Brain of a young man killed in the eruption was found in Herculaneum, ItalyBrain cells have been found in exceptionally preserved form in the remains of a young man killed in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius almost 2,000 years ago, an Italian study has revealed.The preserved neuronal structures in vitrified or frozen form were discovered at the archaeological site of Herculaneum, an ancient Roman...

Urgent talks underway with chemical supplier Roche as non-urgent tests delayedCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageHospitals across England are having to ration blood tests because of problems affecting one of the NHS’s main suppliers of the chemicals needed to analyse them.Many hospitals have begun limiting who can have a blood test in response to a serious shortage of...

Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer A Doudna have been awarded the 2020 Nobel prize in chemistry for the discovery of the Crispr genetic scissors used to edit the DNA of animals, plants and microorganisms with extremely high precision.The genome editing method has revolutionised the field of genetic engineering, with its impact felt across biomedical research, clinical medicine, agriculture and...

The prime minister seems to be bored by pandemic politics and craving less gloomy times. He needs to focus on today’s crisis, not fantasy futuresGovernments have a wide range of measures and different degrees of compulsion at their disposal when dealing with a pandemic, from full lockdown to targeted interventions, from urging compliance to enforcing it by law. Boris Johnson has tried it all...

Rising emissions of nitrous oxide from farming are putting world on track to exceed 2C heating The spread of intensive farming is threatening to jeopardise the world’s chances of meeting the terms of the Paris agreement on the climate crisis, as the increasing use of artificial fertiliser and growing populations of livestock are raising the concentration of a key greenhouse gas to levels far...

Projects from freewheeling lullabies to food growing are fostering a sense of togetherness during the pandemicInvolved in a project? Share your experiences See all our coronavirus coverageFrom doorstep violin concerts and roving broadcasts of lullabies to cycling for people with disabilities, communities across the UK are finding new ways to come together to address the isolation caused by the...

Public Health England’s study likely to accelerate calls for further measures such as sugar taxThe food industry has cut out only 3% of sugar from its supermarket, cafe and restaurant products over the last three years, according to a damning report from Public Health England that will accelerate calls for taxes or other compulsory measures to be introduced.PHE launched its flagship sugar...

Dr Rick Bright says administration ‘ignores scientific expertise and overrules public health guidance’Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe ousted director of the office involved in developing a coronavirus vaccine has quit his post at the National Institutes of Health, charging that the Trump administration “ignores scientific expertise, overrules public health...

We do not know how many species live on Earth. Barcoding could change that – and open the way for incredible discoveries Support Guardian journalism today, by making a single or recurring contribution, or subscribing Guanacaste conservation area in north-west Costa Rica is the most DNA barcoded place on Earth. On its western frontier, jaguars hunt turtles from the mangrove swamps that line the...

Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer A Doudna will share the prize for genome editing methodTwo women have been awarded the 2020 Nobel prize in chemistry for the discovery of the CRISPR genetic scissors used to edit the DNA of animals, plants and microorganisms with extremely high precision.Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer A Doudna will share the 10m Swedish kronor (£870,000) prize announced on...

Cross-party group warns many businesses are falling through the cracks due to being with ‘wrong bank’Taxpayers face losing up to £26bn on Covid business loansNils Pratley: questions for Treasury as loan scheme bites backCoronavirus – latest updatesLike most small business owners, John Pickering is worried about what a second lockdown will mean for his Norfolk quilting and embroidery...

Behavioural experts in London find socio-economic factors to be the keys to helpfulnessConventional wisdom is that people living in big cities are less likely than smaller towns to help strangers in need, but new research suggests the likelihood of securing assistance is associated with socio-economic factors, and has little to do with the anonymity and the fast pace of urban living. Researchers...