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Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, ETHZ


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Life Sciences - Health - 09.04.2025
How human cells repair damaged DNA
How human cells repair damaged DNA
Researchers at ETH Zurich have unravelled the complex network that cells use to repair their genetic material. By examining thousands upon thousands of genetic interactions, the team has discovered new vulnerabilities in cancer cells that could be exploited therapeutically in the future. The DNA of human cells consists of a sequence of about 3.1 billion building blocks.

Materials Science - 07.04.2025
Rolling particles make suspensions more fluid
Rolling particles make suspensions more fluid
For the first time, ETH materials scientists are measuring the rolling friction of tiny, micrometre-sized particles. These measurements permit them to better understand everyday products such as concrete. Lacquers, paint, concrete-and even ketchup or orange juice: Suspensions are widespread in industry and everyday life.

Health - Life Sciences - 03.04.2025
New vaccine concept tackles harmful bacteria in the intestine
In the fight against bacterial pathogens, researchers are combining vaccination with targeted colonisation of the intestine by harmless microorganisms. This approach could potentially mark a turning point in the antibiotics crisis. The issue of intestinal bacteria is a complex one. On the one hand, we are dependent on the microorganisms because they are the ones that digest the food in our intestine.

Computer Science - Mathematics - 28.03.2025
AI in a mini-lab or putting precision to the test
New miniature laboratories are ensuring that artificial intelligence (AI) doesn't make mistakes. They provide a controlled test environment where algorithms and AI models can be checked before being put to work under real-life conditions. The aim is for AI to work reliably. Anyone who develops an AI solution sometimes goes on a journey into the unknown.

Chemistry - Life Sciences - 25.03.2025
Were large soda lakes the cradle of life?
Were large soda lakes the cradle of life?
Life needs sufficient phosphorus. However, the element is scarce, not only today but also at the time of the origin of life. So where was there sufficient phosphorus four billion years ago for life to emerge? A team of origin-of-life researchers has an answer. Along with nitrogen and carbon, phosphorus is an essential element for life on Earth.

Life Sciences - 21.03.2025
Origin of Life: How microbes laid the foundation for complex cells
Origin of Life: How microbes laid the foundation for complex cells
Who were our earliest ancestors? The answer could lie in a special group of single-celled organisms with a cytoskeleton similar to that of complex organisms, such as animals and plants. researchers made these findings in a new study. Ten years ago, nobody knew that Asgard archaea even existed. In 2015, however, researchers examining deep-sea sediments discovered gene fragments that indicated a new and previously undiscovered form of microbes.

Environment - Health - 19.03.2025
Could the layout of trees impact human health?
Could the layout of trees impact human health?
A long-term Switzerland-wide study has found that neighbourhoods with numerous, well-arranged trees exhibit lower mortality risks than other areas. The reasons behind this, and the factors that play a role, will require further research. Beyond creating a serene and open atmosphere in urban areas, trees and parks also contribute to human well-being.

Physics - 07.03.2025
Crystal lattice at a distance
Crystal lattice at a distance
Researchers at ETH Zurich have developed a method that makes it easier to study interactions between electrons in a material. Using a moiré material consisting of twisted atomic layers they created an artificial crystal lattice in a neighbouring material. To study the interactions between electrons in a material, physicists have come up with a number of tricks over the years.

Life Sciences - Health - 05.03.2025
The pupil as a window to the sleeping brain
The pupil as a window to the sleeping brain
For the first time, researchers have been able to observe how the pupils react during sleep over a period of several hours. A look under the eyelids showed them that more happens in the brain during sleep than was previously assumed. Our eyes are typically closed when we sleep.

Politics - 04.03.2025
Why anti-immigration parties are seeing success
Why anti-immigration parties are seeing success
A new study by researchers shows that the success of anti-immigration parties in Switzerland's border regions is not due to the effects of migration itself, but rather to their rhetoric. In brief: A new study has investigated the success of anti-immigration parties in Switzerland's border regions following the introduction of the free movement of people in 2004.

Chemistry - Physics - 03.03.2025
Complete breakdown of acrylic glass into its building blocks
Polymer chemists at ETH Zurich have found a surprising way to almost completely decompose PMMA, a plastic known as acrylic glass or as trademark Plexiglas, into its monomeric components. Even additives do not interfere with the process. Today, plastics recycling is primarily limited to the collection of sorted PET or polyethylene beverage bottles.

Chemistry - Environment - 28.02.2025
This nanotube has a nose for oxygen
This nanotube has a nose for oxygen
Researchers have developed a low-cost sensor made of carbon nanotubes that can selectively, efficiently and reliably measure minute quantities of oxygen in gas mixtures under light. The detector could be widely used in industry, medicine and environmental monitoring. Oxygen is essential for life and a reactive player in many chemical processes.

Computer Science - Environment - 24.02.2025
Artificial intelligence helps with the design and maintenance of bridges
Artificial intelligence helps with the design and maintenance of bridges
To extend the lifespan of existing railway bridges and conserve resources, researchers are working with Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) to develop new prediction models using machine learning algorithms. An AI assistant also helps civil engineers with the design of new bridges. Images of a collapsed tram bridge over the River Elbe in Dresden were seen around the world in September 2024.

Environment - Earth Sciences - 19.02.2025
Storing CO2 underground in Switzerland
Storing CO2 underground in Switzerland
For Switzerland to achieve its net zero climate target, not only must it reduce its CO2 emissions, it must also find a way to store the greenhouse gas permanently. Researchers at ETH Zurich have investigated whether, and under what conditions, CO2 could be stored underground in Switzerland. To achieve its net zero climate target by 2050, Switzerland must press forward with the energy transition - whether in electricity, heating or mobility.

Health - Life Sciences - 14.02.2025
A new switch for the cell therapies of the future
A new switch for the cell therapies of the future
Researchers have developed a new gene switch that can be activated using a commercially available nitroglycerine patch applied to the skin. One day, researchers want to use switches of this kind to trigger cell therapies for various metabolic diseases. The body regulates its metabolism precisely and continuously, with specialised cells in the pancreas constantly monitoring the amount of sugar in the blood, for example.

Earth Sciences - Environment - 06.02.2025
Ice streams move due to tiny ice quakes
Ice streams move due to tiny ice quakes
For the first time, an international team of researchers has shown that countless tiny ice quakes take place in one of Greenland's mightiest ice streams. This finding will allow the flowing of the ice stream and associated changes in sea level to be estimated more accurately. The great ice streams of the Antarctic and Greenland are like frozen rivers, carrying ice from the massive inland ice sheets to the sea - and a change in their dynamics will contribute significantly to sea-level rise.

Health - Pharmacology - 05.02.2025
Obese and healthy
Obese and healthy
Body weight and body mass index alone are not enough to predict whether someone will develop a metabolic disease. A new atlas of cells in fat tissue could help to explain why some overweight people stay healthy, while others do not. Researchers have created a detailed atlas of cellular changes in obese people.

Health - Pharmacology - 31.01.2025
Precision therapy with microbubbles
Precision therapy with microbubbles
Researchers have investigated how microbubbles tiny gas bubbles can deliver drugs into cells in a targeted manner using ultrasound. For the first time, they have visualised how tiny cyclic microjets liquid jets generated by microbubbles penetrate the cell membrane enabling the drug uptake. The targeted treatment of brain diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's or brain tumours is challenging because the brain is a particularly sensitive organ that is well protected.

Health - Pharmacology - 27.01.2025
Bones respond positively to external forces
Bones respond positively to external forces
Researchers aim to use vibrations to stimulate bone growth. Now, a new study paves the way for developing new therapies that may one day benefit patients suffering from bone fractures and age-related bone loss. Bone does not just grow in any which way - rather, the bone cells respond to external forces.

Health - Pharmacology - 24.01.2025
Dissolving clusters of cancer cells to prevent metastases
Dissolving clusters of cancer cells to prevent metastases
Successful test in breast cancer patients: the active agent digoxin, a cardiac medication, dissolves clusters of circulating breast cancer cells in the blood, thus reducing the risk of metastases formation. Certain tumour types do not remain at their point of origin but spread throughout the body and form metastases.
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