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Dundee Researchers Probe Deadly Parasite Resistant to Household Disinfectants
A research team from the University of Dundee is investigating Cryptosporidium—a waterborne parasite that resists common household cleaning products and poses serious risks to both public health and the farming industry. Dr Mattie Christine Pawlowic, a Principal Investigator and Sir Henry Dale Fellow at the university’s School of Life Sciences, is leading the study with…
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Live Brain Cell Study Shows Toxic Protein Destroys Synaptic Connections
Scientists at the University of Edinburgh have, for the first time, shown how a dangerous form of amyloid beta—a protein linked to Alzheimer’s—can stick to and damage the connections (synapses) between live brain cells. In a breakthrough study, researchers used tiny slices of living human brain tissue collected during routine operations and exposed them to…
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Citizen Science Buzz: 700 Mosquito Sightings Reveal Scotland’s Hidden Biters
Scientists at the University of Glasgow have logged over 700 mosquito sightings across Scotland through a citizen science project launched in May 2024. Members of the public submitted photos and bite reports via the Mosquito Scotland website, capturing images from Dumfries and Galloway up to the Shetland Isles—the northernmost mosquito record in the UK. The…
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Rapid Rock Cycle Uncovered at Cumbrian Slag Site
Scientists at the University of Glasgow have found that human waste may form rock in just decades, upending our age-old view of the rock cycle. Researchers studied an industrial waste deposit along the Cumbrian coast at Derwent Howe, once home to iron and steel foundries. Over its industrial past, 27 million cubic metres of furnace…
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Lateral Flow Test Waste Spurs Urgent Call for Change
A new study in the Bulletin of the World Health Organization warns that the single-use design of lateral flow tests has led to an unseen waste of plastic. Researchers from Heriot-Watt University and the University of Edinburgh looked hard at 21 COVID-19 test kits and found that each kit uses between six and almost 40…
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New Scottish Study Reveals Over Half of Coastal Vessels Go Untracked
Researchers from Heriot-Watt University have found that more than half of the vessels operating in Scotland’s coastal waters are missed by standard tracking systems. The study shows that only 43% of ships within 10 km of the coast broadcast an Automatic Identification System (AIS) signal—the common tool used worldwide to track ship movements. Based on…