University of Cambridge

The treatment – known as repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) – involves placing an electromagnetic coil against the scalp to relay a high-frequency magnetic field to the brain.Around one in 20 adults is estimated to suffer from depression. Although treatments exist, such as anti-depressant medication and cognitive behavioural therapy (‘talking therapy’), they are ineffective for just under one in three patients. One of the key characteristics of depression is under-activity…

Latest research has revealed a “positive association” between the number of properties listed as Airbnb rentals and police-reported robberies and violent crimes in thousands of London neighbourhoods between 2015 and 2018.In fact, the study led by the University of Cambridge suggests that a 10% increase in active Airbnb rentals in the city would correspond to an additional 1,000 robberies per year across London.* Urban sociologists say the rapid pace at…

Writing in the journal Science Robotics, the research team, led by the University of Cambridge, outline how ‘palaeo-inspired robotics’ could provide a valuable experimental approach to studying how the pectoral and pelvic fins of ancient fish evolved to support weight on land.“Since fossil evidence is limited, we have an incomplete picture of how ancient life made the transition to land,” said lead author Dr Michael Ishida from Cambridge’s Department of…

The Cambridge-GSK Translational Immunology Collaboration (CG-TIC) combines University and GSK expertise in the science of the immune system, AI and clinical development with access to patients and their data provided by Cambridge University Hospitals. GSK is investing more than £50 million in CG-TIC, further strengthening Cambridge’s position as Europe’s leading life sciences cluster. GSK plc is making this investment to establish the Cambridge-GSK Translational Immunology Collaboration (CG-TIC), a five-year collaboration…

The significant funding commitment will enable world-class discovery science, unlocking new insights into how cancers develop, grow and spread, as well as examining how the immune system can be harnessed to combat the disease.  Research at the CRUK Cambridge Institute focuses on understanding every stage of the cancer life cycle – how tumours grow and spread and how this is impacted by the characteristics of each individual patient.  By studying how…

Volatiles are elements or compounds that change into vapour at relatively low temperatures. They include the six most common elements found in living organisms, as well as water. The zinc found in meteorites has a unique composition, which can be used to identify the sources of Earth’s volatiles.The researchers, from the University of Cambridge and Imperial College London, have previously found that Earth’s zinc came from different parts of our…

This galaxy is one hundred times smaller than the Milky Way, but is surprisingly mature for so early in the universe. Like a large city, this galaxy has a dense collection of stars at its core but becomes less dense in the galactic ‘suburbs’. And like a large city, this galaxy is starting to sprawl, with star formation accelerating in the outskirts.This is the earliest-ever detection of inside-out galactic growth.…

The collaboration, which includes researchers from the University of Cambridge, aims to accelerate progress on new neuro-technologies, including miniaturised brain implants designed to treat depression, dementia, chronic pain, epilepsy and injuries to the nervous system.Neurological and mental health disorders will affect four in every five people in their lifetimes, and present a greater overall health burden than cancer and cardiovascular disease combined. For example, 28 million people in the UK…

The collaboration, which includes researchers from the University of Cambridge, aims to accelerate progress on new neuro-technologies, including miniaturised brain implants designed to treat depression, dementia, chronic pain, epilepsy and injuries to the nervous system.Neurological and mental health disorders will affect four in every five people in their lifetimes, and present a greater overall health burden than cancer and cardiovascular disease combined. For example, 28 million people in the UK…

In 2020, Hassabis and Jumper of Google DeepMind presented an AI model called AlphaFold2. With its help, they have been able to predict the structure of virtually all the 200 million proteins that researchers have identified.Since their breakthrough, AlphaFold2 has been used by more than two million people from 190 countries. Among a myriad of scientific applications, researchers can now better understand antibiotic resistance and create images of enzymes that…

Hinton (King’s 1967) and Hopfield were awarded the prize “for foundational discoveries and inventions that enable machine learning with artificial neural networks.” Hinton, who is known as the ‘Godfather of AI’ is Emeritus Professor of Computer Science at the University of Toronto. He is the 122nd member of the University of Cambridge to be awarded the Nobel Prize.This year’s two Nobel Laureates in Physics have used tools from physics to…

Using ultra-high-resolution scanners that can see the living brain in fine detail, researchers from the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford were able to observe the damaging effects Covid-19 can have on the brain.The study team scanned the brains of 30 people who had been admitted to hospital with severe Covid-19 early in the pandemic, before vaccines were available. The researchers found that Covid-19 infection damages the region of the brainstem…

This landmark achievement has been conducted by the FlyWire Consortium, a large international collaboration including researchers from the University of Cambridge, the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, Princeton University, and the University of Vermont. It is published today in two papers in the journal Nature.The diagram of all 139,255 neurons in the adult fly brain is the first of an entire brain for an animal that can walk…

Representatives of the Semiconductors Point of Contact Group from the G7 group of nations met in Cambridge today. The meeting was held at ARM, which designs over 95% of the processors in the world. Representatives from the University of Cambridge, as well as representatives from local semiconductor companies, participated in the events.Semiconductors underpin nearly every electrical, optical and quantum device, from mobile phones and medical equipment to electric vehicles. They…

Archaeological fieldwork in Morocco has discovered the earliest, previously unknown 3400–2900 BC farming society from a poorly understood period of north-west African prehistory. This is the earliest and largest agricultural complex yet found in Africa beyond the Nile.This study, published in the journal Antiquity, reveals for the first time the importance of the Maghreb (north-west Africa) in the emergence of complex societies in the wider Mediterranean during the fourth and…

A global conservation effort to reintroduce a tiny snail to the wild is celebrating a momentous milestone: for the first time in 40 years, conservationists have found born-in-the-wild adult Partula tohiveana – meaning the precious molluscs have successfully established themselves in French Polynesia.This year Cambridge’s Dr Justin Gerlach helped restore over 6,000 of the snails to Moorea, their French Polynesian island home as part of an annual reintroduction of zoo-bred…

The ongoing war in Gaza will set children and young people’s education back by up to five years and risks creating a lost generation of permanently traumatised Palestinian youth, a new study warns.The report, by a team of academics working in partnership with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), is the first to comprehensively quantify the war’s toll on learning since…

The study, published in Energy Research & Social Science, was completed shortly before the Winter Fuel Payment vote was taken, by researchers from the University of Cambridge and Delft University of Technology (TU Delft).The researchers raise particular concerns about the impact of the policy on pensioners with annual incomes of between £11,300–£15,000 for single pensioners and £17,300–£22,000 for couples. Drawing on data from the English Housing Survey, which sampled nearly…

A team lead by researchers at the University of Cambridge has developed a monoclonal antibody drug, using a technique involving genetically engineered mice, that may help prevent infection from Acinetobacter baumannii, a bacteria associated with hospital-acquired infections, which is particularly common in Asia.A. baumannii bacteria can cause life-threatening respiratory illness and sepsis in vulnerable individuals, particularly in newborn babies whose immune systems have not fully developed. It is usually spread…

The study, by researchers at the University of Cambridge’s Sainsbury Laboratory also found that bees prefer larger bullseyes over smaller ones and fly 25% faster between artificial flower discs with larger bullseyes – potentially boosting efficiency for both bees and blossoms. Patterns on the flowers of plants guide insects, like bees, to the centre of the flower, where nectar and pollen await, enhancing the plant's chances of successful pollination. Despite their…

The technology from Cancer Grand Challenges team IMAXT uses advanced spatial biology techniques to analyse tumours, some of which are based on technology originally developed to map the Milky Way and discover new planets. Now, other scientists will be able to access these technologies to create detailed tumour maps that could one day transform how we diagnose and treat cancer.Led by Professor Greg Hannon and Dr Dario Bressan at the…

The technology from Cancer Grand Challenges team IMAXT uses advanced spatial biology techniques to analyse tumours, some of which are based on technology originally developed to map the Milky Way and discover new planets. Now, other scientists will be able to access these technologies to create detailed tumour maps that could one day transform how we diagnose and treat cancer.Led by Professor Greg Hannon and Dr Dario Bressan at the…

An international group of researchers, led by the Copenhagen Business School, the University of Basel and the University of Cambridge, surveyed 4,000 people from Denmark, India, Nigeria and the United States about inequality in personal carbon footprints – the total amount of greenhouse gases produced by a person’s activities – within their own country.Although it is well-known that there is a large gap between the carbon footprint of the richest…

Currently cancer is usually diagnosed when tumours are already developed requiring, often significant, treatment to remove them and prevent further growth. However, a research team at the University of Cambridge will receive over £1.5m from Cancer Research UK over the next six years to investigate how the immune system evolves, targets and kills cancer cells as tumours are developing.  They hope by detecting the trigger point when our own body starts to…

The statistics for the University of Cambridge are available on the website as part of our ongoing commitment to transparency and openness around the use of animals in research.This coincides with the publication of the Home Office’s report on the statistics of scientific procedures on living animals in Great Britain in 2023. The ten organisations carried out 1,435,009 procedures, 54% (over half) of the 2,681,686 procedures carried out on animals for scientific research in Great Britain…

Of 3,500 proposals reviewed by the ERC, only 14% were selected for funding – Cambridge has the highest number of grants of any UK institution.ERC Starting Grants – totalling nearly €780 million – support cutting-edge research in a wide range of fields, from life sciences and physics to social sciences and humanities. The awards help researchers at the beginning of their careers to launch their own projects, form their teams and…

Car travel contributes to air pollution, a major cause of heart and lung diseases including asthma attacks. Beyond this, it limits children's opportunities for physical activity, hindering their development and mental health, and increasing their risk of obesity and chronic illnesses.Despite UK guidelines recommending a daily average of 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity for school-aged children and adolescents, less than half (45%) of children aged 5-16 met these levels…

The research also suggests that people who are taking lipid-lowering drugs such as statins to lower their cholesterol levels should remain on them, even if their cholesterol levels have fallen, as stopping treatment could increase their risk of atherosclerosis.Atherosclerosis is one of the major causes of heart and circulatory disease. It involves the hardening and narrowing of the vessels that carry blood to and from the heart. It is caused…

These are among the conclusions of Time to Care: findings from a nationally representative survey of experiences at the end of life in England and Wales, a new report funded by end-of-life charity Marie Curie and produced by King’s College London’s Cicely Saunders Institute, Hull York Medical School at University of Hull, and the University of Cambridge.Time to Care aims to describe the outcomes, experiences, and use of care services…

A cancer drug that unlocks the anti-inflammatory power of the immune system could help to reduce the risk of future heart attacks, according to research part-funded by the British Heart Foundation. By repurposing an existing drug, researchers hope it could soon become part of routine treatment for patients after a heart attack.The findings will be presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in London by Dr Rouchelle Sriranjan, NIHR…

The sight of vineyards in Britain is becoming more common as hotter summers create increasingly suitable conditions for growing grapes. But behind this success story is a sobering one: climate change is shifting the regions of the world suitable for growing crops.Researchers at the University of Cambridge have uncovered a looming issue: as the land suitable for producing our food moves northwards, it will put a squeeze on the land…

An analysis of a short programme teaching empathy in schools has found it had a positive impact on students’ behaviour and increased their emotional literacy within 10 weeks.The findings come from an evaluation of the “Empathy Programme”: a term-long course developed by the UK-based Empathy Studios. The research was conducted with support from academics at the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge.Empathy Studios develops school-based, video-led programmes which aim to…

Plans for Cambridge Children’s Hospital can move ahead following the news that the Outline Business Case for the project has been signed off by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury and the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. The project has been given the green light to begin the detailed process of appointing a contractor, to build the ground-breaking new facility in 2026.The ministerial backing means that the…

Researchers have compared the development of the fetal brain in mice whose mothers had no bacteria in their gut, to those whose mothers were given Bifidobacterium breve orally during pregnancy, but had no other bacteria in their gut.Nutrient transport to the brain increased in fetuses of mothers given Bifidobacterium breve, and beneficial changes were also seen in other cell processes relating to growth. Bifidobacterium breve is a ‘good bacteria’ that…

The findings are published today in The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology.Global meat production has increased rapidly in recent decades and meat consumption exceeds dietary guidelines in many countries.  Earlier research indicated that higher intakes of processed meat and unprocessed red meat are associated with an elevated risk of type 2 diabetes, but the results have been variable and not conclusive. Poultry such as chicken, turkey, or duck is often considered…

The McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, Department of Archaeology and University of Cambridge Development & Alumni Relations are pleased to announce that the Arcadia charitable foundation has awarded grants totalling £10.3 million to continue the work of the Mapping Africa’s Endangered Archaeological Sites and Monuments (MAEASaM) project and the Mapping Archaeological Heritage in South Asia (MAHSA) project.Archaeological sites and monuments around the world are increasingly threatened by human activities and…

The McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, Department of Archaeology and University of Cambridge Development and Alumni Relations are pleased to announce that the Arcadia charitable foundation has awarded grants totalling £10.3 million to continue the work of the Mapping Africa’s Endangered Archaeological Sites and Monuments (MAEASaM) project and the Mapping Archaeological Heritage in South Asia (MAHSA) project.Archaeological sites and monuments around the world are increasingly threatened by human activities and…

Researchers have identified a drug already used for cancer patients, that, when applied to current gene therapy protocols can improve blood stem cell function threefold.One trillion blood cells are produced every day in humans, and blood stem cells are the only cell types in our body capable of producing all blood cell types over our lifespan, giving them immense regenerative potential. Blood stem cell gene therapy is a ground-breaking treatment…

Severe brain injury can leave individuals unable to respond to commands physically, but in some cases they are still able to activate areas of the brain that would ordinarily play a role in movement. This phenomenon is known as ‘cognitive motor dissociation’.To determine what proportion of patients in so-called ‘disorders of consciousness’ experience this phenomenon – and help inform clinical practice – researchers across Europe and North America recruited a…