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18 Headlines Switzerland Researchers fromtheUniversity of Zurich have studied the immune systemof pairs ofmonozygotic twins to identify the influence of the environment and of genetics in cases ofmultiple sclerosis (MS). The study found that genetic predisposition alone does not lead toMS. Using state-of- the-art single-cell technologies to detail the immune profiles of the study participants, researcherswere also able to identify characteristic proteins in the immune cells of thosewithMS. UK The largest ever genetic study of schizophrenia has identified large numbers of specific genes that could play important roles in the psychiatric disorder. Agroup of hundreds of researchers across 45 countries analysedDNA from76,755people with schizophrenia and243,649 without it to better understand the genes and biological processes underpinning the condition. This study, spearheaded by Cardiff University, has found amuch larger number of genetic links to schizophrenia than ever before. Hearing loss and epilepsy are early features of Parkinson’s, according to pioneering new research fromQueen Mary University of London – the first UK study of the condition in such a diverse population (records from over one million people living in East London between 1990 and 2018 were analysed). The study also found that known symptoms associated with Parkinson’s, including tremor and memory problems, can appear up to ten and five years before diagnosis respectively. Neurological research from around the globe USA While studying how memories are formed and stored in the brain, a team at University of Iowa Health Care identified a novel protein folding mechanism that is essential for long term memory storage. The researchers further demonstrated that this mechanism is impaired in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease and that restoring this protein folding mechanism reverses memory impairment in this mouse model for the study of dementia. Researchers fromStanford University have developed an algorithm that may help discern if someone has autismby looking at brain scans. The novel algorithm, driven by recent advances in artificial intelligence, also successfully predicts the severity of autism symptoms in individual patients. With further honing, the algorithm could lead to earlier diagnoses, more targeted therapies, and broadened understanding of autism’s origins in the brain.