Temperate rainforests across England will receive a £750m boost as part of a new government strategy that was published in response to a petition signed by tens of thousands of people. However, there are criticisms regarding the strategy’s lack of an overarching goal or any commitments to granting legal protections to more rainforest sites. Campaigners have called for the government to do more before the next election in 2024 to address these shortcomings. Despite these concerns, the new funding will support research into temperate rainforests alongside the introduction of seven “landscape recovery sites” to encourage greater rainforest restoration.
Medical research has entered a new era with the publication of a “treasure trove” of half a million whole genomic sequences, covering nearly 500,000 volunteers, which will be available for analysis to labs around the world. Despite some limitations, both medical researchers and geneticists consider this a new era for fast-tracking the prevention and treatment of diseases. This collection has been made available by UK Biobank and provides a valuable resource for studying the biological underpinnings of human health and disease.
In a real-world trial involving 24,000 participants, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has found that a little blue pill called HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is “highly effective” in reducing the chances of getting HIV by 86%. The drug is already being widely used in the UK. From 2022 to 2023, 26% of men who have sex with men were on PrEP and saw an 84% decrease in new HIV diagnoses. HIV testing and PrEP can be accessed for free at sexual health services. It is vital that the drug remains accessible to all who stand to benefit.
For the first time, an aircraft powered by sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), derived mainly from food waste, flew across the Atlantic. This could prove a major milestone in aviation’s decarbonisation process. Although SAF produces up to 70% fewer lifecycle emissions than kerosene, there is not enough of it to go around and it still remains out of reach for the majority of passengers. The Aviation Environment Federation commented that it is important to start cutting emissions until zero-emission fuels are developed, encouraging people to fly less and instead explore alternative means of travel
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