Culture

A new study of human olfactory cells has revealed that viral invasion of supportive cells in the nasal cavity might be driving the loss of smell seen in some patients with COVID-19. The findings show that non-neuronal cells in the brain and nose express genes critical for SARS-CoV-2 entry, while neurons do not; therefore, non-neuronal cells are likely to be the primary targets for virus-induced damage leading to loss of smell, or anosmia.

Current observations suggest that the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 causes severe symptoms mainly in elderly patients with chronic disease. However when two pairs of previously healthy young brothers from two families required mechanical ventilation at the intensive care unit in rapid succession, doctors and researchers at Radboud University Medical Center were inclined to consider that genetic factors had a key role in compromising their immune system. Their research identified the gene TLR7 as an essential player in the immune response against SARS-CoV-2.

Researchers are urging city-dwellers to switch off their garden lights at night-time after a study of magpies and pigeons revealed the harmful impact artificial light is having on the birds' sleep patterns.

The study by La Trobe University and University of Melbourne, published today in Current Biology, is the first to measure neurological responses to light pollution in wildlife.

The researchers looked at how birds' sleep was affected by artificial white light and the apparently more "sleep-friendly" amber light.

Home-made cloth face masks likely need a minimum of two layers, and preferably three, to prevent the dispersal of viral droplets from the nose and mouth that are associated with the spread of COVID-19, indicates a video case study published online in the journal Thorax.

Viral droplets are generated during coughing, sneezing, or speaking. And face masks are thought to protect healthy people from inhaling infectious droplets as well as reducing the spread from those who are already infected.

A new 42-country study has found that the more gender egalitarian the country, the less likely men are to support women's causes.

The study, published in the European Journal of Social Psychology, was led by Dr Natasza Kosakowska-Berezecka from the University of Gda?sk, Poland, and involved a team of experts including Dr Magdalena Zawisza of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), who was a member of the lead research group.

Juvenile fishes have one of the highest mortality rates compared to other life stages. Within two days of settling into a reef almost 60 percent are consumed by predators. Our recent study found noisy boats and ships can also affect the prey response of these young fishes.

When exposed to the noise of vessels, juvenile fishes decreased their activity, which reduced their swimming distance. Previous research found more active fishes learn faster about their environment and potential predators, which results in a higher chance of survival (2).

Hotels should build an emotional attachment with tourists when communicating during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic if they are to encourage them to return, according to new research.

The study finds that crisis communication emphasising shared emotional responses to risks enables tourists to humanise the hotel, which can subsequently create an emotional attachment. This attachment can then increase tourists' intentions to visit once the crisis ends, which is crucial if the industry is to recover.