2100: ZIKA VIRUS. The number of cases of nervous-system malformation in relation to Zika that have been reported in Brazil.
The World Health Organisation announced the figure as it said Zika will no longer be treated as an international medical emergency, but a ‘significant and enduring’ threat.
€670m: EU CONTRIBUTION
The total sum of EU health research funds secured by UK organisations in 2007-13. This makes the UK the largest EU beneficiary. However, a decline is expected in the UK’s involvement in the next calls for projects, due to uncertainty about what will happen after 2020.
112,151: DEPRIVATION AND DNA
The chances of a UK child living in deprivation are linked to tiny DNA variations, it is claimed. Common single nucleotide polymorphisms explain 21% of social deprivation and 11% of household income, say the University of Edinburgh researchers. They examined the genomes of 112,151 people in the UK Biobank study, to correlate tiny genetic differences with social deprivation.
$32bn: BIOMEDICINE UNDER TRUMP
The US National Institutes of Health has sent a 27-page report to Donald Trump on how to advance biomedical research. Last year the institute had a budget of $32bn. Keith Yamamoto, one of the report authors, said: “We tried to make recommendations that would be actionable without more money.”
70%: ANXIETY STUDY
A study of more than 7000 people over 12 years found those with health anxiety at the start of the study were about 70%
more likely to develop heart disease than those without. The study participants were from the longterm collaborative research project Norwegian Hordaland health study. All were born between 1953 and 1957.