news 2023

Artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly important in drug discovery. Advances in the use of Big Data, learning algorithms and powerful computers have now enabled researchers at the University of Zurich (UZH) to better understand a serious metabolic disease. Cystinosis is a rare lyosomal storage disorder affecting around 1 in 100,000 to 200,000 newborns worldwide.

Scientists have identified a new class of compounds called cyanotriazoles that have the potential to effectively inhibit the growth of trypanosomes, the parasites responsible for Chagas disease and African sleeping sickness. The results, published yesterday in the journal Science, demonstrate that the compounds show no toxicity to human cells, raising hopes for the development of new and improved treatments for neglected tropical diseases.

Receptor proteins serve as the -eyes and ears- of the cell. The largest receptor family are the so-called G protein-coupled receptors. They respond to highly diverse stimuli ranging from photons to hormones and odorants. Researchers at the University of Basel have discovered a unique recognition pattern that works like a barcode and tags the receptor for desensitization.

Health professionals are in urgent need of new antibiotics to tackle resistant bacteria. Researchers at the University of Zurich and the company Spexis have now modified the chemical structure of naturally occurring peptides to develop antimicrobial molecules that bind to novel targets in the bacteria's metabolism.

In the case of blood poisoning, the bacteria in the blood must be identified as fast as possible so that a life-saving therapy can be started. researchers have now developed "sepsis sensors" with magnetic nanoparticles that detect bacterial pathogens within a short period of time and identify suitable candidates for antibiotic therapies.

Researchers at the University of Basel have developed a new approach for a vaccine against COVID-19. This vaccine is based on a modified coronavirus that can enter body cells and trigger an effective immune response but cannot multiply in the body. In animal studies, the vaccine effectively protected against the disease and even prevented virus transmission.

Scientists have developed a peptide that binds to the protein calprotectin, a marker of major inflammatory disorders, and shown that it is suitable for diagnostic tests. The use of synthetic peptides for sensing disease markers is of great interest as they are more precise, robust, and cheaper than antibodies commonly used in diagnostic tests.

Diuretic drugs from the thiazide group have been used for 60 years to treat high blood pressure. But they also increase the risk of developing diabetes. Researchers at the University of Bern and Inselspital have now pinpointed the cause of this side effect and in the process also gained new insights into the development of diabetes.

A new drug candidate shows promising results in treating parasitic worm infections. Re-searchers at Swiss TPH tested efficacy and safety of emodepside against the three most important soil-transmitted helminths on Pemba Island in Tanzania. Emodepside is the first new promising drug against parasitic worm infections since several decades.

The hormone oxytocin is important for social interaction and to control emotions. A deficiency of this hormone has previously been assumed in various diseases such as autism, but has never been proven. Now, for the first time, researchers from the University of Basel and the University Hospital of Basel have succeeded in demonstrating a deficiency of oxytocin in patients with a deficiency of vasopressin caused by a disease of the pituitary gland.

Despite approved treatments being available, multiple myeloma remains incurable. But researchers at ETH Zurich and University Hospital Zurich set out to improve treatment outcomes by testing hundreds of existing therapeutics outside the body to predict their effectiveness. Multiple myeloma is a rare blood cancer caused by the uncontrolled multiplication of abnormal plasma cells.

Researchers at EPFL and Vrije Universiteit Brussel have developed a novel and highly efficient method for rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing using optical microscopy. The technique, called Optical Nanomotion Detection, is extremely rapid, single-cell sensitive, label-free, and requires only a basic traditional optical microscope, equipped with a camera or a mobile phone.

Unlike natural opioids, opioid drugs penetrate our cells, which explains both their high efficacy and their side effects, reveals a team from the University of Geneva. The human body naturally produces opioid-like substances, such as endorphins, which block the perception of pain and increase the feeling of well-being.

Computer simulations have helped researchers understand in detail how pharmaceutically active substances cross cell membranes. These findings can now be used to discover new drug candidates more efficiently. Abstract Cyclic peptides are chemical compounds suitable as potential drugs. Scientists now know in detail how these compounds enter cells.

Researchers have used a nanoplasmonics approach to observe the real-time production of cell secretions, including proteins and antibodies; an advancement that could aid in the development of cancer treatments, vaccines, and other therapies. Cell secretions like proteins, antibodies, and neurotransmitters play an essential role in immune response, metabolism, and communication between cells.

In advanced breast cancer, treatment often fails when the cancer cells become resistant to it. Researchers in Basel have now uncovered one mechanism behind this and found a possible solution to the problem: treatment in combination with a known antioxidant that is often used as an expectorant. Many cancer therapies do not produce the hoped-for results.

A team from the University of Geneva has developed a new approach to customize treatments by testing them on artificial tumours. How to determine the most effective treatment for colon cancer? The response to chemotherapy varies greatly from one patient to another. A team from the University of Geneva has developed a new method for testing different drugs, without going through the affected person's body and without resorting to animal experiments.

An international team led by the University of Geneva and the HUG shows that certain blood biomarkers could facilitate the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease. An international research team led by the University of Geneva and the HUG has shown that amyloid and tau blood-based biomarkers are highly correlated with the corresponding biomarkers used so far for the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.

Scientists are developing a new approach that can help stem the tide of antibiotic resistance. "Antibiotic-resistant infections are responsible for over one million deaths every year, including 250,000 children under the age of five," says Prof. Alexandre Persat, the head of EPFL's Microbial Mechanics Lab.

An international team including scientists from the University of Geneva and Harvard has discovered a new type of immune cell whose action is essential for the success of immunotherapies. Neutrophils infiltrating tumors are heterogeneous and different neutrophil types can have opposing effects on cancer progression.