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Life Sciences - Health - 12.01.2022

Unmuting the genome
Hereditary diseases as well as cancers and cardiovascular diseases may be associated with a phenomenon known as genomic imprinting, in which only the maternally or paternally inherited gene is active. An international research team involving scientists at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics (MPIMG) in Berlin and Harvard University in Cambridge (USA) has now investigated the mechanisms responsible for the deactivation of the genes.

Life Sciences - 04.01.2022

How Plants Go Through Puberty
A research team at Freie Universität Berlin discovers genes that regulate plant development and reproduction Biologists at Freie Universität Berlin have discovered that the hormone cytokinin regulates a developmental process in plants that can be compared with puberty in humans and animals. The research team says that plants become receptive to specific signals that stimulate flowering during this development - in other words, they begin their transition into the reproductive phase.

Life Sciences - 23.12.2021

Daring to leave gaps in the genome
Research team at Göttingen University develops new method to complete genetic data The use of genetic information is now indispensable for modern plant breeding. Even though DNA sequencing has become much cheaper since the human genome was decoded for the very first time in 2003, collecting the full genetic information still accounts for a large part of the costs in animal and plant breeding.

Life Sciences - 22.12.2021

Switching in the brain: a fresh perspective
Research team at Göttingen Campus investigates processing of sensory impressions The human brain is extremely dynamic. The connections between nerve cells change when we learn or forget. But our brain's computations change even faster than its structure: in a heartbeat, we shift our focus from what we see to what we hear or smell.

Life Sciences - Health - 21.12.2021

’The balance is extremely important’
When you enter the Institute of Neuroand Behavioural Biology at Badestraße 9 and go up the stairs on the left... what you immediately see are the rows of pictures in the stairwell and the corridors. They look fascinating, in bright vibrant colours - but what they actually show is not apparent to the non-specialist at first glance.

Life Sciences - 20.12.2021

A special aid to memory
We all know the everyday situation: you go into a supermarket, realise that you've left your shopping list at home and, try you as you might, you can only remember a fraction of what was on it. Forgetfulness is seen as a deficit which makes life more complicated. Anyone who is chronically forgetful is quickly seen as being a bit dotty.

Health - Life Sciences - 10.12.2021

Surviving ’butterfly disease’
The skin is the largest organ of the human body. But what if the skin "disintegrates" at just the slightest touch? This is exactly what happens with Epidermolysis bullosa (EB), sometimes also known by the name 'butterfly disease'. This skin disease is based on genetic defects and, because there is no cure, it can be fatal, often even in young patients.

Life Sciences - Health - 10.12.2021

Learning and protecting itself: how the brain adapts
Göttingen researchers investigate the effect of certain enzymes in the healthy and diseased brain The brain is a remarkably complex and adaptable organ. However, adaptability decreases with age: as new connections between nerve cells in the brain form less easily, the brain's plasticity decreases. If there is an injury to the central nervous system such as after a stroke, the brain needs to compensate for this by reorganising itself.

Health - Life Sciences - 08.12.2021

Defense or repair: How immune cells are controlled during wound healing
A Cologne-based research team has discovered that the metabolism of mitochondria, the energy suppliers of cells, in macrophages coordinate wound healing to a significant degree. Macrophages belong to the white blood cells and are also known as scavenger cells.Sabine Eming and her collaborators and colleagues at the CECAD Cluster of Excellence for Aging Research at the University of Cologne showed that wound macrophages undergo different metabolic programs during tissue repair, which are required to support the successive phases for skin reconstruction after injury.

Life Sciences - 07.12.2021

How well are alternative feedstuffs received by the end consumer?
Researchers at the University of Göttingen examine the effect of providing information Despite shifts towards vegan and vegetarian diets in Western cultures, demand for animal protein persists. Alternative protein sources are required to nourish the growing world population without compromising on sustainability.

Life Sciences - Physics - 06.12.2021

Researchers examine neurotoxin from a Black Widow
Phobias are often irrational by nature - especially in the case of spiders, as these creatures are usually more afraid of humans than vice-versa. But: some species are a force to be reckoned with - for example, the Latrodectus spider, more commonly known as the Black Widow. It catches its prey by using venom - to be precise, latrotoxins (LaTXs), a subclass of neurotoxins, or nerve poisons.

Life Sciences - Health - 02.12.2021

Plant pathogen evades immune system by targeting the microbiome
A team of biologists has identified that the pathogenic fungus Verticillium dahliae , responsible for wilt disease in many crops, secretes an 'effector' molecule to target the microbiome of plants to promote infection. The research was performed by the team of Alexander von Humboldt Professor Dr Bart Thomma at the University of Cologne (UoC) within the framework of the Cluster of Excellence on Plant Sciences (CEPLAS) in collaboration with the team of Dr Michael Seidl at the Theoretical Biology & Bioinformatics group of Utrecht University in the Netherlands.

Life Sciences - 29.11.2021

Ancient lineage of algae found to include five ’cryptic’ species
Research team led by Göttingen University use genomic data to discover five species hidden in rare alga All land plants originated from a single evolutionary event when freshwater algae got a foothold on land, giving rise to an astonishing biodiversity of plants on earth. However, the group of algae that would later give rise to land plants had already been living and evolving in both freshwater and terrestrial habitats for over one billion years.

Life Sciences - Health - 29.11.2021

Critical conflict in cancer cells
11/29/2021 The cells of a certain tumour type, called neuroblastoma, divide very rapidly. This rapid division can have potentially fatal consequences for them. A new study shows how neuroblastoma cells deal with this dilemma. Neuroblastomas occur predominantly in children. A specific subset of these tumours is very aggressive and difficult to treat.

Life Sciences - Physics - 26.11.2021

Three-dimensional X-ray image throws light on neurodegenerative disease
Team from Göttingen University and University Medical Center identifies changes in nerve tissue in Alzheimer's What changes occur in parts of the brain affected by neurodegenerative disease? How does the structure of the neurons change? Some pathological changes in the tissue are easy to identify using standard microscopy.

Life Sciences - 24.11.2021

Sun Compass on Demand
11/24/2021 Monarch butterflies employ a sun compass on their long-distance migration. Surprisingly, a new study shows that the compass is only established during flight. Monarch butterflies are famous for their annual long-distance migration, which takes them over several thousand kilometres from the north of the USA to their overwintering habitat in central Mexico.

Environment - Life Sciences - 22.11.2021

Logistical Herculean Tasks
11/22/2021 The question of the causes of species extinction confronts science with complex tasks. Dr Sarah Redlich from the Biocentre on the challenge of creating a study design. Research groups all over the world are trying to disentangle the causes of biodiversity loss. One thing is clear: there is no single cause.

Health - Life Sciences - 19.11.2021

How unhealthy diet makes you sick
New link between diet, intestinal stem cells and disease discovered Obesity, diabetes and gastrointestinal cancer are frequently linked to an unhealthy diet. However, the molecular mechanisms responsible for this are hitherto not fully understood. Researchers at the Technical University of Munich and Helmholtz Munich have gained some new insights that help to better understand this connection.

Life Sciences - Health - 16.11.2021

Sufficient energy supply decisive for nerve development
The bodies of animals and humans are innervated by a network of nerve cells which are connected through long extensions. The nerve cells use these so-called axons and dendrites to communicate with one another. During early development, nerve cells grow a large number of axons and dendrites. To make the connections specific, redundant extensions are removed at a later stage in a process called "pruning".

Life Sciences - Health - 15.11.2021

’Consequences for the patient’s life’
Dr. Francesco Catania is head of the working group "Evolutionary Cell Biology" at the Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity at the University of Münster. His group uses bioinformatics and experimental approaches to investigate how the interaction of cells and organisms with their environment leads to the emergence of new properties.