51 articles from SUNDAY 11.7.2021
Festivals warn: change self-isolation rules or our staff will just ignore them
‘Untenable’ rules will force workers to delete NHS tracing app to avoid being pinged Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageFestival organisers have urged the government to change “untenable” self-isolation rules that they say are already causing staffing problems and could lead to people deleting the NHS Covid-19 tracing app to avoid getting “pinged”.Speaking...
History offers little guide to how we should escape from Covid’s clutches | Mark Honigsbaum
Herd immunity is this pandemic’s exit route, but passing the moral buck over to citizens is a dangerous strategy• Coronavirus – latest updates• See all our coronavirus coverageWhen at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic China placed a cordon sanitaire around Wuhan and then quickly extended it to eight other Chinese cities, placing 45 million people under lockdown, the immediate...
Dog food sold across Europe contains antibiotic-resistant bacteria, including 'superbugs' found in hospital patients
New research being presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID), held online this year, reveals raw dog food to be a major source of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, making it an international public health risk.
Pure folly: Turing family join fight to save ‘blue-skies maths’ from neglect
As hard-pressed universities axe abstract study, the codebreaker’s great niece and top mathematicians are fighting backAlmost exactly 80 years ago, British codebreakers made a crucial breakthrough. Using methods developed by the mathematical genius of Alan Turing, they were able to decipher the Enigma code that the Nazis were using on the eastern front in the second world war, gaining another...
Covid live news: public in England will be expected to wear masks indoors when measures lift, says UK minister
Nadhim Zahawi says mask guidance indoors is likely to stay in England and denies story that gap between vaccine doses will halfSajid Javid warns NHS waiting lists backlog could reach 13mSurge in Sydney cases leads to first locally acquired Covid death of year‘Their childhood has been stolen’: calls for action to tackle long CovidWoman, 90, infected with Alpha and Beta Covid variants at the...
Scientist Prue Hart: ‘Sunburn causes havoc in the skin – we should avoid it’
The inflammation researcher explains the health benefits and dangers of soaking up the sunProf Prue Hart is head of the inflammation research group at the Telethon Kids Institute in Perth, Australia, which studies the beneficial effects of sunlight exposure on our health and whether these are the result of UV-induced vitamin D or other molecules produced in our skin upon exposure to sunlight.What...
3 billionaires' dreams of space tourism are more than flights of fancy, planetary experts say
The race between three billionaires to get into space and commercialize space tourism could make it easier for researchers and scientists to study suborbital space, according to some...
Unlocking the ‘gut microbiome’ – and its massive significance to our health
Scientists are only just discovering the enormous impact of our gut health – and how it could hold the key to everything from tackling obesity to overcoming anxiety and boosting immunityIf you want to learn more about what’s going on in your gut, the first step is to turn your poo blue. How long it takes for a muffin dyed with blue food colouring to pass through your system is a measure of...
Vaxxers by Sarah Gilbert and Catherine Green; Until Proven Safe by Geoff Manaugh and Nicola Twilley – reviews
The story of the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine is part manifesto for good science communications, part biomedical thriller, while a smart history of quarantines makes their utility resoundingly clearOn the first day of Wimbledon, Dame Sarah Gilbert, professor of vaccinology at Oxford’s Jenner Institute, was treated to a standing ovation from grateful spectators on a packed Centre Court. Together...
Baby gets go-ahead for world’s most expensive drug from NHS
NHS approved to use gene therapy to treat baby born with spinal muscular atrophyThe parents of a baby with a fatal condition have succeeded in their campaign for their son to be treated with the world’s most expensive drug.A new gene therapy, Zolgensma, will be used to treat 10-month-old Edward, from Colchester, who has severe spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), after his parents were given the green...
Virgin Galactic to launch space plane with Richard Branson on board
The billionaire, along with two pilots and three other passengers, will reach 55 miles above Earth for about an hourJuly is a frantic month for the two billionaires racing to kick off space tourism, with Richard Branson’s SpaceShipTwo set to launch on Sunday with the British entrepreneur on board just days ahead of rival and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in his rocket.Branson’s extraterrestrial...
Care home residents are at risk of COVID-19 even after being fully vaccinated
Care homes need to be vigilant for outbreaks of COVID-19, even after residents have received two doses of the vaccine, according to new research being presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) held online this year.
Every spot of green space counts
An international study of parks and gardens finds even the humble roadside verge plays an important role in the environment and for our health.
Flu jab protects against some of the severe effects of COVID-19, including
The flu vaccine may provide vital protection against COVID-19, new research being presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID), held online this year, concludes.
Hepatitis C vaccine could be rolled out within five years, says Nobel Prize winner who discovered virus
A vaccine to protect against infection with hepatitis C could be in use within 5 years, says Professor Sir Michael Houghton, who won the Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology along with three other scientists for discovering the hepatitis C virus (HCV) in 1989. Sir Michael will discuss the development of a vaccine in a special presentation at this year's European Congress of Clinical...
High-tech toilets could spread antibiotic-resistant superbugs in hospitals, Japanese study suggests
Water-jet nozzles in electric toilets--commonly used in Japan and other parts of Asia--may be reservoirs for multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MDRP) in hospitals, increasing the risk of dangerous germ transmission among patients, according to new research being presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) held online this year.
Monitoring proves better than active treatment for low-risk prostate cancer
Men over 60 with low-risk prostate cancer could spend ten years with no active treatment, have a better sex life as a result, yet still be very unlikely to die from the disease, new research has found.
New study shows that silver foil could reduce the risk of infection in hospitals
New research presented at this year's European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) taking place online (9-12 July) shows that covering high-touch (the most regularly touched) surfaces in hospitals with silver-impregnated foil could significantly reduce levels of contamination by clinically important bacterial pathogens.
NTU Singapore study highlights media's important role in debunking COVID-19 misinformation
A study by NTU Singapore has found that as the type of COVID-19 misinformation rectified by Singapore's mainstream news media evolved over the course of the pandemic, the role played by the media in debunking those myths became increasingly important to citizens in the nation's fight to manage the outbreak.
Outbreaks of COVID-19 in French nursing homes traced back to staff
COVID-19 outbreaks in French nursing homes almost certainly started in staff - and none of measures put in place stopped the virus from taking hold, new research being presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID), held online this year, shows.
Reviewing pressure effects on iron-based high-temperature superconductors
A new University of Wollongong study reviews progress on high-pressure studies on properties of iron-based superconductor (ISBC) families, and examines the use of pressure as a versatile method for exploring new materials.
Sir Richard Branson: Space flight will be 'extraordinary'
The UK businessman is about to realise a lifetime's ambition by flying to the edge of space.