00:47 The robot shoulder that exercises cells Recreating the movements that tendon cells experience as they develop in the human body is necessary for growing tissue for transplantation, but this has been difficult to achieve in a laboratory setting. Now, a team has developed a system that uses a robot shoulder to stretch and twist these cells, which they hope could be used to improve the quality of tissue grafts in the future. Research article: Mouthuy et al. Video: A robotic Petri dish: How to...
Jun 01, 2022•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast Despite the devastating loss of life caused by COVID-19, some researchers are arguing that the longest lasting impact of the pandemic will be on education. UN agencies calculate that more or less all school students on the planet - 1.6 billion - have faced an average of 4.5 months of school closures owing to the pandemic, the largest disruption to education in history. Teachers have been under immense pressure to keep their students happy and learning, but it is an uphill battle. In this episode...
May 30, 2022•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:45 The puzzle of Palaeospondylus Over a hundred years ago, palaeontologists discovered fossils of the aquatic animal Palaeospondylus . But since then researchers have been unable to place where this animal sits on the tree of life. Now, new analysis of Palaeospondylus ’s anatomy might help to solve this mystery. Research article: Hirasawa et al. News and Views: Clues to the identity of the fossil fish Palaeospondylus 08:18 Research Highlights A strong, silk-based version of mother of pearl, a...
May 25, 2022•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:47 The mystery of the missing dark matter Dark matter makes up most of the matter in the Universe, and is thought to be needed for galaxies to form. But four years ago, astronomers made a perplexing, and controversial discovery: two galaxies seemingly devoid of dark matter. This week the team suggests that a cosmic collision may explain how these, and a string of other dark-matter-free galaxies, could have formed. Research article: van Dokkum et al . News and Views: Giant collision created ga...
May 18, 2022•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast Millions of people around the world have been left managing the complex and amorphous syndrome that is long COVID. But the underlying cause of this myriad of symptoms is not clear. One hypothesis is that the virus is able to find a safe haven in the body from which it can bide its time and potentially re-emerge - a viral reservoir. Now researchers studying long COVID have found evidence of SARS-CoV-2 in a series of organs around the body, most notably the gut, months after the infection appears ...
May 13, 2022•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:57 Reviving retinas to understand eyes Research efforts to learn more about diseases of the human eye have been hampered as these organs degrade rapidly after death, and animal eyes are quite different to those from humans. To address this, a team have developed a new method to revive retinas taken from donors shortly after their death. They hope this will provide tissue for new studies looking into the workings of the human eye and nervous system. Research article: Abbas et al. 08:05 Researc...
May 11, 2022•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:46 How a move to microbial protein could affect emissions It’s well understood that the production of meat has large impacts on the environment. This week, a team show that replacing 20% of future meat consumption with protein derived from microbes could reduce associated emissions and halve deforestation rates. Research article: Humpenöder et al News and Views: Mycoprotein produced in cell culture has environmental benefits over beef 08:21 Research Highlights How saltwater crocodiles’ pencha...
May 04, 2022•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast The true disability cost of the COVID-19 pandemic is still unknown, but more and more studies are adding to the list of potential fallout from even mild COVID 19 infection. In this episode of Coronapod we discuss a massive association study which links COVID-19 cases with an increase in the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. We delve into the numbers to ask how big the risk might be? Whether any casual relationship can be drawn from this association? And what might be in store from ...
Apr 29, 2022•10 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:56 How video calls can reduce creativity As a result of the pandemic, workers around the world have become accustomed to meeting colleagues online. To find out if this switch from face-to-face meetings came at a cost to creativity, a team compared the number of ideas generated by workers collaborating either online, or in-person. They showed that people meeting virtually produced fewer creative ideas than those working face-to-face, and suggest that when it comes to idea generation maybe it’s...
Apr 27, 2022•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast Results from a huge epidemiological study found that infection by the Epstein-Barr virus increases the risk of developing multiple sclerosis 32-fold. This result, combined with emerging mechanistic insights into how the virus triggers brain damage, are raising the prospect of treating or preventing MS. These advances come at a time when researchers are more interested than ever in what happens in the months and years following a viral infection, and highlights the issues untangling the relations...
Apr 25, 2022•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:46 What COP26 promises will do for climate At COP26 countries made a host of promises and commitments to tackle global warming. Now, a new analysis suggests these pledges could limit warming to below 2˚C — if countries stick to them. BBC News: Climate change: COP26 promises will hold warming under 2C 03:48 Efficiency boost for energy storage solution Storing excess energy is a key obstacle preventing wider adoption of renewable power. One potential solution has been to store this energy as he...
Apr 20, 2022•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast Since the beginning of the pandemic there has been a debate amongst researchers about whether the body's immune cells can themselves be infected by SARS-CoV-2. Now two new studies show that they can - and what's more, the work has revealed a new mechanism for the massive inflammatory response seen in severe COVID. In this episode of Coronapod , we dig into the papers, asking why it has taken so long to get an answer to this question? How immune cell infection could lead to severe disease? ...
Apr 15, 2022•11 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:54 How Mammals’ mutation rates affects their lifespan For biologists, a long-standing question has been why some animals live longer than others. This week a team have attempted to answer this, by measuring the rates that different animal species accumulate mutations. They show that longer-lived animals acquire mutations at a slower rate, which helps to explain why cancer risk does not scale with lifespan. Research article: Cagan et al. News and Views: Mutational clocks tick differently acros...
Apr 13, 2022•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:46 The very cool experiment looking for a proposed particle Physics tells us that when matter is created, antimatter should be as well. But while the Universe is full of matter, there’s surprisingly little antimatter to be found. To try and understand this imbalance, a team have built a detector kept just above absolute zero which they are using to look for a hypothesised, ultra-rare type of particle decay that could create matter without antimatter. Research article: The CUORE Collaboration ...
Apr 06, 2022•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast While current maps of the human genome provide researchers with a wealth of information, many argue that they do not adequately capture humanity’s vast diversity. Now, a team are trying to build a more complete and representative map that shows the varieties of sequence that can be found in different populations. However, given the failings of other projects, some geneticists focused on the needs of Indigenous communities are wary of the initiative. This is an audio version of our Feature: A mor...
Apr 05, 2022•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:47 Your ability to find your way may depend on where you grew up Researchers have long been trying to understand why some humans are better at navigating than others. This week, researchers show that where someone grew up plays an important role in their ability to find their way; the more winding and disorganised the layouts of your childhood were, the better navigator you’ll be later in life. Research article: Coutrot et al. 08:57 Research Highlights How boas can squeeze without suffocating...
Mar 30, 2022•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode: 00:45 Accurately ageing stars reveals the Milky Way’s history To understand when, and how, the Milky Way formed, researchers need to know when its stars were born. This week, a team of astronomers have precisely aged nearly a quarter of a million stars, revealing more about the sequence of events that took place as our galaxy formed. Research article: Xiang and Rix News and Views: A stellar clock reveals the assembly history of the Milky Way 09:53 Research Highlights Archaeologi...
Mar 23, 2022•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast A handful of states around the world have pursued 'COVID zero' strategies. Through a combination of intensive lockdowns, travel restrictions and comprehensive test and trace systems, regions like Tonga, New Zealand, Taiwan, mainland China and Western Australia managed to keep the virus at bay. But now many of these countries are facing new outbreaks on a scale they have not yet seen, and it is being driven in part by vaccine hesitancy. In this episode of Coronapod we discuss how a su...
Mar 18, 2022•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast Marty Reiswig is fit and healthy, but every two weeks he is injected with the experimental drug gantenerumab and has monthly MRI scans. He submits to this because a rare genetic mutation runs in his family that predisposes them to early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. We spoke to him about his experience on the trial, and why he chose to continue trialling the drug even after formal clinical trials were discontinued. Produced and narrated by Lorna Stewart. More on this story: News Feature: Could drug...
Mar 17, 2022•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:45 A flexible, wearable, fabric microphone Inspired by the ear, a team of researchers have developed an acoustic fibre that can be woven into fabrics to create a sensitive microphone. This fabric microphone is capable of detecting human speech and heartbeats, and the team think it could be used to develop new, wearable sensors for long-term health monitoring. Research article: Yan et al. News and Views: A smart sensor that can be woven into everyday life 08:38 Research Highlights How a shark’...
Mar 16, 2022•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:46 The AI helping historians read ancient texts Researchers have developed an artificial intelligence that can restore and date ancient Greek inscriptions. They hope that it will help historians by speeding up the process of reconstructing damaged texts. Research article: Assael et al. News and Views: AI minds the gap and fills in missing Greek inscriptions Video: The AI historian: A new tool to decipher ancient texts Ithaca platform 08:53 Research Highlights Pollinators prefer nectar with a ...
Mar 09, 2022•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast As many countries start to ease or even remove COVID restrictions entirely, there are growing concerns from researchers that this will lead governments to take their eye off the ball and crucially stop collecting and reporting vital data. In this episode of Coronapod we discuss calls from two researchers to improve COVID testing and data reporting. What do they want done differently? Why does it matter? And what could such changes mean for the future of the pandemic and public health...
Mar 04, 2022•17 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:47 G20 nations fail to cut emissions in COVID stimulus packages The G20 economies spent $14 trillion dollars on recovery packages to escape the global recession driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. Many governments made pledges to deliver emissions reductions as part of these packages. This week, a team of researchers have analysed the spending to see if these promises were kept. Comment: G20’s US$14-trillion economic stimulus reneges on emissions pledges 09:34 Research Highlights An artificial n...
Mar 02, 2022•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Almost everything we do on the Internet is made possible by cryptographic algorithms, which scramble our data to protect our privacy. However, this privacy could be under threat. If quantum computers reach their potential these machines could crack current encryption systems — leaving our online data vulnerable. To limit the damage of this so called 'Q-day', researchers are racing to develop new cryptographic systems, capable of withstanding a quantum attack. This is an audio version of our feat...
Feb 28, 2022•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast 00:47 Pinpointing the season when an asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs Around 66 million years ago, an enormous asteroid struck the Earth, leading to the end of the time of the dinosaurs. In a new paper, a team of scientists looked at evidence from fossilised fish, and suggest it happened in springtime in the Northern Hemisphere. Research article: During et al. 08:42 Research Highlights Transparency shrinks the gender pay-gap in academia, and how Tutankhamen’s meteorite-metal dagger was forged. R...
Feb 23, 2022•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scientists scramble to understand the devastating Tongan volcano eruption, and modelling how societal changes might alter carbon emissions. In this episode: 00:46 Understanding the Tongan eruption On the 15th of January, a volcano in the South Pacific Ocean erupted, sending ash into the upper atmosphere, and unleashing a devastating tsunami that destroyed homes on Tonga’s nearby islands. Now scientists are trying to work out exactly what happened during the eruption — and what it means for futur...
Feb 16, 2022•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast Vaccine inequity continues to be one of the greatest challenges in the pandemic - with only 10% of those in low- and middle-income countries fully vaccinated. One of the biggest hold-ups is a lack of vaccine manufacturing capacity in poorer nations. But now, researchers at the WHO technology-transfer hub have completed the first step in a project aimed at building vaccine manufacturing capacity in the Global South, by successfully replicating Moderna's COVID vaccine without assistance from the U...
Feb 11, 2022•Transcript available on Metacast RNA in blood shows signs of pre-eclampsia before symptoms occur, and the issues of urine in our sewage and what can be done about it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 09, 2022•Transcript available on Metacast The word endemic is often mistakenly used to describe a rosy end to the pandemic where COVID-19 becomes a mild, but ever-present infection akin to the common cold. But this is by no means guaranteed and the reality could be much less favourable. In this episode of Coronapod we get the evolutionary virologist's take - asking what endemicity might really look like, and what control we still have in shaping the future of SARS-CoV-2.World View: COVID-19: endemic doesn’t mean harmless ...
Feb 04, 2022•Transcript available on Metacast How quantum friction explains water’s strange flows in carbon nanotubes, and the latest from the Nature Briefing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 02, 2022•Transcript available on Metacast 
