Press release - 12/09/2025 In bad company: Immune cells in the tumor environment determine the success of therapy for childhood brain tumors The cellular environment of a tumor can either support or sabotage recovery. The most comprehensive study to date on the tumor microenvironment in low-grade gliomas, conducted by KiTZ, Jena University Hospital, the DKFZ, and Heidelberg University Hospital, shows what a supportive or obstructive “neighborhood” looks like in childhood brain tumors. The study also provides clues as to how tumor communication might be blocked. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/bad-company-immune-cells-tumor-environment-determine-success-therapy-childhood-brain-tumors
Press release - 05/09/2025 After EMBL: Umlaut.bio and its potential role in drug development Alumnus Bastian Linder discusses the origin of this start-up and how a tRNA mechanism is helping scientists understand the importance and use of various RNA modifications as they pertain to disease.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/after-embl-umlautbio-and-its-potential-role-drug-development
Press release - 04/09/2025 Rare bone tumors: Tailor-made mini-proteins switch off tumor drivers Chordomas are rare bone tumors for which there are no effective drugs. A research team from the DKFZ and the NCT Heidelberg has now developed a promising approach: Tailor-made mini-proteins specifically block the driver of tumor development. In the result, slowing the growth of chordoma cells in the laboratory and in a mouse model, while also revealing further molecular vulnerabilities of the tumor that could be addressed with approved drugs.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/rare-bone-tumors-tailor-made-mini-proteins-switch-tumor-drivers-1
Press release - 03/09/2025 Nature publication: Mechanical tensions as a driver of evolution When embryos grow, cells and tissue are constantly bumping into each other. This creates mechanical tensions that could endanger their development. A team from University of Hohenheim and the Japanese RIKEN Center have discovered that fly embryos have strategies to deal with this pressure. The different species have developed two different solutions. This ability to control mechanical tension could be a key to why so many body plans have evolved.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/nature-publication-mechanical-tensions-driver-evolution
Press release - 03/09/2025 Therapeutic vaccination against HPV-related tumors: Nanoparticles make the difference Researchers from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) have collaborated with the SILVACX project group at Heidelberg University to develop a therapeutic vaccination concept that can mobilize the immune system to target cancer cells. The team showed that virus peptides coupled to silica nanoparticles can elicit effective T-cell responses against HPV-related tumors. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/therapeutic-vaccination-against-hpv-related-tumors-nanoparticles-make-difference
Press release - 29/08/2025 Sleeping beauties: the biology behind oocyte dormancy The maturation process of oocytes remains paused for several years. Researchers from Konstanz and Göttingen have now found out which protein ensures this state is maintained over such a long period.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/sleeping-beauties-biology-behind-oocyte-dormancy
Press release - 28/08/2025 Inhibition of cell division induces immunoreactive peptides in cancer cells A team of scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the Netherlands Cancer Institute has discovered a previously unknown vulnerability in cancer cells: When cell division is blocked with chemotherapeutic agents such as Taxol, cancer cells produce small immunogenic peptides that could open up new avenues for immune-based cancer therapies.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/inhibition-cell-division-induces-immunoreactive-peptides-cancer-cells
Press release - 26/08/2025 Key mechanism for Alzheimer's disease discovered A molecular mechanism that contributes to the progression of Alzheimer’s disease has been discovered by a research team of Heidelberg University. The team, using an Alzheimer’s mouse model, demonstrated that a neurotoxic protein-protein complex is responsible for nerve cells in the brain dying off and the resulting cognitive decline. This finding opens up new perspectives for the development of effective treatments.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/key-mechanism-alzheimers-disease-discovered
Press release - 21/08/2025 Nanodroplets Could Speed Up the Search for New Medicine Until now, the early phase of drug discovery for the development of new therapeutics has been cost- and time-intensive. Researchers at KIT have developed a platform on which extremely miniaturized nanodroplets with a volume of 200 nanoliters per droplet and containing 300 cells per test can be arranged. This platform enables the researchers to synthesize and test thousands of therapeutic agents on the same chip, saving time and resources. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/nanodroplets-could-speed-search-new-medicine
Press release - 21/08/2025 Ultrafast Pace in the Brain: New Insights into Calcium Transport and Signal Processing Researchers at the University of Freiburg, together with partners, have uncovered the mechanism of ultrafast transport by calcium pumps in nerve cells. These pumps, complexes of PMCA2 and neuroplastin proteins, operate at more than 5,000 cycles per second and terminate calcium signals within milliseconds – 100 times faster than previously known. They play a crucial role in rapid information processing in the brain. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/ultrafast-pace-brain-new-insights-calcium-transport-and-signal-processing
Press release - 14/08/2025 Freezing brain tumor cells in a dormant state Every brain tumor is made up of cells in successive stages of activation. Researchers have now analyzed the individual structure of these activation pyramids in malignant brain tumors. In doing so, they discovered a signaling protein that slows down the transition from a dormant to an activated state by epigenetically reprogramming the cells. The hope is that this will permanently freeze cancer cells in a dormant state and thus halt tumor growth.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/freezing-brain-tumor-cells-dormant-state
Press release - 05/08/2025 Playing Dominos: how an artificial protein emerges from fitting together individual components The targeted engineering of artificial proteins with unique properties – that is possible with the assistance of a novel method developed by a research team of Heidelberg University. It centers around a new AI model. This allows for forecasting how two proteins have to be fitted together at the molecular level from individual parts – subunits – in order to engineer a functional, adjustable new protein. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/playing-dominos-how-artificial-protein-emerges-fitting-together-individual-components
Press release - 04/08/2025 FOXP1 syndrome: Potential therapeutic approach discovered for rare language development disorder FOXP1 syndrome is a congenital disorder in which the brain development of affected children is severely impaired due to a genetic variant. A research team from the Medical Faculty Heidelberg at Heidelberg University has now demonstrated in mice, that the inhibition of a specific enzyme in the brain can improve abnormal behavior and immune cell dysfunction in the brain. The results have been published in the journal Advanced Science.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/foxp1-syndrome-potential-therapeutic-approach-discovered-rare-language-development-disorder
Press release - 29/07/2025 New method to design custom protein binder Designing protein binders from scratch has long been a daunting challenge within the field of computational biology. Researchers have now developed an innovative, training-free pipeline that uses the fundamental principle of shape complementarity to design site-specific protein binders, which are then optimised to fit precisely onto chosen target sites. The researchers tested this on proteins linked to cancer.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/new-method-design-custom-protein-binder
Press release - 24/07/2025 What makes cells migrate – and what can stop them Konstanz researchers identify an enzyme that plays a role in the migration of cells in our body - not only during normal tissue formation and wound healing, but also when tumor cells metastasize. This makes the enzyme an interesting candidate for potential future therapeutic approaches.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/what-makes-cells-migrate-and-what-can-stop-them
Press release - 23/07/2025 Floppy and flexible: How Machine Learning helps to build new proteins A team of researchers from HITS and MPIP have developed a model that learns how to generate proteins whose structures are highly flexible, even with patterns that are uncommon in natural proteins. Their work, presented at the International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML), marks a step towards the goal of designing new proteins for applications in biotechnology, therapeutics and environmental research.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/floppy-and-flexible-how-machine-learning-helps-build-new-proteins
Press release - 23/07/2025 Study finds caffeine can weaken effectiveness of certain antibiotics ngredients of our daily diet – including caffeine – can influence the resistance of bacteria to antibiotics. This has been shown in a new study by a team of researchers at the Universities of Tübingen and Würzburg. They discovered bacteria such as E. coli orchestrate complex regulatory cascades to react to chemical stimuli from their direct environment which can influence the effectiveness of antimicrobial drugs.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/study-finds-caffeine-can-weaken-effectiveness-certain-antibiotics
Press release - 21/07/2025 Cancer Cachexia: Liver Identified as Driver of Body Wasting Many people with cancer experience dramatic loss of muscle and fat tissue. In many cases, even the heart muscle is affected. This wasting syndrome, affects around half of all cancer patients. Researchers from Helmholtz Munich, in collaboration with Heidelberg University Hospital, the Technical University of Munich, and the German Center for Diabetes Research, have now identified a previously overlooked driver of cachexia: the liver. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/cancer-cachexia-liver-identified-driver-body-wasting
Press release - 18/07/2025 Faster sepsis diagnosis through hyperspectral imaging and AI Sepsis is one of the most dangerous medical emergencies. The condition is the result of a misdirected immune response to an infection, which can quickly lead to organ failure and death. Every hour counts – but early detection is difficult. A new study from Heidelberg now presents an innovative approach: artificial intelligence (AI) and hyperspectral imaging of the skin enable immediate and non-invasive sepsis diagnosis directly at the bedside.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/faster-sepsis-diagnosis-through-hyperspectral-imaging-and-ai
Press release - 15/07/2025 ERC funding for research into improved cancer immunotherapies With its Proof of Concept grants, the European Research Council (ERC) supports scientists in further developing the economic potential of their research results. Two scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) have now received this coveted funding for the second time.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/erc-funding-research-improved-cancer-immunotherapies
Press release - 14/07/2025 Faster and brighter protein labeling with new tool SNAP-tag2 The protein SNAP-tag is a powerful tool for labeling proteins with synthetic fluorophores for bioimaging. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg have engineered a much improved version named SNAP-tag2 as well as optimized substrates for faster labeling in live cells.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/faster-and-brighter-protein-labeling-new-tool-snap-tag2
Press release - 11/07/2025 Molecular arms race: How the genome defends itself against internal enemies An international research team has deciphered a mechanism of evolutionary arms race in human cells. The findings provide insights into how mobile elements in DNA hijack cellular functions – and how cells can defend themselves against this in order to prevent conditions such as tumour formation or chronic inflammation.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/molecular-arms-race-how-genome-defends-itself-against-internal-enemies
Press release - 10/07/2025 Investigating kinase activity in living cells The ability of protein kinases to transfer a phosphate group to target proteins plays an important role in many cellular processes. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research have now developed a novel molecular tool that can monitor these kinase activities both spatially and temporally. This makes it possible to investigate the link between kinase activities and cellular phenotypes in heterogenous cell populations and in vivo.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/investigating-kinase-activity-living-cells
Press release - 09/07/2025 A new drug target for treating cancer and viral infections An international team of researchers led by Konstanz biologists has identified a molecular mechanism that regulates the activity of N-myristoyltransferases. This enzyme plays a role in biological signalling pathways, where dysregulation can lead to serious illness.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/new-drug-target-treating-cancer-and-viral-infections
Press release - 03/07/2025 Focus on Muscle Metabolism: Sex Differences in Sport and Obesity The skeletal muscles of men and women process glucose and fats in different ways. A study provides the first comprehensive molecular analysis of these differences. The results possibly give an explanation why metabolic diseases such as diabetes manifest differently in women and men – and why they respond differently to physical activity. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/focus-muscle-metabolism-sex-differences-sport-and-obesity