphine or morphine as part of their treatment in the Canton of Zurich.

Some organisms are able to survive in hot springs, while others can only live at mild temperatures because their proteins aren't able to withstand such extreme heat. ETH researchers investigated these differences and showed that often only a few key proteins determine the life and heat-induced death of a cell.

The sharp pain shoots to the face or teeth and seriously torments patients. Known as trigeminal neuralgia, it is one of the worst chronic nerve pains. The bouts are triggered by touch, such as shaving, putting on make-up, showering, talking and tooth brushing, or even a gust of wind. The cause is usually an irritation of the trigeminal nerve, the cranial nerve responsible for the sensory innervation of the facial area, parts of the scalp, and the oral cavity.

ETH Zurich researchers and Disney Research have produced a new algorithm that allows non-invasive reconstruction of the teeth and gums from digital photos.

Why do some people develop caries even though they always brush their teeth carefully while others are less stringent regarding dental hygiene yet do not have any holes' Ultimately, both have bacteria on the surface of their teeth which can attack the enamel. Enamel forms via the mineralization of specific enamel proteins.

Protein aggregates in neurons are characteristic for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative diseases.

EPFL scientists have made an extensive study in the cause of leukemia that could greatly improve the way we treat the disease. Leukemia affects 350,000 people worldwide. It is a cancer of the white blood cells, which are the cells of the immune system and are produced by stem cells in the bone marrow. There are two types of chronic and two types of acute leukemia.

Researchers from the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI) and the University of Basel have identified two types of neurons in the amygdala, each of which generates a distinct fear response - freezing or flight.