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Coronavirus - current measures

Update 16.04.2021: With the easing of restrictions by the Federal Council of 14.04.2021, in-person courses at the university are possible again under certain conditions. However, the obligation to work from home basically remains. The situation is still very fragile. The implementation of protection concepts and compliance with the rules of conduct and hygiene remain key.

Annual Report 2020: Knowledge strengthens society

The COVID-19 crisis has also been extremely challenging for the University of Bern. Nevertheless, the articles in the 2020 annual report impressively show that the University is leveraging its expertise to make a vital contribution toward efforts to overcome this crisis and serve as a catalyst for the future. The University of Bern’s future success is being called into question, however, by the sluggish pace of infrastructure renewal as well as collaborative research projects with Europe that are in jeopardy.

Space technology in the operating theater

The instruments were developed to search for signs of life on other planets. But now they will also be used to distinguish healthy nerve cells from brain tumor cells. A conversation with astrophysicist Brice-Olivier Demory and Raphael Sznitman, an expert in machine learning and artificial intelligence, about their BrainPol project.

New endowed lectureship in wild bee health

The University of Bern has established an endowed lectureship for wild bee health, which has been made possible thanks to support from the Vinetum Foundation. With it, the University and the Foundation intend to help combat the worldwide decline of wild bee populations.

Tackling hate on the internet

Researchers in public are sometimes subjected to spiteful reactions, like Christian Althaus or Susanne Wampfler. The University of Bern stands behind its researchers.

Annika Frahsa becomes Lindenhof Endowed Professor of Community Health

Annika Frahsa has been chosen Lindenhof Foundation Professor of Community Health by the University Executive Board. The assistant professorship has been made possible thanks to support from the Lindenhof Foundation Bern. It focuses on participatory health promotion involving communities and is one of a kind in Switzerland.

The University of Bern welcomes seven Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellows

This year, seven researchers are visiting the University of Bern as Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellows. The "Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships" are an opportunity for experienced researchers to advance their career with a stay in a foreign country.

Uncertainty of future Southern Ocean CO2 uptake cut in half

The Southern Ocean dominates the oceanic uptake of human-made CO2. But how much carbon dioxide can it actually absorb in the future? This long-standing question remained unresolved as projections of different generation of climate models repeatedly showed a wide range of future Southern Ocean CO2 sink estimates. Climate scientists from Bern have now been able to reduce this large uncertainty by about 50 percent.

Tests as an additional option for more safety

Daniel Candinas, Vice-Rector for Research and member of the coronavirus crisis management team, was able to draw on experience from his clinical environment when developing the University of Bern's testing strategy. Employees have been regularly tested there since the beginning of the pandemic.

Digital advisory services for smallholder families in Africa and Asia

A research and innovation project at the University of Bern aims to strengthen sustainable farming methods among smallholder families in Africa and Asia using digitally supported agricultural extension services. Its overall goal is to improve the families’ productivity, incomes, and climate resilience. The project is being conducted together with international partners and is supported by the TRANSFORM programme of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) with five million Swiss francs.

How microbes influenced the Earth's atmosphere three billion years ago

For a long time, climate researchers could not explain the high concentration of greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere around three billion years ago. Now an international research team with the participation of Hendrik Vogel from the Institute of Geological Sciences and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of Bern has solved the mystery. Sediment analyses revealed the surprising result that under the conditions at that time, microbes mainly produced the highly effective greenhouse gas methane for their metabolism.

"The guidelines on scientific information and expressing opinions provide an outline and are not prohibitions"

In the past few days, the media and Twitter have reported on and discussed the University of Bern's guidelines on providing information and expressing opinions on social media. There, the violation of academic freedom was also criticized. What is this actually about? Rector Christian Leumann explains the context in an interview.

Why SARS-CoV-2 replicates better in the upper respiratory tract

A team of researchers from the Institute for Infectious Diseases (IFIK) at the University of Bern and the Federal Institute of Virology and Immunology (IVI) have assessed virus growth and activation of the cellular defense mechanisms in the respiratory tract. They have shown that natural temperature differences that exist in the upper and lower respiratory tract have a profound influence on SARS-CoV-2 replication and subsequent innate immune activation in human cells. The findings can help to develop antiviral drugs and preventive measures.

Center for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (CAIM) opens

The Center for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (CAIM) of the University of Bern and the Insel Gruppe with the partners sitem-insel and the Bern University Psychiatry Services UPD is officially inaugurated today. The virtual opening event offers insights into controversial topics and current research projects on Artificial Intelligence in Medicine. 500 participants will connect online.

When sparks and grit bring AI to the patient

Raphael Sznitman, Director of the Center for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (CAIM), is a leading expert at the interface between medicine, artificial intelligence (AI), and engineering. On the eve of the CAIM Opening, he talks about his motivation to research AI.

How the habitability of exoplanets is influenced by their rocks

The weathering of silicate rocks plays an important role to keep the climate on Earth clement. Scientists led by the University of Bern and the Swiss national center of competence in research (NCCR) PlanetS, investigated the general principles of this process. Their results could influence how we interpret the signals from distant worlds – including such that may hint towards life.

Predicting success in therapy with individualized cancer models

Scientists at Urology Research Laboratory of the Department for BioMedical Research (DBMR), University of Bern and Urology Department of the Inselspital of Bern, have established organoid culture models from prostate tumor biopsies. These are small clusters of cells which can be used to test the efficacy of various drugs. In this way, it is possible to test which treatment will most likely benefit individual patients.

"Our efforts are devoted to convert cancer from a lethal to a chronic disease"

Marianna Kruithof-de Julio and her team are developing methods to grow small clusters of cells from tumor biopsies. In this way, the researchers hope to customize treatment for each individual patient. Their goal is perhaps still five to ten years away, the expert estimates.

Controlling adhesions in the abdomen

Adhesions are scars in the abdomen, which can occur after surgery, often have serious consequences. Now, researchers from the University of Bern and Inselspital, University Hospital Bern, in collaboration with Canadian researchers, have discovered how such adhesions form. The findings may help to develop a drug to prevent adhesions in the future. The study was published as the cover story of Science magazine.

Volcanoes might light up the night sky of this planet

Until now, researchers have found no evidence of global tectonic activity on planets outside our solar system. Under the leadership of the University of Bern and the National Center of Competence in Research NCCR PlanetS, scientists have now found that the material inside planet LHS 3844b flows from one hemisphere to the other and could be responsible for numerous volcanic eruptions on one side of the planet.

How to track the variants of the pandemic faster

In a comment piece in the journal Nature, an international collaboration of specialists in viral and genetic analysis, led by Swiss scientists Dr. Emma Hodcroft at the University of Bern and Prof. Christophe Dessimoz at University of Lausanne, lay out the ‘bioinformatics bottlenecks’ that are hindering response to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, and propose ways to ‘clear the road’ for better tools and approaches.

SARS-CoV-2 mutations in competition

How dangerous are new mutations of the SARS-CoV-2 virus? An international team involving researchers from Bern has developed an approach that can accurately assess the transmissibility of new virus mutants.

What shapes our health very early on

Examining the communication between mother and fetus and showing the influence it has on the lives of mothers and children long after birth, Amanda Sferruzzi-Perri was awarded the 100,000 CHF Hans Sigrist Prize from the Hans Sigrist Foundation at the University of Bern.

How is gender diversity achieved in working life?

A new European research project led by the University of Bern is investigating the factors influencing the educational and professional careers of women and men, including members of gender and sexual minorities. "G-VERSITY" will receive EUR 4.1 million from the EU "Horizon 2020" funding program. The project is being coordinated by Prof. Sabine Sczesny from the Institute of Psychology.

Most people infected with SARS-CoV-2 develop symptoms

While some people who contract SARS-CoV-2 infections never experience any symptoms, there remains disagreement about what proportion of total infections these cases comprise. A study by researchers of the Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine of the University of Bern suggests that true asymptomatic cases of SARS-CoV-2 comprise a minority of infections.

The Limitation Initiative is harmful to education, research and innovation

The Swiss universities and organisations that support the promotion of research and innovation are opposed to the popular initiative “For moderate immigration”. The initiative jeopardises some of the basic parameters that favour Switzerland’s role as a centre for science and enterprise. Adopting the initiative would halt the free movement of persons and thus bring the research agreement with the EU to an end. In order to deliver outstanding performance, Switzerland’s education, research and innovation (ERI) sector relies on the free movement of persons and close cooperation with other countries.

Geography of childhood cancer in Switzerland studied

A research group under the direction of the Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine of the University Bern has investigated the spatial distribution of childhood cancer risks in Switzerland for the period 1985-2015. The group found evidence of increased risks in certain areas, particularly for brain tumors. The researchers demand that the search for the causes of brain tumors in children be intensified.

How wallflowers evolved a complementary pair of plant defenses

A new study led by Tobias Züst from the Institute of Plant Sciences of the University of Bern shows that a pair of complementary chemical defenses evolved independently in wallflowers, shaped by co-evolution with local insects.

Bern and Fribourg researchers identify neurons responsible for rapid eye movements (REM) during sleep

Why do we move our eyes fast in the paradoxical sleep - in that sleep phase, in which most dreams take place? The secret is not yet fully aired, but we are on his track: A team at the University of Bern, in collaboration with the University of Fribourg, has identified the nerve cells behind this curious phenomenon.

Dr. Josef Steiner Cancer Research Award 2019 goes to a bioinformatician

The Dr. Josef Steiner Cancer Research Award for 2019, endowed with €900,000 and originally referred to as the "Nobel Prize for Cancer Research", is going to Prof. Serena Nik-Zainal of the University of Cambridge. Thanks to her research, mutations in cancerous tumors can be analyzed using new bioinformatic methods, which makes new targeted therapy approaches possible. The prize is being awarded today at the University of Bern.