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Science and Research News

We are pleased to inform you about the latest significant developments in scientific research conducted at Palacký University Olomouc, Czech Republic (UP)

Olomouc to Host a Unique Summit in the European Context

In April 2018, Palacký University will host the Times Higher Education Summit, a unique meeting of experts, among whom are regularly Nobel Prize-winners and personalities recognised in their academic fields, management of the world’s top universities, statesmen and women, and representatives of industry and business. It will be the first such event ever held in Central Europe. Olomouc will be visited by two hundred important attendees from all over the world, of whom almost 50 will give plenary speeches.

Antabus Against Cancer – Olomouc Team of Scientists Discovers a Breakthrough Mechanism

An international research team lead by researchers at the Institute of Molecular and Translational Medicine (IMTM) of the UP Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry has published their findings on a drug used in the treatment of alcoholism – disulfiram, a/k/a Antabus or Antabuse – and its future use in the treatment of cancer in Nature, one of the most prestigious scientific magazines in the world.

Silver Offers Hope of Solving the Antibiotics Crisis – Bacterial Resistance to Nanoparticles Can Be Averted

Scientists from Palacký University Olomouc (UP) have discovered a unique mechanism that enables bacteria to defend themselves against silver nanoparticles, which are widely used in antibacterial therapy. This mechanism does not require the bacteria to undergo genetic changes, and differs significantly from mechanisms of antibiotic resistance. The scientists have also found a way to suppress bacterial resistance to nanosilver, which could be crucial in addressing the global antibiotics crisis. The revolutionary discovery was published in January on the cover page of the journal Nature Nanotechnology, arguably the world’s most prestigious journal in the nanotechnology field. This is also the first paper written exclusively by Czech authors that has been published in this journal.

Novel diagnostic method will improve the precision of capturing infections during surgery

Determining infections in the vicinity of prostheses during an operation has been made possible by a new diagnostic method which was developed by experts from the Departments of Orthopedics and Immunology at UP in cooperation with the Department of Cybernetics and Biomedical Engineering at the Technical University of Ostrava. The novel procedure, which at present refines and speeds up the diagnosis of infection in joint replacements, was announced in one of the world’s leading professional journals, the Journal of Clinical Microbiology.

UP to Receive €27.5 Million for Research into Biotechnology and Nanotechnology

Palacký University will receive approximately €27.5 million over the next five years from the Operational Programme “Science, Research and Education”. In the major grant competition “Excellence in Research”, UP has confirmed its prominent position in the fields of biotechnology and nanotechnology, with two of its representatives – the Centre of the Haná Region for Biotechnology and Agricultural Research (CRH) and the Regional Centre of Advanced Technology and Materials (RCPTM) – placing in the 15 best projects by Czech scientific workplaces.

Tropical Forests Reducing Global Warming on Borneo Endangered

Tropical rain forests on Borneo relentlessly absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, thus reducing the impact of global warming. However, they can fulfil this role only when they are in good shape, unaffected by human activity, and sufficiently large. This has been confirmed by a study published in the prestigious journal Nature Communications. The international team of authors also includes representatives of the UP Faculty of Science. Experts point out the alarming fact that tropical forests on Borneo were to a large extent replaced by plantations for production of palm oil.

Palacký University Olomouc
Křížkovského 8
779 00 Olomouc
www.upol.cz

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