In the early days of the pandemic, researchers raced to identify the most potent antibodies produced by the immune system in response to SAR-COV-2 infection and produce them in bulk. The resulting ‘monoclonal antibodies’ have since been tested in a variety of settings as treatments for COVID-19. But despite promising clinical trial results and several therapies having already been approved, antibody therapies have not yet played a large role in the fight against COVID-19. In this episode of Coro...
Mar 19, 2021•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast A computer that can participate in live debates against human opponents. In this episode: 00:43 AI Debater After thousands of years of human practise, it’s still not clear what makes a good argument. Despite this, researchers have been developing computer programs that can find and process arguments. And this week, researchers at IBM are publishing details of an artificial intelligence that is capable of debating with humans. Research Article: Slonim et al. News and Views: Argument technology fo...
Mar 17, 2021•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been many open questions about how COVID-19 could impact pregnant people and their babies – confounded by a lack of data. But now, studies are finally starting to provide some answers. While it does seem that pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of hospitalisation, babies appear to be spared from severe illness in most cases. In this week’s Coronapod we talk about these findings, and the questions that remain – including whether vaccines ...
Mar 12, 2021•13 min•Transcript available on Metacast Physicists examine the gravitational pull between two tiny masses, and how fossil lampreys could shake-up the field of vertebrate evolution. In this episode: 00:47 Gravity, on the small scale This week, researchers have captured the smallest measurement of gravity on record, by measuring the pull between two tiny gold spheres. This experiment opens the door for future experiments to investigate the fundamental forces of nature and the quantum nature of gravity. Research Article: Westphal et al. ...
Mar 10, 2021•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Where did the SARS-CoV-2 virus come from? As a team of researchers from the WHO prepares to report on its investigation into the origins of the virus, we discuss the leading theories, including the controversial ‘lab leak' hypothesis. Although there is no evidence to support it, the lab-leak idea remains popular among certain groups. Similar hypotheses were even touted about the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone. We discuss why theories like this seem to gain traction. News: ‘Major s...
Mar 05, 2021•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast The pandemic's unequal toll on the research community, and a newly discovered mitochondria-like symbiosis. In this episode: 00:48 The pandemic's unequal toll on researchers Although 2020 saw a huge uptick in the numbers of research papers submitted, these increases were not evenly distributed among male and female scientists. We look at how this could widen existing disparities in science, and damage future career prospects. Editorial: COVID is amplifying the inadequacy of research-evaluation pr...
Mar 03, 2021•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast A repository with millions of data points will track immunity and variant spread. To answer the big questions in the pandemic, researchers need access to data. But while a wealth has been collected, much of it isn’t collated or accessible to the people who need it. This week sees the launch of Global.health , a database that aims to collate an enormous amount of anonymized information about individual COVID-19 cases. On this week’s Coronapod we discuss how this database could help answer the big...
Feb 26, 2021•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast The surprising structure of protons, and a method for growing small intestines for transplantation. In this episode: 00:45 Probing the proton’s interior Although studied for decades, the internal structure of the proton is still throwing up surprises for physicists. This week, a team of researchers report an unexpected imbalance in the antimatter particles that make up the proton. Research Article: Dove et al. News and Views: Antimatter in the proton is more down than up 07:08 Research Highlight...
Feb 24, 2021•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast Researchers in Japan are trying to understand why thunderstorms fire out bursts of powerful radiation. Gamma rays – the highest-energy electromagnetic radiation in the universe – are typically created in extreme outer space environments like supernovae. But back in the 1980s and 1990s, physicists discovered a source of gamma rays much closer to home: thunderstorms here on Earth. Now, researchers in Japan are enlisting an army of citizen scientists to help understand the mysterious process going ...
Feb 23, 2021•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast What’s the endgame for the COVID-19 pandemic? Is a world without SARS-CoV-2 possible, or is the virus here to stay? A recent Nature survey suggests that the majority of experts expect the virus to become endemic, circulating in the world’s population for years to come. But what does this mean? On this week’s episode of Coronapod , we ask what a future with an ever-present virus could look like. News Feature: The coronavirus is here to stay — here’s what that means Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/...
Feb 19, 2021•17 min•Transcript available on Metacast Researchers sequence the oldest DNA ever recovered, and the people bringing art and science together. In this episode: 00:46 Million-year-old mammoth DNA This week, researchers have smashed a long-standing record by sequencing a genome that's over a million years old. They achieved this feat by extracting DNA from permafrost-preserved mammoth teeth, using it to build-up a more detailed family tree for these ancient animals. Research Article: van der Valk et al. News: Million-year-old mammoth gen...
Feb 17, 2021•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast The science behind how and when to give vaccines doses. As vaccines are rolled out, massive logistical challenges are leading scientists and policymakers to consider alternative dosing strategies. But what does the science say? In this week’s episode of Coronapod, we discuss mixing and matching vaccines and lengthening the time between doses. Approaches like these could ease logistical concerns, but we ask what's known about their impact on vaccine efficacy – what is the science behind the ...
Feb 12, 2021•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast Looking back at the publication of the human genome, and how macrophages mend muscle. In this episode: 00:45 The human genome sequence, 20 years on This week marks the 20th anniversary of a scientific milestone – the publication of the first draft of the human genome. Magdalena Skipper, Nature ’s Editor-in-Chief gives us her recollections of genomics at the turn of the millennium, and the legacy of the achievement. Editorial: The next 20 years of human genomics must be more equitable and more op...
Feb 10, 2021•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast Researchers are scrambling to understand the biology of new coronavirus variants and the impact they might have on vaccine efficacy. Around the world, concern is growing about the impact that new, faster-spreading variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus will have on the pandemic. In this episode of Coronapod , we discuss what these variants are, and the best way to respond to them, in the face of increasing evidence that some can evade the immunity produced by vaccination or previous infection. News: ‘...
Feb 05, 2021•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast Exploring the properties of a vanishingly-rare artificial element, and the AI that generates new mathematical conjectures. In this episode: 01:04 Einsteinium's secrets Einsteinium is an incredibly scarce, artificial element that decays so quickly that researchers don’t know much about it. Now, using state-of-the-art technology, a team has examined how it interacts with other atoms, which they hope will shed new light on einsteinium and its neighbours on the periodic table. Research Article: Cart...
Feb 03, 2021•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast A year ago the WHO’s coronavirus emergency alarm was largely ignored. Why? On 30 January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a ‘public health emergency of international concern’, or PHEIC, to raise the alarm of the imminent threat of a global coronavirus pandemic. Alongside the PHEIC, the WHO made a number of recommendations to curb the spread of the virus. But many of these were ignored by governments around the world. In this episode of Coronapod , we explore why this emergency ...
Jan 29, 2021•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast Researchers are probing the subtle physical forces that sculpt cells and bodies. At every stage of life, from embryo to adulthood, physical forces tug and squeeze at bodies from within. These forces are vital, ensuring that cells are correctly positioned in a developing embryo, for example. But they also play a role in diseases like cancer. Yet despite their importance, relatively little is known about how cells sense, respond to and generate these forces. To find out, researchers have turned to...
Jan 28, 2021•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast A neuroprosthetic device restores blood-pressure control after spinal-cord injury, and identifying the neurons that help us understand others’ beliefs. In this episode: 00:47 A neuroprosthetic restores the body’s baroreflex A common problem for people who have experienced spinal-cord injury is the inability to maintain their blood pressure, which can have serious, long-term health consequences. Now, however, researchers have developed a device that may restore this ability, by stimulating the ne...
Jan 27, 2021•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast Analysis of hundreds of thousands of job searches shows that recruiters will discriminate based on ethnicity and gender, and the neural circuitry behind a brief period of forgetting. In this episode: 00:47 Hiring discrimination A huge dataset has shown that widespread discrimination occurs in job hiring, based on ethnicity and gender. This backs up decades of research, showing that people from minority backgrounds tend to get contacted far less by employers. Research Article: Hangartner et al. 0...
Jan 20, 2021•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Benjamin Thompson, Noah Baker and Elie Dolgin discuss RNA vaccines. In this episode: 01:16 How RNA vaccines came to prominence In less than a year, two RNA vaccines against COVID-19 were designed, tested and rolled out across the world. We discuss these vaccines’ pros and cons, how RNA technology lends itself to rapid vaccine development, and what this means for the fight against other diseases. News feature: How COVID unlocked the power of RNA vaccines 09:20 The hurdles for trialling new...
Jan 14, 2021•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast DNA clues point to how dire wolves went extinct, and a round-up of the main impacts of Brexit on science. In this episode: 00:45 Dire wolf DNA Dire wolves were huge predators that commonly roamed across North America before disappearing around 13,000 years ago. Despite the existence of a large number of dire wolf fossils, questions remain about why this species went extinct and how they relate to other wolf species. Now, using DNA and protein analysis, researchers are getting a better understand...
Jan 13, 2021•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Lessons from Iceland, which utilised huge scientific resources to contain COVID-19. When COVID reached the shores of Iceland back in March, the diminutive island brought it to heel with science. Here’s how they did it, and what they learnt. This is an audio version of our feature: How Iceland hammered COVID with science Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Dec 30, 2020•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast The Nature Podcast team select some of their favourite stories from the past 12 months. In this episode: 00:32 Following the Viking footprint across Europe In September, we heard about the researchers mapping ancient genomes to better understand who the Vikings were, and where they went. Nature Podcast: 16 September 2020 Research Article: Margaryan et al. 08:09 Mars hopes In July, the UAE launched its first mission to Mars. We spoke to the mission leads to learn about the aims of the project, an...
Dec 23, 2020•48 min•Transcript available on Metacast Benjamin Thompson, Noah Baker and Traci Watson discuss some of 2020's most significant coronavirus research papers. In the final Coronapod of 2020, we dive into the scientific literature to reflect on the COVID-19 pandemic. Researchers have discovered so much about SARS-CoV-2 – information that has been vital for public health responses and the rapid development of effective vaccines. But we also look forward to 2021, and the critical questions that remain to be answered about the pandemic. Pape...
Dec 17, 2020•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast A video game provides players with insights into pandemic responses, and our annual festive fun. In this episode: 01:02 Balancing responses in a video game pandemic In the strategy video-game Plague Inc: The Cure, players assume the role of an omnipotent global health agency trying to tackle outbreaks of increasingly nasty pathogens. We find out how the game was developed, and how it might help change public perception of pandemic responses. Plague Inc: The Cure from Ndemic Creations 10:02 “We t...
Dec 16, 2020•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast How water chemistry is shifting researchers' thoughts on where life might have arisen, and a new model to tackle climate change equitably and economically. In this episode: 00:46 A shallow start to life on Earth? It’s long been thought that life on Earth first appeared in the oceans. However, the chemical complexities involved in creating biopolymers in water has led some scientists to speculate that shallow pools on land were actually the most likely location for early life. News Feature: How t...
Dec 09, 2020•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast Erna Solberg on fisheries, fossil fuels and the future of the oceans. This week, world leaders are announcing a series of pledges to protect and sustainably use the world’s oceans. The pledges form the crowning achievement of the ‘High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy’ a multinational group formed back in 2018. The panel has sought to bring together research, published in a number of so-called ‘blue papers’ and special reports by scientists, policy- and legal-experts from around the w...
Dec 03, 2020•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast A trio of genes may be key to making cells young again, and ultra precise measurement of a fundamental physics constant. In this episode: 00:47 Reversing ageing Researchers claim to have identified a method to revert cells in mice eyes back to a younger state. Research article: Lu et al. News and Views: Sight restored by turning back the epigenetic clock News: Reversal of biological clock restores vision in old mice 09:39 Coronapod We discuss emergency-use approvals for COVID-19 vaccines. Approv...
Dec 02, 2020•46 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scientists have finally confirmed the existence of a CNO cycle fusion reaction in the Sun, and why women’s contraception research needs a reboot. In this episode: 00:47 Detection of CNO neutrinos Since the 1930s it has been theorised that stars have a specific fusion reaction known as the CNO cycle, but proof has been elusive. Now, a collaboration in Italy report detection of neutrinos that show that the CNO cycle exists. Research article: The Borexino Collaboration News and Views: Neutrino dete...
Nov 25, 2020•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode: 00:44 An increase in survival rates The COVID-19 mortality rate is falling around the world. We discuss the reasons behind this – the role of new drugs, the treatment strategies the have been learned, or re-learned, and the ever-present worry that these hard won victories could be undone by rising infection rates. News Feature: Why do COVID death rates seem to be falling? 10:53 More vaccine good news This week, Moderna released preliminary results for its COVID-19 vaccine candid...
Nov 19, 2020•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
