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UZH News

Archive Medicine and Dentistry 2024

51 articles

Article list Medicine and Dentistry

  • Portrait — Onur Boyman

    Researcher, Founder, Helper

    Onur Boyman became a doctor because he wanted to help people. Now, having achieved a breakthrough with his research on autoimmune diseases, the UZH professor plans to bring a new therapy to market – and switch role from head of clinic to entrepreneur.
  • 2024 Koetser Award

    Eminent Neuroscientist and Violinist Honored

    Professor Klaus Toyka has received the 2024 Betty and David Koetser Award for Brain Research in recognition of his pioneering experimental and clinical contributions in the field of inflammatory diseases of the nervous system.
  • Genome editing

    Use of Genetic Scissors Carries Risks

    The CRISPR tool is capable of repairing the genetic defect responsible for the immune disease chronic granulomatous disease. However, researchers at the University of Zurich have now shown that there is a risk of inadvertently introducing other defects.
  • Medicine

    Unraveling the Link Between Hepatitis and Kidney Damage

    The hepatitis E virus affects the liver. But infected liver cells secrete a viral protein that reacts with antibodies in the blood and may form complexes that can damage the filter structure of the kidneys, as researchers from the University of Zurich and the University Hospital Zurich have proven for the first time.
  • Evolutionary Medicine

    Birth: It’s a Tight Squeeze for Chimpanzees, Too

    A new study shows that chimpanzees, like humans, must contend with a confined bony birth canal when giving birth. The “obstetrical dilemma” therefore evolved gradually over the course of primate evolution rather than suddenly in humans as originally argued.
  • Microbiology

    AI Helps to Detect Antibiotic Resistance

    In a pilot study, researchers at the University of Zurich have used artificial intelligence to detect antibiotic resistance in bacteria for the first time. This is an important first step toward integrating GPT-4 into clinical diagnostics.
  • Medicine

    Deciphering Blood

    Brain tumors are difficult to diagnose and treat. Neurologist Tobias Weiss is researching a new method for detecting brain tumors that uses clues present in blood samples. His method utilizes cellular particles called extracellular vesicles, which have proven to be promising biomarkers.
  • Travel medicine

    Novel App Tracks Travel-Related Illnesses

    About one in three people who travel gets sick, often with gastrointestinal and respiratory symptoms, a travel app developed by UZH researchers finds. The app could be used in the future to help detect outbreaks of contagious diseases at an early stage.
  • Clinical translation

    Compact “Gene Scissor” Enables Effective Genome Editing

    TnpB is an ancestor of the well-known “gene scissor” CRISPR-Cas, but is much smaller and thus easier to transport into cells. Using protein engineering and AI algorithms, UZH researchers have now enhanced TnpB capabilities to make DNA editing more efficient and versatile, paving the way for treating a genetic defect for high cholesterol in the future.
  • Research Funding

    Three UZH Researchers Awarded SNSF Consolidator Grants

    The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) has approved Consolidator Grants for three projects at the University of Zurich. Additionally, 14 early-career researchers at UZH benefit from the SNSF funding program Ambizione.
  • Paleogenetics

    Ancient Ailments

    Infectious diseases like the plague, leprosy and syphilis have made history and shaped humanity over a long period of time – are still doing so today. The paleogeneticist Verena Schünemann explores the evolution of pathogens and the question of why they have been able to survive for so long.
  • One Health

    Influenza viruses can use two entry points

    Most influenza viruses enter human or animal cells through specific pathways on the cells’ surface. UZH researchers have now discovered that certain human flu viruses and avian flu viruses can also use a second entry pathway to infect cells.
  • Tumor biology

    Key Driver for Epithelial Cancer Development Identified

    A distinct signaling pathway called TNF-α drives the transformation of epithelial cells into aggressive tumor cells. During cancer progression, cells activate their own TNF-α program and become invasive - they spread into other organs.
  • Mental health

    Striving for Perfection

    In our interview child and adolescent psychologist Dagmar Pauli talks about the influence of school and social media, boys with gaming addictions, and the problems facing transgender youth.
  • Animal research and 3Rs

    UZH Researchers Win Swiss 3R Awards

    This year’s awards from the Swiss 3R Competence Centre all go to UZH scientists whose research contributes to replacing, reducing and refining animal experiments.
  • Regenerative Medicine

    Tailor-Made Cells

    In a few years, we’re likely to see personalized stem cells being used in the first clinical trials for heart patients. But there are still a few hurdles to overcome on the way from the lab to the clinic.
  • Cancer medicine

    Novel Blood Test Helps Improve Cancer Treatments

    UZH and USZ researchers have further developed a new blood test to analyze liquid biopsies of DNA fragments in the blood. The new method is fast and practical, without putting much of a strain on patients – and might help to treat cancer patients more individually in the future.
  • Stem cell biology

    The Mechanism Behind Melanoma Resistance to Treatment

    In many cases of malignant melanoma, the effect of targeted treatment is lost over time. A research team from UZH and USZ has now discovered that a factor secreted by tumor cells is responsible for the resistance.
  • Gender medicine

    Strong Hearts

    The heart is our most vital organ. But the heart muscle cells are sluggish. The cardiologist Carolin Lerchenmüller is exploring how these cells are regenerated and how the heart can be strengthened and protected.
  • Permanent professorship

    UZH to Create Chair of Allergology and Asthma in Davos

    The Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF) in Davos is to be significantly strengthened with the creation of a Chair of Allergology and Asthma. An agreement on this was announced on 21 June 2024 by representatives of the Graubünden government and the UZH.
  • Animal research

    “We now have robust figures”

    Five percent of all therapies tested on animals end up being approved for use in human medicine. The Center for Reproducible Science at UZH has published a large systematic review study showing how well results from animal research translate into medical advances for humans.
  • Brain research

    First Week after Birth Is Critical for Development of Senses

    UZH researchers have found that the maturation of the senses for smell and touch is closely linked in mice and that this strong interaction takes place within a narrow developmental time window. The findings underline the importance of environmental stimuli for brain assembly in early life and the interdependent development of the senses.
  • URPP Dynamics of Healthy Aging

    Leading the Way in Research on Aging

    The recently-concluded UZH University Research Priority Program Dynamics of Healthy Aging achieved some impressive results. The World Health Organization even adopted the healthy aging model developed in Zurich.
  • Gender medicine

    The Thing with Mice

    For many years, the male mouse was thought to be the measure of all things in pre-clinical research. Over time, scientists have come to realize that it is medically necessary to work with experimental animals of both sexes.
  • Depression Therapy for Men

    Learn to cry

    Male sufferers of depression seek much less psychological counseling than depressed women do. That has to do with the gender roles that we learn as children, Andreas Walther says. The psychologist is developing a therapy for depression specifically tailored to men.
  • Psychology

    Culture-Specific Trauma Responses in Switzerland

    According to a new study, the culture-specific sequelae of trauma found in Switzerland align with the norms of a competitive and individualistic society. Post-traumatic coping strategies in Switzerland tend to involve closer connections to nature.
  • Symposium on stem cells

    Strengthening Ties with Japan

    UZH and Kyoto University work together closely in the field of stem cell research. As part of this collaboration, a high-level conference is taking place in Zurich this week with researchers from both countries. The event was organized by stem cell researcher Melanie Generali.
  • Gender Medicine

    The Right Medicine for Women and Men

    Many illnesses have sex- and gender-specific causes and symptoms, many of which have received little research attention thus far. That, however, is about to change. UZH has established the first professorial chair in gender medicine in Switzerland to advance research in this field.
  • New UZH Magazin

    Healthy Women, Healthy Men

    Many diseases manifest differently in women and men. The symptoms for heart disease, stroke, depression and cancer can look very different depending on your sex. Researchers in the field of gender medicine are looking into these gender-specific differences and developing the right therapies. The new UZH Magazin shines a light on the significance of this field.
  • Cancer medicine

    An Immunotherapy to Overcome Resistant Leukemia

    Researchers at UZH and USZ have discovered why a specific mutation makes the cancer cells of an aggressive type of blood cancer resistant to CAR T-cell therapy. They also show that a concomitant pharmacotherapy or genetically improved CAR T-cells makes the immune therapy effective again.
  • Citizen Science Zurich

    A Safe Space for Delicate Topics

    The Seed Grants of the Citizen Science Zurich initiative support a range of pilot projects that bring together UZH researchers and members of the public. One such project, Hair SALON, aims to provide women in Lesotho with crucial sexual and reproductive health services in hair salons.
  • INTeRCePT Research Project

    Better Prognosis for Blood Cancers

    Being handed a diagnosis of cancer often turns people’s lives upside down. When the cancer is blood cancer, the impact is even more dramatic. Although the chances of recovery have improved greatly in recent years, recurrences are still relatively common. A research team led by Thorsten Zenz is working on reducing the risk of relapse.
  • mTORUS

    Helpful Viruses

    Researchers at UZH and ETH Zurich have rediscovered a long-neglected treatment for urinary tract infections – bacteriophages. These viruses can be used to fight bacterial infections without the side effects caused by antibiotics. However, approval is still a long way off.
  • FAN Award

    Heart Defects, the World of Work, and Algorithms

    Melanie Ehrler, Simon Walo and Regina Weder are being honored with this year’s FAN Awards in recognition of their outstanding research work. Their three topics of research are the development of children with heart defects, the future of work, and the legal conditions for the use of AI in public administration.
  • Biomedical Technology

    Visualizing Multiple Sclerosis with a New MRI Procedure

    The loss of myelin sheaths in the brain is a hallmark of multiple sclerosis. Researchers at ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich have now developed an MRI method that maps the condition of this nerve insulation layer more accurately than before.
  • Psychiatric diseases

    Stress Influences Brain and Psyche Via Immune System

    Under chronic stress, a particular enzyme found in cells of the immune system enters the brain. In mice, it causes them to withdraw and avoid social contact. This new connection between body and mind in stress-related mental illness could lead to new treatments for depression.
  • Virology

    Alexandra Trkola Awarded US$3 Million Grant

    The renowned virologist from the University of Zurich receives the major award from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for vaccine studies in well-studied groups of people living with HIV in Switzerland and South Africa.
  • Brain research

    Firing Nerve Fibers in the Brain Are Supplied with Energy on Demand

    Specialized cells in the brain respond to the electrical signals of active nerve fibers and provide them with energy on demand. If this process is disabled in mice, the nerve fibers are severely damaged as the animals age – resembling the defects of neurodegenerative diseases.
  • Medicine

    Complement System Causes Cell Damage in Long Covid

    Long Covid patients suffer from chronic symptoms such as fatigue or shortness of breath. This is to some extent due to a part of our immune system, the complement system. UZH researchers identified a pattern in the blood proteins for better diagnoses and more targeted treatments.
  • Innovative Teaching Projects – Part 2: Goal-Oriented

    A New Era in Medical Training

    The medical program at UZH is being given a fundamental overhaul: the development of clinical thinking and practical skills is to be prioritized over top-down teaching of theory.
  • Laboratory Animals

    Less Stress, Better Research

    Urs Meyer, professor at the Institute of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology at UZH, and his team have developed a new method of orally administering pharmaceutical substances to mice. The new method benefits both the animals and the researchers. The method will now be rolled out more widely as part of the National Research Programme 79, “Advancing 3R”.
  • Global Health

    “We can only solve problems together”

    Infectious diseases and antibiotic resistance spread around the world via trade and travel routes. Together with partners in India and Uganda, the infectious diseases specialist Jan Fehr is looking for solutions to global health problems.
  • UZH Spin-Offs, Annual Round-Up

    From Lab to Market

    In the last year, eight new spin-offs were created at the University of Zurich to bring research-based ideas to market readiness. The new companies are developing innovative approaches for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, lead poisoning, blood cancer and endometriosis, the improvement of spinal surgery, better diagnostics in oral health, and simplification of satellite data analysis.