In the news
Infertile couples could be spared years of fruitless treatment, with a discovery by scientists at the universities of Leeds and Bradford that the human egg has a ‘lock and key’ mechanism, reported the Independent on Sunday. Around 2% of men in the UK are infertile for no discernible reason. The secret could be that the genetic ‘keys’ in their sperm don’t quite fit their partner’s locks. Dr David Iles (Institute of Integrative and Comparative Biology) said: “There is a definite pattern to the way DNA is packaged on sperm cells. It is the same in unrelated fertile men, but it is different in the sperm of infertile men.”
One of Antarctica’s largest glaciers is thinning at an ‘alarming rate’ and will have nearly disappeared within 100 years, a team of British scientists have warned. The Pine Island Glacier – around twice the size of Scotland – is losing ice four times faster than it was a decade ago, reported the BBC News, the Times, and Daily Telegraph. Leeds scientist Professor Andrew Shepherd (School of Earth and Environment) said: “It is too early to link the trend to global warming but the huge area covered by the glacier is big enough to raise world sea levels by 3cm.”
Vitamin D – produced by the action of sun on skin – may help improve survival rates for patients with skin and bowel cancer, reported the Independent, Daily Telegraph, The Scotsman, Press Association and Marie Claire. Research leader Professor Julia Newton-Bishop from Leeds Institute of Molecular Medicine said: “It’s common for the general public to have low levels of vitamin D in many countries. Melanoma patients tend to avoid sun as sunburn is known to increase the risk of melanoma… so melanoma patients’ levels of vitamin D may be especially low.” Research into the optimum level of vitamin D continues and Professor Newton-Bishop recommended ‘we should aim for a normal level rather than a very high one’. Protection from burning in the sun remains important, particularly for people with lots of moles, red hair, fair skin or a family history of the disease.
Interviewed by Argentinian national daily La Nación Professor Simon Warner (School of Music) about the legacy of Michael Jackson described Jackson as a remarkably talented artist whose Thriller video broke down barriers for black artists. “But he was also an enigma, a tragedy, a lost soul, an embodiment of the late 20th century cult of youth, a reflection of the fact that the racial wounds of the USA are unhealed, and an emblem of the dysfunctionality of the modern family – both his own and the ones he created around him.” Professor Warner also contributed an article to La Croix on the Beatles importance in British culture.
Lecturer in criminal justice Stuart Lister (School of Law) told BBC News that burglars tend to operate within a mile of their own home: “[Burglars] tend to offend in areas where people are of similar socio-economic status and don’t have the resources to spend on sophisticated burglar alarms.”
Leeds scientists plan to develop environmentally-friendly skin and hair products out of Shetland seaweed, reported the Times Higher Education. “Seaweed is especially suited to being used in cosmetics because it has evolved very clever techniques to protect itself from weathering, and cosmetics are all about protection from ageing and the elements,” said Dr Richard Blackburn (School of Design), who is working with Professor Chris Rayner (School of Chemistry).
Leeds scientists have discovered a faulty gene in mice that could hold the key to treating epilepsy in humans, reported the Independent, the Times, the Daily Mail, and BBC News. The team, led by neuroscientist Dr Steve Clapcote (Faculty of Biological Sciences) has found a faulty version of a gene in mice that causes epileptic seizures by failing to regulate levels of sodium and potassium in the brain.
Children as young as three can bite with the same force as an average dog, and safety standards should be reviewed, according to new research by Dr Gary Mountain (School of Healthcare) and colleagues in Leeds Dental Institute. Speaking to the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail, he said: “The research was based on cases of young children admitted to hospital emergency departments after swallowing or inhaling small parts from objects and toys. There is a real need to develop robust bite-testing standards for toys, but until now we didn’t have the research on which to base them.”
Talking about the impact of the UK’s drinking culture, rising obesity rates and hepatitis C infections, professor of gastrointestinal cancer Matt Seymour (Leeds Institute of Molecular Medicine) said: “We are seeing more patients with cirrhosis and, in turn, more patients with primary liver cancer.” His comments were reported by BBC News, the Guardian and the Times. The trend is likely to continue: “There is a long delay between exposure to the risk factors and the onset of cancer.”
Leeds has acquired a collection of books and manuscripts related to English novelist Baron Corvo, aka Frederick Rolfe, author of The Desire and Pursuit of the Whole. Speaking to the Yorkshire Evening Post, professor of Victorian literature Francis O’Gorman (School of English) said: “He was a writer of self preoccupied and quirky power, a unique and rather absorbing mixture of the compelling, repelling, infuriating and enduringly charismatic.”
