news 2024

An international team of researchers has discovered a previously unknown ape species in the Hammerschmiede clay pit in southern Germany. Buronius manfredschmidi was found close to the great ape Danuvius guggenmosi , known as "Udo". This was about 12 million years ago the first ape with adaptations for walking upright and made the Hammerschmiede excavation site famous.

Research team at the University of Freiburg identifies new membrane protein Sd-Amt1 A team led by Freiburg biochemist Susana Andrade has characterised a new membrane protein that allows microorganisms to repurpose ammonium transporters (Amts) as receptors. Ammonium transporters clearly distinguish between ammonium, potassium and water.

Some cancer drugs cause severe side effects because they are not working accurately enough. A team at the University of Würzburg led by biochemist Caroline Kisker has now discovered why. The small protein ubiquitin is involved in almost every cellular process in our body: it orchestrates the stability and function of the vast majority of proteins.

Largest genetic study on RLS to date An international team of researchers from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and Helmholtz Munich has conducted the largest genetic investigation of restless legs syndrome (RLS) to date. The study represents a significant advancement in deciphering the genetic basis of this disorder and opens novel pathways for patient care.

Genetic analyses of Celtic burial mounds from 500 BCE reveal close relationships and provide new insights into the power structures of early Celtic elites The Celtic culture of the pre-Roman Iron Age in Western and Central Europe has left numerous traces to this day, not least in the form of enormous burial mounds and spectacular archaeological artifacts.

A surface protein helps viruses to enter cells. This has far-reaching consequences for the infection. How exactly do Sars-Cov-2 particles enter host cells? An international team led by Dr Richard Brown from Dr Daniel Todt's Computational Virology group at the Department of Molecular and Medical Virology at Ruhr University Bochum, Germany, together with researchers from the Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, investigated this question.

Why do primates have big brains? In the Panamanian rainforest, scientists pitted large-brained primates against smaller-brained mammals to find out who was the smartest forager Primates, including humans, have larger brains than most other mammals, but why? Scientists searching for the answer have long followed a trail pointing to diet-specifically fruit-as the reason for why primates evolved larger brains.

Researchers at the University of Würzburg, led by Caroline Kisker in cooperation with Claudia Höbartner, discovered how the protein XPD detects a severe DNA damage and controls its repair. The XPD protein is a central component of our body's own 'DNA repair team', known as nucleotide excision repair (NER).

The gut microbiome influences our decisions in social contexts. This is the conclusion of a study led by Sorbonne Université and INSEAD with the participation of the University of Bonn and the University Hospital Bonn (UKB). The study has been published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Nexus .

A study from Bochum describes a mammal-specific domain of the prion protein and offers new approaches for research into neurodegenerative diseases. At first, they cause memory deficits and difficulties in walking, finally they inhibit elementary motor skills and destroy basic brain functions: Prion diseases are progressive and invariably fatal neurodegenerative diseases.

Virtual Reality experiments have illuminated the rhythmic glue that could keep animals moving in synchrony Across nature, animals from swarming insects to herding mammals can organize into seemingly choreographed motion. Over the last two decades, scientists have discovered that these coordinated movements arise from each animal following simple rules about where their neighbors are located.

Dynamic structure of FLVCR proteins and their function in nutrient transport in our cells revealed It is known that malfunctions of the proteins FLVCR1 and FLVCR2 lead to rare hereditary diseases in humans that cause motor, sensory and neurological disorders. However, the biochemical mechanisms behind this and the physiological functions of the FLVCR proteins have been unclear to date.

International research team investigates benefits of forest proximity for cocoa cultivation   The diversity and ecological functionality of bird communities in tropical agroforestry systems are shaped by the surrounding landscape, in particular the extent and composition of the forest. An international research team led by the University of Göttingen has now investigated the composition and ecological traits of bird communities in 23 cocoa agroforestry systems in Peru.

University of Bonn study shows that molecules that modify copies of genes are only permitted in certain cell organelles Plants have special corrective molecules at their disposal that can make retrospective modifications to copies of genes. However, it would appear that these "Tipp-Ex proteins" do not have permission to work in all'areas of the cell, only being used in chloroplasts and mitochondria.

Marine microbes control the flux of matter and energy essential for life in the oceans. Among them, the bacterial group SAR11 accounts for about a third of all the bacteria found in surface ocean waters. A study by researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology in Bremen, Germany, now reveals that at times nearly 20 percent of SAR11 cells are infected by viruses, significantly reducing total cell numbers.

Genetic analyses show how the metabolic capacities of symbiotic bacteria in the gut of termites have changed over the course of evolution Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology in Marburg, Germany, have analysed the evolutionary development of symbiotic bacteria in the intestines of termites with regard to their metabolic capabilities.

Twenty years ago, a drug candidate was rejected due to its side effects. Researchers have now figured out how to potentially make a successor molecule more selective. An increasing number of bacteria have become resistant to many commonly used antibiotics. Researchers from Bochum have discovered a fresh opportunity for a potential active molecule whose predecessor was rejected: By studying its interaction with the bacterial target protein very precisely in three dimensions, they identified a previously undetected point of attack that could be targeted by this compound.

A team of researchers at the Universities of Tübingen and Göttingen has found that certain minerals with characteristic shapes could indicate the activity of bacteria in hydrothermal vents - or black smokers - in the deep ocean several billion years ago. This represents a major step in our understanding of the origin of life.

Understanding the function of a specific bacterial enzyme has paved the way for the biotechnological degradation of styrene. Polystyrene is made from styrene building blocks and is the most widely used plastic in terms of volume, for example in packaging. Unlike PET, which can now be produced and recycled using biotechnological methods, the production of polystyrene has so far been a purely chemical process.

A study carried out at the University of Bonn shows how organically and conventionally farmed plants develop differently Plants adapt genetically over time to the special conditions of organic farming. This has been demonstrated in a long-term study conducted at the University of Bonn. The researchers planted barley plants on two neighboring fields and used conventional farming methods on one and organic methods on the other.