University of Girona
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Head of the Nutrition, Eumetabolism and Health Group at IDIBGI and CIBEROBN, Professor of Medicine at the University of Girona and Head of the Endocrinology Section at the Dr. Josep Trueta Hospital
Director of the Master in Primatology at the University of Girona and professor "Serra Húnter"
Director and researcher at the Institute of Computational Chemistry and Catalysis of the University of Girona
ICREA Researcher at the Computational Chemistry and Cathalisis Institute (IQCC) from the Girona University
Many diseases related to bacteria, such as inflammatory bowel disease or colorectal cancer, are associated with an overgrowth of gut bacteria considered 'bad'. However, a study published in the journal Cell suggests that changes in microbial load, rather than the disease itself, could be the driving factor behind the presence of these harmful species associated with pathologies.
A research team describes in the journal Science how to create organic molecules whose geometry breaks the so-called Bredt's rule. According to this 1924 rule, double bonds between two carbon atoms cannot exist at certain positions in a molecule. Until now, this rule has limited the types of molecules that scientists can imagine and make.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2024 on the one hand to David Baker for computational protein design, which makes it possible to construct proteins with functions not present in nature. On the other hand, jointly to Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper of Google DeepMind, for the development of AlphaFold2, which allows the structure of the 200 million known proteins to be predicted at high speed.
Some animal species, such as parrots or dolphins, appear to address each other by imitating sounds from the receiver. However, animals addressing each other by individual names has only been observed in humans. Now, an international team of researchers says that African elephants can communicate through name-like calls and do not appear to rely on imitation to do so. According to the authors, who publish their results in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution, the finding would imply that they have some degree of symbolic thinking.
A study published in Science Advances analyses population data for great ape species in mining areas in 17 African countries and shows that their habitats overlap, endangering the apes' survival. The study also reveals a considerable information gap: 97% of the mining areas contain no population data for these animals.
Chimpanzees can learn a new skill by observing each other — a phenomenon known as social learning — according to a study published in Nature Human Behaviour. The findings suggest that chimpanzees may have the capacity for cumulative cultural evolution, which was previously considered to be an exclusively human trait.
Two studies published in the journal Nature Communications have found specific characteristics in the microbiota of people with depression, including populations of different ethnicities and habits.
An international study published in the journal PNAS has associated deforestation and climate change with different species of monkeys and lemurs that usually live in trees spending more time on the ground. This implies that they would be exposed to a greater number of hazards. The research has taken place in 47 species in different parts of the Americas and Madagascar.