Puccini and other made men of libretto and coloratura the casually attired jazz heads of Westphalia witnessed a legendary solo improvisation by piano titan Keith Jarrett Yet it was probably a miracle it happened at all Jarrett had been a classical piano prodigy with perfect pitch Graduating from Berklee to the Village Vanguard and from 1971 recorded solo piano works for Munich indie ECM the precocious force behind the New Jazz In Cologne concert series contacted ECM live agent Thomas Stöwsand and booked the Opera House from 11pm this winter Friday When word that Jarrett was playing got out Jarrett had played the Salle des Spectacles in Epalinges Switzerland the day before his Cologne engagement and had made the sleepless 400-mile journey overnight by car The Opera House assured Brandes they had one to hand When Jarrett and Eicher arrived at the dimly illuminated hall earlier that day they each played a few notes on the instrument that had been provided Manfred came to me,” she told the BBC in 2011 Jarrett had been presented with a Bösendorfer baby grand used for rehearsals – one that wasn’t in tune with pedals that stuck and some keys that didn’t work when a nameless piano tuner forbade the potentially catastrophic plan to wheel the replacement instrument across town in rainy conditions he set to work making the baby grand playable “The piano tuner saved our lives,” said Brandes who asked Jarrett to commit to the gig as he sat in a car heading back to his hotel the Italian restaurant they went to before the show messed up his order The decision having been taken to record the concert ECM engineer Martin Weiland was present with a mobile studio and two Neumann U 67 microphones Jarrett recalled in 2011 how this plan hardened his resolve He told jazz scribe Don Heckman that he gave Eicher a raised fist salute on his way onstage “I was forced to play in what was — at the time — a new way Somehow I felt I had to bring out whatever qualities this instrument had… my sense was I don’t care what the fuck the piano sounds like.’” and alone with a suboptimal instrument and a 1,300-strong crowd trusted himself and dug as deep as any musician has this pianistic journey into a transcendent beyond builds on shifting melodies and repeated patterns punctuated by groans and vocalisations as he stood and sat as the mood took him blues and contemporary classical merge into a limitless kind of ecstatic connection it was released as The Koln Concert that November and more than one hundred albums with his trio Yet in October he confirmed that two strokes in 2018 have left him unable to play he revealed he could not even do so in his dreams In his 1991 preface to The Köln Concert’s transcription Jarrett explained his longstanding reluctance to set the music down “this was a totally improvised concert on a certain night and should go as quickly as it comes.” If only it were that simple Read: John Coltrane's Greatest Albums Ranked Company number 01176085; Bauer Radio Limited Company number: 1394141; Registered office: Media House Peterborough PE2 6EA and H Bauer Publishing Company number: LP003328; Registered office: The Lantern H Bauer Publishing are authorised and regulated for credit broking by the FCA (Ref No: 845898) Copyright ©2025. 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Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishingCookie Settings Finally we can take part in society in this way," said Gaé Colussi regional officer for the French-speaking part of Switzerland at Pink Cross which represents the interests of gay and bisexual men across the country.Some other European countries have no restrictions preventing men who have sexual relations with men from giving blood France removed additional restrictions on gay blood donors last year.Swiss Transfusion SRC which secures the Switzerland's blood supply submitted a request to medical authorities to revise the criteria based on a risk assessment of sexual behaviours the epidemiological situation in Switzerland and data from countries that have already lifted restrictions.SwissMedic the authority that licences and monitors therapeutic products agreed to the changes."The new ineligibility criteria define even more precisely that it is indeed risky behaviour that underpins ineligibility," SwissMedic said in a statement "This is something we support."Donor Delabays pledged he would become a regular at the transfusion centre."It's a really small gesture that can save someone," he said.Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Alison Williams Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab , opens new tab Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. , opens new tabScreen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. © 2025 Reuters. All rights reserved 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Onward Therapeutics SA (Onward Therapeutics) a global biotechnology company focused on developing innovative immunotherapies for cancer treatment today announced that the phase 1 clinical trial of OT-A201 (Study No a first-in-class bispecific antibody targeting two immune checkpoints is in progress and preliminary anti-tumoral activity of OT-A201 The study is a European multicenter and open-label study that will be conducted in two parts The first part is a dose escalation stage of OT-A201 as single agent in patients with selected relapsed/refractory hematological malignancies or advanced/metastatic solid tumors The second part is an expansion stage that will further evaluate the safety and preliminary anti-tumoral activity of OT-A201 as monotherapy or in combination in defined hematological malignancies and solid tumors at the dose(s) selected from the first part Onward Therapeutics licensed the exclusive worldwide rights of development and commercialization of OT-A201 from Biomunex Pharmaceuticals (Biomunex) a biopharmaceutical company discovering and developing bi- and multi-specific antibodies Onward Therapeutics and Biomunex will co-develop this bispecific antibody until the completion of the phase 1 study in one of the indications Dosing of the first patient has triggered an undisclosed amount of milestone payment to Biomunex "With the drug development expertise and successful track records of the Onward Therapeutics team we have moved forward from the cell line development preclinical pharmacology and toxicology studies as well as clinical development and regulatory application of OT-A201 rapidly and efficiently We are enthusiastic to test OT-A201 for the first time in patients The study marks an important milestone of Onward Therapeutics in transitioning into a clinical stage company It also represents a step forward in advancing innovative projects based on our 'buy-to-build' business model" "Despite the recent advances in cancer immunotherapy there is still a significant unmet need for new treatment options to improve clinical outcome OT-A201 offers an effective strategy to overcome tumor resistance and to provide better anti-tumor effects This bispecific antibody has shown excellent in vitro and in vivo activity and safety opening up the possibility of a favorable therapeutic window We are looking forward to providing clinically meaningful information from this study to bring a differentiated approach in difficult-to-treat cancer patients" OT-A201 is a first-in-class humanized bispecific antibody targeting two immune checkpoints With the potential synergistic anti-cancer effects it is being evaluated as a new treatment for advanced hematological malignancies and solid tumors OT-A201 has demonstrated excellent specificity safety and displayed significant anti-tumoral activities at different doses with the potential for a wider therapeutic window as compared to its parental antibodies Based on the proprietary structure generated from the BiXAb technology of Biomunex OT-A201 possesses a functional Fc domain in contributing to ADCC activity against tumor cells View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/onward-therapeutics-announces-enrollment-of-phase-1-clinical-trial-of-a-novel-bispecific-antibody-ot-a201-targeting-two-immune-checkpoints-302042048.html After completing an undergraduate biology degree at the University of Manchester Hannah Flynn studied journalism at Cardiff University She has worked on a variety of publications targeted at healthcare professionals and patients over the past decade and is now a science editor Over the past few years, there have been a number of studies linking vitamin D to other potential health benefits scientists from the Swiss Nutrition and Health Foundation in Epalinges are adding to this research with a new study showing a link between lower vitamin D levels and a higher risk of cardiovascular events However, there was no association between having normal vitamin D levels and lower cardiovascular disease or overall death risk The same results were found when removing participants who took vitamin D supplementation This study was recently published in the journal Nutrients “For instance, some studies have shown that very low vitamin D levels will increase someone’s blood pressure which is a risk factor,” he explained to Medical News Today which again is a risk factor [for cardiovascular problems],” he noted Additionally, past studies show a link between vitamin D deficiency and obesity which is also a cardiovascular disease risk factor “I think this research adds to good general advice that everybody should have their vitamin D levels checked regularly by their primary care physician,” Dr “And for those found to have very low levels we would recommend that they get vitamin D supplementation.” Although there has been much research conducted on vitamin D and cardiovascular disease, the results are inconsistent, said Dr. Pollyanna Patriota a researcher at the Swiss Nutrition and Health Foundation in Epalinges “The role of vitamin D in cardiovascular disease is still debated and there is no strong evidence that vitamin D supplementation can improve heart health,” she told MN whether supplementation of patients at high cardiovascular disease risk and presenting with vitamin D insufficiency is beneficial with regards to cardiovascular disease outcomes deserves further investigation.” She said she and her colleagues decided to study the effect of vitamin D on cardiovascular health because previous studies assessing this association had several limitations such as participant diversity and a short follow-up period we decided to study the association between vitamin D levels and cardiovascular events population-based sample living in Lausanne Patriota and her team recruited almost 5,700 participants — of which slightly more were women — from Lausanne All participants had vitamin D levels that were categorized as either normal Scientists assessed the participants’ health over an average of about 14 years researchers found a correlation between better vitamin D levels and a lower risk for cardiovascular disease the study did not find a link between lowered vitamin D levels and a heightened risk for deaths caused by either cardiovascular disease or overall causes “We suggest that larger studies should be developed to clarify the impact of vitamin D supplementation on cardiovascular health.” The body is able to make vitamin D when the skin is exposed to the sun that sometimes does not generate enough vitamin D Most times, if a person is vitamin D deficient they will not have any symptoms This is why it is important to have vitamin D levels checked regularly by a physician very low vitamin D levels can sometimes result in certain symptoms Patriota pointed out that it is unlikely that a single vitamin can improve cardiovascular health: Patriota said vitamin D deficiencies must be detected and treated especially in populations at risk for vitamin D deficiency “Vitamin D supplementation for the general population is not recommended in most countries,” she explained “People at risk of vitamin D deficiency need to adequately measure their vitamin D level If the risk or diagnosis of deficiency or insufficiency is identified by a specialized professional Apply for training, workshops, and events to accelerate your startup. Meet and pitch to investors to raise capital for your startup. Grow your startup with access to corporates and international roadshows. 'It’s fantastic to see how Venturelab is constantly spotting top-level entrepreneurs and successfully executing support programs with partners, allowing startups to reach their best potential.' 'Supporting Venture Leaders Mobile since the beginning, it’s been an amazing ride to bring the top-tier Swiss startups to the Mobile World Congress. We are excited to help Swiss entrepreneurs to build a strong network in the international telecom industry' Brendan Pierson reports on product liability litigation and on all areas of health care law. He can be reached at brendan.pierson@thomsonreuters.com. A local resident called the police to say they’d seen the wild cat in their garden – and then sent a picture.  That was enough to launch a large-scale search – which involved an army helicopter with a thermal camera.  Vaud Police sent out warning messages on social media – saying if you see the animal, don’t run – but go to a safe place and call them.  All the lions that are in the area are accounted for. There are two at the Servion Zoo - only 12 km away from the alleged sighting – and one in the Cremines Zoo in the Bernese Jura. All three are in their enclosures.  If the sighting is true, then it means one has been kept illegally.  UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) has released data on drug testing and positive test results for 26 sports that will feature at next month's Games The statistics, complied by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) include the number of samples tested in each sport for every year between 2003 and 2010 as well as the number of tests therein that indicate the use of a prohibited substance A 'finding' - a result recorded as indicative of substance-use - is either an adverse analytical finding (AAF) or an atypical finding (ATF) An AAF is defined in the World Anti-Doping Code as: A report from a laboratory or other WADA approved entity that consistent with the International Standard for Laboratories and related Technical Documents identifies in a sample the presence of a Prohibited Substance or its Metabolites or Markers (including elevated quantities of endogenous substances) or evidence of the use of a Prohibited Method A report from a laboratory or other WADA-approved entity which requires further investigation as provided by the International Standard for Laboratories or related Technical Documents prior to the determination of an AAF Between 2003 and 2008 the total number of samples taken across all sports increased steadily from just over 100,000 to 166,185 In 2009 and 2010 this figure fell slightly with the most recent total standing at 162130 Of the 26 sports included in the 2012 Games the worst offender in terms of the rate of findings per sample (averaged across all eight years) is cycling The second highest rate - 3.05% - was found among boxers Badminton had the lowest rate of usage-indication findings per sample Footballers were the most tested athletes in terms of the total number of samples (30,398) The visualisation below - created by Andy Cotgreave of Tableau Software - breaks the data down sport-by-sport and year-by-year For every event annual figures show the number of samples tested While cycling has the highest average findings rate over the eight year period there has been a general decline in positive tests since 2003 Sailing and judo are among the sports showing a general increase in positive findings DATA: View or download (XLS file) the data to explore it in more detail More data journalism and data visualisations from the Guardian Search the world's government data with our gateway Search the world's global development data with our gateway The Local Europe ABVästmannagatan 43113 25 StockholmSweden moved back to his home country of Sweden last year after living in Switzerland for almost four decades has frequently been described as modest for a man whose fortune is conservatively valued by Forbes magazine at more than $4 billion and by some estimates up to nine times that The flatpack furniture empire founder has carved out a reputation for being frugal but Swiss media were astonished to discover that his home is too run down to live in “Current house to demolish,” reads an advert for the property carried on the Immoscout24 real estate website This is one of the drawbacks of a property that otherwise is comprised of a 4,150-square-metre flat parcel of land benefiting from a clear view of Lake Geneva a single-storey ranch-style villa with attached garage dotted with a few trees and not much sign of professional landscaping Immoscout24 said it is possible to build eight new homes to replace the villa Please log in here to leave a comment 348Novel Immunometabolism Approach Targets Immune-Cold Solid Tumors pioneering biologics targeting metabolic checkpoints will present new research on its lead candidate at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) 2025 Annual Meeting The presentations will include an oral symposium by co-founder and Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) These efforts highlight PLT012's potential as a novel therapeutic approach for immune-cold solid tumors PLT012 is currently in late-stage preclinical development and progressing toward its first-in-human clinical trial PLT012 – CD36 blocking antibody leading to tumor microenvironment (TME) reprogramming Pilatus Biosciences will participate at the AACR 2025 Annual Meeting "We are pleased to present our latest research at AACR 2025," said Dr "PLT012 reflects a differentiated approach—one that reawakens the immune system by targeting metabolic pathways with the goal of extending the power of immunotherapy to patients who currently don't benefit from it." "PLT012 has earned FDA Orphan Drug Designation for liver and intrahepatic bile duct cancers Its ability to reprogram the tumor microenvironment has led us to explore synergistic combinations including bispecific antibodies (BsAb) and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) in preclinical studies across various solid tumor models addressing critical unmet needs in oncology." is a humanized anti-CD36 antibody with a dual mechanism of action (MOA) It simultaneously inhibits immunosuppressive cell populations and enhances effector T cell function Preclinical studies as a monotherapy have demonstrated its efficacy in both immune-hot and immune-cold tumor models with a significant increase in GzmB-expressing CD8+ T cells and reductions in intratumoral Tregs and pro-tumorigenic macrophages PLT012 reshapes the exhaustion profile of cytotoxic CD8+ T cells by expanding both progenitor exhausted (Texprog) and terminally-exhausted (Texterm) populations with rejuvenated effector functions may provide therapeutic benefits in cancer treatment either as a monotherapy or in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors such as PD-1 or PD-L1 inhibitors the unique MOA as a metabolic regulator also shows the potential of reprogramming the metabolic environment with associated benefits thus laying the groundwork for targeting a broader spectrum of metabolic and immunological diseases Investors and Media[email protected] Taipei MRT reminds passengers of drinking water ban Taiwan dollar hits NT$29 per US dollar triggering currency exchange rush Central Bank steps in as Taiwan dollar posts strong single-day gain Vietjet flight makes unscheduled landing in Taiwan Taiwan ranked 2nd most innovative country in world Magnitude 5.5 earthquake strikes off east Taiwan US tech earnings spark Taiwan stock market rally Four Vietnamese residents found dead in northern Taiwan Taiwan ranks 1st in Asia on World Press Freedom Index US Congress members urge Somalia to reverse Taiwan passport ban , science correspondentMon 28 Nov 2011 16.27 CETShareWhen a doctor wants to carry out a test package and send them to some centralised hospital laboratory perform the various biochemical analyses needed write up the results and send back the documentation in a few weeks What if you could reduce the whole business to a few minutes the doctor only needed a drop of your blood and could test you for viruses or cancers while you wait in her surgery Quick tests are not a new idea – pregnancy tests can be done at home and diabetics can quickly and easily measure their blood sugar levels using only a drop of blood – but complex diagnoses still need labs and technicians "With a lab-on-a-chip you can do a quick diagnostic test and get information right there, which is very useful when somebody's got a disease that's got a very short timeline to be treated," says Mark Morrison, CEO of the Institute of Nanotechnology in Stirling "What it effectively does is miniaturises and compacts all the different processes that a researcher or a technician in the diagnostic lab uses." beakers and test tubes of a modern chemistry lab onto a microchip-sized wafer of glass or plastic Perhaps you want to know which viruses are in a sample of blood which biological warfare agent is present in a soldier's bloodstream Put in a drop of blood at one end and the carefully carved channels take its constituent molecules past a circuit of nanometre-sized chemical and physical tests that poke prod and characterise them to answer your question A chip developed by the University of Alberta can screen for chromosome mutations that cause a range of cancers And it is not specific to medicine – it is being developed for environmental monitoring of pollutants and in basic scientific research to speed up the once-tedious aspects of examining genes or testing the properties of new materials Prof Tom Duke at the London Centre for Nantechnology has been working on a chip that can detect whether a blood sample contains HIV Current tests require testing in large laboratories staffed by skilled clinicians which is a hindrance if you want to test people in resource-poor countries where the disease is rife Duke's chip simplifies that process using a sensor that only requires a drop of blood at one end The blood is separated into its parts by an array of nanometre-sized silicon pillars in the sensor and the biggest bits – such as blood cells and large proteins – are trapped Any virus particles pass between the pilars to the other end of the sensor where they are attracted to a series of tiny cantilevers coated with antibodies mini diving boards that bend when something lands on them and that deflection can be measured by bouncing a laser off them "This platform can be used for pretty much any viral or bacterial disease," says Duke There are several advantages to the lab-on-a-chip approach beyond the convenience of being able to test in the field The test sample required is much smaller because of the sensitivity of the chip which is useful if you need to measure trace gases in the atmosphere or the very earliest stages of a disease when the chemical markers in the blood are low in number and would probably be missed by standard tests "Potentially you can detect the presence of cancer or diabetes at a much earlier stage and then treat it more effectively," says Morrison you have a much greater chance of success." designed by a team of researchers led by Ivan Dimov at the University of California can detect a biological component in blood at a concentration of around 1 part per 40 billion "That can be roughly thought of as finding a fine grain of sand in a 1,700-gallon sand pile," says Dimov The self-contained chip can get results from a drop of blood in 10 minutes Researchers interested in basic physiology are also finding a use for these sophisticated mini laboratories Scientists at Harvard University have created a lung on a chip that contains several types of tissue and can be used in experiments to understand basic function introduce pollutants and toxins to see how the "lung" reacts and even stretch and contract the cells to simulate breathing But there are some ethical questions coming along the pipeline while it is still in its infancy and still relatively expensive since many of the devices will be used to test for an individual's susceptibility to specific genetic diseases another question is who should be able to access to that information "As a scientist I'd say screen everybody for every disease because then you know who is going to get something and you can treat them early on," says Morrison "But that's maybe looking at it from a utopian point of view." The dystopian alternative is a precautionary note rather than an inevitability and debates around future access to genetic and medical data are already under way thanks to a rapidly improving arsenal of medical and environmental sensors Miniature laboratories on silicon and glass chips are another The Guardian is working in association with the European Union's NanoChannels project to create a portal for information on the technical and ethical challenges associated with nanotechnology