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How does the body regulate the activity of insulin-producing cells in order to react quickly to changing conditions? Researchers at the University of Würzburg have investigated this question. The hormone insulin plays a central role in the metabolism of many living organisms. When food is plentiful, insulin promotes the absorption and storage of energy.

Scientists from DZNE, University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the University of Bonn provide new evidence that preventing brain inflammation is a promising approach for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Their findings, based on studies in cell culture, mice and tissue samples from patients, may contribute to the development of more effective therapies.

Human influence has led to loss of chimpanzee culture and calls for conservation strategies to include preserving cultural distinctiveness A new study, conducted on wild chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes verus ) in Taï National Park, Côte d'Ivoire, provides evidence that the gestures used by male chimpanzees from four neighbouring communities during copulation requests may reflect different dialects.

An enzyme called Ubiquitin-specific peptidase 5 is a key factor in protein quality in heart muscle cells A disrupted protein degradation process in heart muscle cells can lead to a range of severe heart diseases.

Adhesion GPCRs are a group of cell surface sensors that are associated with many bodily functions and diseases. However, they have not yet been sufficiently investigated in order to use them for therapies. The Collaborative Research Center 1423 at Leipzig University aims to change this. Scientists from the Faculty of Medicine have now developed an innovative numbering system for the GAIN domain, a protein domain that is common to all adhesion GPCRs.

Based on their observations, the biologists proposed a model detailing the mechanisms of systemic immune signalling in plants: Triggered by a pathogen, initially a third kinase inside the infected cell triggers the generation of extracellular reactive oxygen species in the cell, which would then diffuse to the surface of neighbouring cells.

New study published in "Science" shows that a single gene determines the mating behavior of male ruffs In the animal kingdom, testosterone is a necessary hormone for reproduction, and high levels of it are often associated with male dominance and aggression. However, in ruffs - a shore bird that breeds across Europe and Asia - a single gene turns aggressive males into peaceful ones.

New research shows how cancer develops in children who are predisposed to Wilms' tumor. This could help to predict the development of tumors before they fully form or to develop new, targeted therapies. Wilms' tumor is a form of kidney cancer that mainly affects children under the age of five. In Germany, around 100 children are diagnosed with it every year.

Researchers from around the world have studied the genome of over 150,000 people with bipolar disorder Genetic factors play a major role in the development of bipolar disorder. In an effort to better understand the underlying biology, researchers are constantly examining the genome of people with bipolar disorder.

The fruit fly Drosophila busckii can detect and thrive on toxic food sources The ability to tolerate toxic substances can help animals find new food sources and thrive in certain ecological niches. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena have now discovered that the fruit fly Drosophila busckii has developed a tolerance to the toxic sulfur compound dimethyldisulfide.

We normally associate high testosterone levels with male dominance and aggression. Among ruffs - a shore bird that breeds across Europe and Asia - some males suffer from too much of it. Together with international colleagues, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence have now shown how the birds eliminate the excess: they produce a super enzyme that rapidly breaks down the hormone.

Researchers create dataset resource to understand plant development, resilience and biodiversity   Land plants are extremely diverse: over 400,000 species reaching every corner of the world. This diversity mainly splits into two plant lineages: vascular and non-vascular. Vascular plants are the ones that often capture our attention - from the towering trees to the crops in our fields.

For the first time, researchers have observed how HIV penetrates the nuclear pores to the genome of human immune cells Researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Biophysics and the University of Heidelberg have discovered how Hi viruses enter the nucleus of a human cell. The conical protein capsules in which the genetic material of the pathogens is packed accumulate at nuclear pores in human immune cells such as macrophages and pass through them.

Shell-dwelling cichlids take intense care of their offspring, which they raise in abandoned snail shells. A team at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence used 3D-printed snail shells to find out what happens inside. The young and the mother each follow their own, but synchronized schedules: as soon as the larvae prefer light, they leave the shell on the ninth day after fertilization.

Nitrogen isotopes in Australopithecus tooth enamel show no evidence of meat consumption Pre-humans such as Australopithecus, who lived in southern Africa around 3.5 million years ago, ate little or no meat - this has been proven by Tina Lüdecke and her team at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry using isotope measurements on fossil teeth.

News from Understanding biological relationships is often critical when studying animal populations. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig University, the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) and the Freie Universität Berlin have now developed a transformative approach that identifies stretches of DNA that two individuals inherited from a common ancestor.

Real-time observation of certain biochemical processes in blood vessels from mice has revealed a previously unknown similarity between atherosclerosis, also known as vascular calcification, and bone growth. A research team led by Professor Robert Feil at the University of Tübingen's Interfaculty Institute of Biochemistry discovered that a molecular signaling pathway that plays an important role in bone growth can slow down the development of atherosclerosis in blood vessels.

Ancient genomes show integration of genetically different groups to the same early medieval Avar society in the Vienna Basin, Austria Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, together with an international team, carried out an archeogenetic study of human remains from more than 700 individuals from the Early Middle Ages.

Researchers led by chemist Claudia Höbartner have now uncovered the 3D structure of the RNA enzyme SAMURI. Their study provides insights into the development of ribozymes and the evolution of catalytically active RNA. RNA molecules are an integral part of the human body: In cells, they ensure the transfer of genetic information and regulate the activity of genes.

University of Bonn study opens the door to neural networks that require much less energy AI applications like ChatGPT are based on artificial neural networks that, in many respects, imitate the nerve cells in our brains. They are trained with vast quantities of data on high-performance computers, gobbling up massive amounts of energy in the process.