Economic Success and Ethical Supply Chains Are Not Mutually Exclusive
Do new laws requiring supply chain due diligence harm the economy? A recent study found no long-term economic disadvantages for firms subject to such regulations.
Archive Media Releases 2025
Article list Media Releases
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Preterm Infants More Likely to Experience Delayed Language Development
Differences in early language development, which is key to later communication skills, social interaction and academic success, emerge during infancy. -
Swiss Genome of the 1918 Influenza Virus Reconstructed
Researchers discovered that the virus already had key adaptations to the human host at the beginning of the world's deadliest influenza pandemic. -
Baby talk – a human superpower?
Humans from different cultures use a form of child-directed speech. However, it appears that this characteristic is far from prevalent in non-human great apes. -
Fungal Resistance in Wheat: Preserving Biodiversity for Food Security
Wheat production is threatened by a major fungal disease: yellow rust. UZH researchers have found traditional wheat varieties from Asia that harbor several resistance-conferring genes. -
Study Traces Transmission Routes in Largest Diphtheria Outbreak in Western Europe in 70 Years
Data from the outbreak indicate transmission routes along established migration pathways into Europe. Although rapid interventions successfully contained the outbreak, these strains continue to cause new infections. -
Intestinal Bacteria Influence Aging of Blood Vessels
Researchers have shown for the first time that intestinal bacteria and their metabolites contribute directly to vascular aging. -
43,000 Data Points against Melanoma
Every tumor is unique. In a new study, scientists from Zurich and Basel used advanced technologies to create individual profiles for precise tumor treatment. -
Your Best Friend’s Personality Can Shape Your Own
Students become more conscientious, open, and competitive when they spend time with friends who also exhibit these traits, according to the first study on how students’ personalities are shaped by their peers. -
Live View: Stress-Induced Changes in Generations of Cancer Cells
Drugs that affect DNA replication, or radiation that causes direct DNA damage, lead to increasingly diverse offspring over multiple cell generations. This increases the tumor’s genetic complexity and facilitates the development of resistance to therapy. -
UZH Awards Eight Honorary Doctorates
The University of Zurich has awarded honorary doctorates to historian Amy Nelson Burnett, legal philosopher Elisabeth Holzleithner, academic economist Laura Starks, linguist Elisabeth Gülich, conservationist Paula Kahumbu, theologian Herman Johan Selderhuis, banking expert Christian Rahn and horse trainer Fredy Knie Jr. -
How Plants Communicate with Each Other
A new exhibition on plant communication marks the inclusion of botany at the University of Zurich’s Natural History Museum. -
Dual Associations with Two Fungi Improve Tree Fitness
Tree species that form symbioses with two different types of mycorrhizal fungi cope better with water and nutrient scarcity. -
Personality Traits Shape Our Prosocial Behavior
Why do some people do more for the community than others? A new study now shows that personality traits such as extraversion and agreeableness correlate with volunteering and charitable giving. -
Current AI Risks More Alarming than Apocalyptic Future Scenarios
Most people are generally more concerned about the immediate risks of artificial intelligence than about a theoretical future in which AI threatens humanity. This is shown by a new study from the University of Zurich. -
Retinal Clues to Mental Health
A new study has shown that evidence of genetic susceptibility to schizophrenia can be found in the retina. This finding could help improve the early detection of the disorder. -
Bonobos Combine Calls in Similar Ways to Human Language
Bonobos – our closest living relatives – create complex sequences of sounds that resemble human word combinations. A new study by researchers from the University of Zurich and Harvard University challenges the uniqueness of human communication. -
The Devastating Human Impact on Biodiversity
Humans are having a highly detrimental impact on biodiversity worldwide. Not only is the number of species declining, but the composition of species communities is also changing. These are the findings of one of the largest studies ever conducted on this topic. -
Decoys Restore Antiviral Immune Defense
Defects in the immune system are caused by antibodies that inhibit important defense proteins. UZH researchers have now generated "decoy molecules" that can intercept these autoantibodies. -
Efficient Development of Drugs with Fewer Mice
With a novel technology, around 25 antibodies can now be tested simultaneously in a single mouse. This should speed up the R&D pipeline for new drugs and hugely reduce the number of animals required. -
Promising Active Ingredient for Lupus Therapy
In lupus, the immune system attacks its own structures, causing inflammation and organ damage. A new study shows that natural active ingredient gluconolactone could offer a more targeted therapy. -
Swiss Women Had More Children at Start of Coronavirus Pandemic
A UZH study on the impact of pandemics on fertility reveals an unexpected increase in births during the COVID-19 pandemic, contrasting with the significant decline during previous ones. -
African Young Adults Balance Self-Determination and Communalism
A new study from the University of Zurich shows that the cultural influence on the transition to adulthood in sub-Saharan Africa is more communal and less self-centered than in Western contexts. -
ChatGPT on the couch: relaxation for stressed AI
Distressing news and traumatic stories can cause anxiety – not only in humans, but also in AI language models. Researchers have now shown that an elevated “anxiety level” in GPT-4 can be “calmed down” using mindfulness-based relaxation techniques. -
Young Star Clusters Give Birth to Rogue Planetary-Mass Objects
How do rogue planetary-mass objects form? An international team of astronomers used advanced simulations to show that these enigmatic objects are linked to the chaotic dynamics of young star clusters. -
Schizophrenia is Reflected in the Brain Structure
The symptoms of schizophrenia vary greatly from person to person. A new study shows how these differences manifest themselves in the structure of the brain. -
Rising Wages Drive Innovation in Automation Technology
A new UZH study shows for the first time that higher minimum wages for low-skill jobs drive firms to develop automation technologies. Rising wages for high-skill labor, in contrast, can hamper this effect. -
Melting Glaciers Increase Loss of Freshwater Resources and Rise Global Sea Levels
The melting ice from glaciers worldwide is leading to an increased loss of regional freshwater resources. Since the year 2000, glaciers have been losing 273 billion tons of ice annually. -
Curbing the Global Spread of Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Cases of bacterial sexually transmitted infections are on the rise worldwide. The University of Zurich has now developed a new method for genome sequencing and discovered a previously unrecognized strain of chlamydia -
Omega-3s Can Slow Down Aging Process
A daily intake of one gram of omega-3s can slow down biological aging by up to four months, according to an analysis of clinical data from the international DO-HEALTH study led by the University of Zurich. For the first time, epigenetic clocks were used to measure the aging process. -
Martin Nellen Appointed New Head of Communications at UZH
Martin Nellen has been appointed as the new Head of Communications at the University of Zurich (UZH). He will take up his role on 1 March 2025, succeeding Beat Müller, who has been heading the office on an interim basis since February 2024. -
Climate Change Increases Risk of Successive Natural Hazards in the Himalayas
An international research team reconstructed the Sikkim flood disaster in the Himalayas in October 2023 that triggered a deadly and devastating 20-meter flood wave. -
Global Trust in Science Remains Strong
Led by UZH and ETH Zurich, a team of 241 researchers conducted the largest post-pandemic study of trust in science, societal expectations and public views on research priorities. -
Automatic Speech Recognition on Par with Humans in Noisy Conditions
Current ASR systems achieve remarkable accuracy and may even surpass human performance. While they need to be trained on an incredible amount of data, humans acquire comparable skills in less time. -
Rethinking Population Management in Zoos
Until now, zoos used contraception to avoid surplus animals. Scientists argue for preserving breeding populations and raising awareness of conservation challenges by allowing animals to reproduce naturally and culling surplus animals.