On an almost daily basis over the course of 2015, UZH News reported the latest news at Switzerland’s largest university. We take leave for this year by passing review on some of the biggest events of the past 12 months. As of January 2016, we will be ready to serve you again with the latest news, interviews, and videos. More …

Systems biologist Lawrence Rajendran has launched the ScienceMatters platform with the aim of revolutionizing science publishing. It’s designed to enable researchers to publish their data more quickly by making it available in phases. More …

On Monday evening the Wyss Translational Center Zurich was inaugurated in an official ceremony. The aim of the new development center, set up by the University and ETH Zurich with a donation from entrepreneur Hansjörg Wyss, is to translate innovative ideas from pure research more rapidly into practice. More …

LISA Pathfinder is a satellite designed to help detect gravitational waves in space. The countdown to the launch of the rocket carrying the probe has started. UZH physicist Philippe Jetzer is involved at the forefront of this international experiment. More …

Citizen science has become a firm feature of established research. The University of Zurich has joined forces with ETH Zurich and the University of Geneva in a call for universally binding guidelines and principles for citizen science. More …

The new XENON1T detector in Italy is aimed at making dark matter particles visible. UZH Physics Professor Laura Baudis and her team played a significant role in the development and construction of this detector. More …

External evaluators have given UZH’s Clinical Research Priority Programs the thumbs-up. The program, designed to support efforts at the interface of research and clinical practice, is now entering Phase 2. More …

Cycler, a program for analyzing biological cells, has earned Gabriele Gut and Prisca Liberali the prestigious honor of publication in Nature Methods. This puts the increasingly important field of quantitative biology firmly in the limelight. More …

Low levels of oxygen can lead to aggressive tumor growth. Researchers on the Tumor Oxygenation Clinical Research Priority Program (CCRP) are pursuing various promising methodological, clinical, and preclinical approaches in an effort to find out why this is so. More …

UZH President Michael Hengartner has been elected the new president of swissuniversities, the conference of the rectors of Swiss tier-one universities, universities of applied sciences, and universities of teacher education. In this interview he explains his motivation for accepting this position. More …

On Saturday, UZH President Michael Hengartner accepted an honorary professorship from Tianjin University in China. He also signed an agreement on student exchanges and a memorandum of understanding. More …

A symposium will be held on 24/25 August devoted to the North-South Cooperation between UZH and Uganda. As part of the preparations, journalist Ruedi Küng went along on the trip to the Ugandan capital, Kampala, and reports for UZH News on his impressions. More …

The Molecular Imaging Network Zurich – “MINZ” for short – has the goal of improving diagnostic and therapeutic imaging techniques. MINZ is one of the University of Zurich’s eleven clinical research priority programs (CRPPs). UZH News is presenting a series of features on these. More …

The University of Zurich has a new alumni group in Washington, D.C. The chapter was inaugurated last week in a ceremony attended by ambassador and UZH alumnus Martin Dahinden and UZH president Michael Hengartner. More …

The aim of the Viral Infectious Diseases Clinical Research Priority Program is to track down dormant human immunodeficiency viruses, and find unidentified pathogens that plague people with weak immune systems. This is part of a series of UZH News articles featuring the Clinical Research Priority Programs. More …

How do you win the Nobel Prize? At a discussion held at Zurich City Hall to mark the “Einstein & Co – Zürich und der Nobelpreis” exhibition, UZH president Michael Hengartner and Nobel laureate Rolf Zinkernagel talked about what makes for good research. More …

We still don’t know why breastfeeding protects children from illness and infection. But that’s about to change. Thanks to funding from the Family Larsson-Rosenquist Foundation, the world’s first medical professorship for human lactation research is to be set up at UZH. More …

So-called transnational mobiles live in more and more places around the globe. For her research, sociologist Claudia Vorheyer has interviewed people who have made being on the move a fundamental way of life. More …

The Rare Disease Initiative Zurich (radiz) is a CCRP revolving around developing improved treatments for patients with rare diseases. It’s one of the University of Zurich’s eleven clinical research priority programs. UZH News is presenting a series of features on these programs. More …

It’s a big day for the team headed by Michael Schaepman, Professor of Remote Sensing at the UZH Department of Geography: This morning a Vega rocket was launched from French Guiana carrying Sentinel-2A, a satellite their team helped to develop. More …

Last week the prizewinners in the Swiss startup competition “venture” were announced. First prize went to “Cutiss,” a new company that aims to bring customized skin grafts to market using lab-grown skin developed at the University Children’s Hospital Zurich. More …

The Human Hemato-Lymphatic Diseases Clinical Research Priority Program (CRPP) is all about finding better therapies for serious blood disorders and infections. The CRPP is one of the University of Zurich’s eleven clinical research priority programs. UZH News is presenting a series of features on these programs. More …

UZH, ETH Zurich and the Canton of Zurich have permission to build the Agrovet-Strickhof, a jointly operated agricultural education and research centre in Eschikon Lindau. More …

A ventricle that looks like a Japanese octopus trap, and symptoms resembling a coronary: Zurich cardiologists are researching the mysterious and dangerous “broken heart syndrome”. More …

There are many different types of multiple sclerosis. The University of Zurich’s Clinical Research Priority Program on Multiple Sclerosis is trying to identify the different forms the disease takes as a basis for developing new treatments.  More …

The Language Center of the University of Zurich and ETH Zurich has developed a new, nine-month intensive German course. This highly practical course aims to open the way for better integration of doctoral students from outside Switzerland. The graduates of the first course have plenty of success stories to share. More …

In a project funded under the University of Zurich’s “Forschungskredit,” hydrologist Philipp Schneider and his team are looking into the quality, quantity, distribution, and storage patterns of alpine groundwater. More …

An American biotech firm is developing a new antibody to combat cancer that also improves the patient’s feeling of well-being. Its work is based on research done by Zurich dermatologist Thomas Kündig. More …

The University Children’s Hospital Zurich is helping a hospital in the Afghan capital Kabul improve care for children with burn injuries. The premises have been renovated, and now it’s time to train the staff. More …

A multidisciplinary team around prion researcher Adriano Aguzzi is using small RNA molecules to gain deeper insights into disease processes. “Small RNAs” is one of the University of Zurich’s eleven clinical research priority programs (CRPPs). UZH News is presenting a series of features on these programs. More …

Last week researchers from Japan and Switzerland met at a workshop in Tokyo to discuss ways modern technology could facilitate healthy aging. The co-organizer of the workshop, UZH gerontologist Mike Martin, talked to us about the background to the meeting. More …

Fully committed on all fronts: In the rare moments when they’re not busy with their research, Zurich PhD students Shan Krishnan, Nina Stojeva, and Marta Morawska are working hard to win a million dollars to help the poorest of the poor through early education in urban slums. In the video they explain how they’re going about it. More … 1 Comment

It’s in the wake of paraplegia, a stroke or multiple sclerosis that the strengths of the brain really come into play: To some extent it can compensate for deficiencies. Physicians and engineers on the Neuro-Rehab Clinical Research Priority Program (CRPP) at UZH are investigating the brain’s plasticity and working on tailored training programs for the patients affected. More …

Ruedi Aebersold, Professor of Systems Biology has developed the proteomics method together with a team of international researchers to such an extent that doctors and clinical researchers can now use this technique as a tool. In a conversation, the professor at ETH and the University of Zurich explains how information from proteins can advance personalised medicine. More …

Davide Scaramuzza is Assistant Professor of Robotics at UZH. He develops software enabling spaces and objects to be captured in three dimensions. The idea is to be able to teach drones to fly autonomously. His research will soon also be used by the game industry. More …

The liver is the only organ in the human body that can regrow. The Liver Tumors Clinical Research Priority Program is looking into how this ability can be used to cure liver cancer. This is one of a series of UZH News articles featuring the eleven Clinical Research Priority Programs. More …

UZH researchers are attempting to create skin substitutes that can be transplanted from the petri dish to people with burns and skin conditions. Their endeavors are bearing fruit, with the first usable skin grafts currently undergoing clinical trials. Skin Grafts for Zurich is one of the University of Zurich’s eleven clinical research priority programs (CRPPs). UZH News will be presenting a series of features on these programs. More …

Junior researchers at UZH have been awarded four of the Swiss National Science Foundation’s 21 Consolidator Grants. One of these researchers is microbiologist Anne Müller. She is investigating Helicobacter pylori, a bacterium that can trigger gastric cancer, but also protects against allergies. More …

With bacteria developing resistance, it’s become harder and harder for antibiotics to penetrate their defenses. This is why microbiologists like Leo Eberl are looking for ways to trick the microorganisms, disrupting them as they speak and eat.  More …

Search for asteroids, observe birds or make the computing power of your own computer available: through ‘citizen science’, citizens can participate in various research projects. At a workshop hosted by ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich, scientists and other interested parties will discuss the conditions under which it can be achieved. More …

A hectic lifestyle has lead to sleep problems and a chronic sleep deficit for many people. Under its Sleep and Health Clinical Research Priority Program (CRPP), the University of Zurich is seeking more effective therapies for sleep disorders and trying to gain a deeper understanding of the functions of sleep. More …

Learning English can be child’s play for primary school kids, provided the teaching is intensive enough. Neuroscientists are now looking into how learning foreign languages affects the brain. More …

Surrogate mothers dream of a better life, while the prospective parents dream of a happy family. But the people who profit most from this business are the lawyers and the surrogate parenting agencies. More …

Flu viruses mutate constantly, and can be very dangerous for humans. Virologist Lars Hangartner is working on a vaccine giving long-term protection against all potential flu viruses. More …