"Scotland is proud to have some of the world’s leading science and research institutions. During this unprecedented global pandemic, the response of our research institutions in volunteering staff and laboratory equipment has been great to see" Scotland's Environment Secretary has praised Scottish scientific institutions which normally focus on infectious diseases in livestock, environmental security and nutrition for offering support to tackle coronavirus (COVID-19). The Scottish Government-funded James Hutton Institute, Scottish Rural College (SRUC), and Rowett Institute are providing vital
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Balanced diets are often talked about, but beyond eating five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, perhaps not everyone understands how diets can be balanced. Equally, sustainable diets are often referred to, and this phrase is becoming increasingly popular. However, what is a sustainable diet, and can a balanced diet also be a sustainable diet? The answers to these questions and more are discussed as part of the new Diet Detectives activity developed by SEFARI scientists. The activity is based around learners creating three plates of food; choosing their favourite foods, creating a healthy
Brome mosaic virus PDB 1J59 (image: JY Sgro; UW-Madison) “This technology may be rapidly repurposed to synthesize bulk amounts of vaccine and diagnostic proteins in emergencies" Plant viruses can be just as devastating for agricultural crops and the security of food supply as some of the world's most notorious viruses, SARS-CoV-2 among them, have been for the human population. Plant viruses can be useful as well as harmful, however, and new biotechnology research at the James Hutton Institute is pointing the way to how plant viruses can be harnessed to produce vaccines. Eventually, this
In order to respond to the demands of agile governance, mathematical models have become a dominant source of policy evidence and a standard decision-support tool during various stages of disease management at strategic, tactical and operational policy levels. Other types of normative (value-driven) exploratory approaches may better identify and control the influence of longer-term drivers of disease spread. The latter include bio-social, political and economic determinants like poverty, food security, universal healthcare, climate change, urbanization, which are particularly important in
"High-performance computing is central to so many areas of science performed by the Institute. It allows us to tackle data analysis problems at scales beyond those possible with normal PCs, such as processing genetic sequencing, environmental and remote sensing data sets, analysing hyperspectral images of plants, or running complex climate and weather models" A High-Performance Computing (HPC) platform that will increase the pace of crop science and climate change research has been established by six leading UK research organisations. More information from: Bernardo Rodriguez-Salcedo, Media
“I am really inspired by our staff’s dedication and imaginative ways of helping in these difficult times and leaving no stone unturned. Every small effort helps.” James Hutton Institute employees have been helping efforts to provide frontline staff in Tayside and North East Scotland with much-needed personal protection equipment (PPE) during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. The Institute has previously identified all surplus PPE and supplied it to local NHS contacts. However, our staff are finding further ways of getting PPE to those who need it most including now face shields and masks to protect