Article - 17/03/2021

Epigenetic switches in bacteria as biosensors

The analysis of pathogen biomarkers and biomarkers for the diagnosis of diseases can be crucial for health. However, the detection of pathogens and diseases depends on a sensitive and reliable method that delivers rapid results. Biosensors have such properties. Researchers at the Institute of Biochemistry and Technical Biochemistry (IBTB) at Stuttgart University have constructed an epigenetic circuit composed of plasmids that might make it…

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.

Researchers of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and Voxalytic GmbH developed a new method that allows, for the first time, to elucidate the chiral structure of molecules – the exact spatial arrangement of the atoms – by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. This important step in the development of new drugs used to be a time-consuming process until now.

Using animal-free methods to assess the hazard potential of chemicals to the nervous system of unborn children? An international research team including toxicologists from Konstanz and Düsseldorf has developed a testing battery based on human cells that has the potential to replace traditional methods for assessing developmental neurotoxicity.

CureVac N.V. a global biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of transformative medicines based on messenger ribonucleic acid (“mRNA”), today announced that the first participant was dosed in a Phase 1 study of COVID-19 second-generation mRNA vaccine candidate, CV2CoV, developed in collaboration with GSK.

The Medical Faculty Heidelberg of Heidelberg University and Mannheim University of Applied Sciences are combining their expertise in infectious disease research, mass spectrometry, and bioinformatics to overcome resistance in malaria vectors. The project is supported by funding from the Gates Foundation.

Company profile - 09/01/2019

HQS Quantum Simulations for industrial quantum mechanics applications

The door to the quantum world is opening wider and wider. Behind it is a whole new view of materials and molecules. Quantum mechanics applications not only benefit science, they also offer huge economic potential. The Karlsruhe start-up HQS Quantum Simulations is playing a pioneering role in quantum simulations for the chemical and pharmaceutical industries.

Researchers are developing biotechnological processes that enable microbes to produce proteins and vitamins for human consumption using basic chemical ingredients, such as carbon dioxide, hydrogen and oxygen – entirely bypassing livestock farming and agriculture. Because these methods also require energy input, they are popularly called “power-to-protein” and “power-to-vitamin” processes.

In a so-called inactivated or killed vaccine, the virus particles it contains are first rendered inactive by means of the toxic chemical formaldehyde. A better way of achieving this, however, is to irradiate the pathogens with low-energy electrons. Four Fraunhofer Institutes have now developed a new method of vaccine production based on this technique that is not only quicker but also guarantees a higher quality of product.

A cutting-edge chemical process is the first to make it possible to quickly and easily produce modified peptides with boronic acids. As part of this work, scientists managed to synthesize a large number of different biologically active peptide boronic acids and investigate their properties. They open up new possibilities in the young research field of synthetic immunology and could go on to be used primarily in immunotherapy.

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.

Stomach ulcers, gastritis and even stomach cancer are often the result of an infection with Helicobacter pylori. If the bacterium remains unrecognised for a long time, this can have serious consequences. Researchers have now developed a miniaturisable sensor system for the mobile analysis of breath that is effective, fast and inexpensive. The research team uses a biological survival trick of the stomach germ to detect the bacterium.

The Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM) is developing a more sustainable process to produce active pharmaceutical ingredients in a major EU project: The pilot project is intended to demonstrate the advantages of mechanochemistry for more environmentally friendly and CO2-neutral pharmaceutical production.

Together with colleagues from Israel and USA, HITS researcher Frauke Gräter investigates the effects of physical force on the collagen protein in two different animal model systems. Their goal is to measure the effects of mechanoradicals on the integrity of the tissue and the well-being of the organism, with impact on health and aging.

For his outstanding achievements in his doctorate at the interface between chemistry and biology, Jonas Wilhelm is awarded an Otto Hahn Medal 2025 by the Max Planck Society. He wrote his thesis in the department Chemical Biology of Kai Johnsson at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research. In his doctorate, Jonas Wilhelm developed a molecular tool, a biosensor that records and permanently stores biological activities at the cellular level.

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.

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.

Dossier - 01/07/2013

Electrophysiology from cardiac pacemakers to drug discovery

Electrochemical reactions are involved in many processes in the human organism. Electrophysiology is the study of the central processes of electrical and chemical interaction and communication between neurons and muscle cells, including the transmission and processing of signals in the nerves and the subsequent contraction of the muscles. For example, electrophysiology studies examine the rhythm which which our heart pumps blood through the body.

Cancer genomes are the result of diverse mutation processes. Scientists have analyzed the molecular evolution of tumors after exposure to mutagenic chemicals. DNA lesions that persists unrepaired over several cell generations lead to sequence variations at the site of damage. This enabled the researchers to distinguish the contribution of the triggering lesion from that of the subsequent repair in shaping the mutation pattern.

In living cells, a vast number of transient events occur simultaneously. The recording of these activities is a prerequisite for a molecular understanding of life. Scientists at the MPI for Medical Research in Heidelberg and their collaboration partners have created a novel technology that allows cellular events to be recorded through chemical labeling with fluorescent dyes for later analysis, opening up new ways to study cellular physiology.

The 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded for the development of CRISPR/Cas9, a method also known as “gene scissors”, which enables researchers to better understand how human cells function and stay healthy. Researchers at the University of Stuttgart have further developed CRISPR for this purpose. They present their CRISPRgenee method in Cell Reports Methods.

Humboldt Research Award winner Prof. Hao Yan has been conducting research at the 2nd Institute of Physics at the University of Stuttgart since May. He is regarded as one of the world's leading experts in the field of DNA nanotechnology. "My work has many points of commonality with the topics that my colleagues in Stuttgart are focusing on," says Yan. "I have therefore been cooperating with Professor Laura Na Liu's working…

If the brain no longer responds properly to insulin (insulin resistance), this can lead to overweight, diabetes, and Alzheimer's disease. Researchers at the DZD in Potsdam and Tübingen have discovered small chemical modifications to genetic material (epigenetic changes*) in the blood that indicate how well the brain responds to insulin. These markers could help to detect insulin resistance in the brain – by means of a simple blood test.

KyooBe Tech GmbH - 08/10/2020

Next generation vaccine production

For decades, conventional inactivated vaccines have been produced by killing pathogens with toxic chemicals. However, this process often changes the surface structure of the pathogens to such an extent that the immune system is only able to induce a weak response. KyooBe Tech GmbH is offering a method that uses low-energy electrons to inactivate pathogens. Vaccines produced this way are much higher quality, making them safer and more effective.

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.