Women have an increased risk of breast cancer if they have a family history of this disease. However, the risk may also be higher if first-degree family members have another type of cancer, according to a study by a team of scientists and physicians from the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg, the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and Heidelberg University Hospital (UKHD), as well as international colleagues.

Tenderness can literally get under your skin: An international research group led by Heidelberg University's Medical Faculty and Heidelberg University Hospital has found that small skin wounds heal significantly faster in couples who are particularly affectionate with each other in everyday life and who also receive the hormone oxytocin. At the same time, they had lower stress levels.

Patients have 30 percent fewer serious side effects when medication doses are tailored to their genetic profile. This is what an international research consortium has found out, including the Dr. Margarete Fischer-Bosch Institute of Clinical Pharmacology at the Bosch Health Campus. With an individual DNA medication pass, as used in the study, treatments can be made more effective and safer in the future.

Researchers at University of Galway, the Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS) Heidelberg University, and Heidelberg University Hospital have created digital babies to better understand infants’ health in their critical first 180 days of life. The international team created computer models that simulate the unique metabolic processes of each baby. The models can help to better understand rare metabolic diseases.

Stem cell-like leukemia cells are responsible for relapses in children and adolescents with a certain type of blood cancer, T-ALL. Researchers at the Hopp Children's Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), the Molecular Medicine Partnership Unit and the German Cancer Research Center were able to show this in a study. The results could help to overcome resistance in this form of blood cancer and prevent relapses.

Does COVID-19 vaccination increase the risk of cancer patients undergoing therapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors to suffer a dangerous immune complication known as a "cytokine release syndrome"? A team of Heidelberg physicians and scientists has now shown in a clinical study: Increased serum levels of the characteristic cytokines occur frequently in cancer patients, but clinically relevant cases of the dreaded syndrome were not…

The results of a Tuebingen-led study raise hope that a newly developed drug could herald a new era in oncological liver surgery and transplantation. The drug could even have the potential to significantly improve the treatment of acute and chronic liver diseases. The drug candidate "HRX-215" is a so-called MKK4 inhibitor, i.e. the drug inhibits the MKK4 protein found in liver cells and thus leads to an increase in the regeneration of…

Optogenetic cell analysis - 15/05/2023

opto biolabs: how frustration and inventiveness led to the establishment of a company

When she found she had no suitable illumination devices for her doctoral thesis, Dr. Kathrin Brenker simply created her own customised adapters and founded a company called opto biolabs. Now, Brenker and company co-founder Luis Köbele sell two different types of devices. The main goal is to equip laboratories with illumination technologies that allow optogenetics methods to be used to accelerate development of optogenetic therapeutics.

CureVac N.V., a global biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of transformative medicines based on messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA), today announced the publication of preclinical data demonstrating that their COVID-19 vaccine candidate, CVnCoV, protects against challenge infections with the SARS-CoV-2 Variant of Concern B.1.351 and a strain of the original SARS-CoV-2 B1 lineage (BavPat1) in a transgenic mouse model.

Artificial intelligence (AI) can help dermatologists to detect skin cancer. However, many dermatologists distrust the algorithms' decisions, which they cannot comprehend. Scientists at the German Cancer Research Center have now developed an AI-based support system for skin cancer diagnostics that explains its decisions.

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.

University of Tübingen research team observes biochemical process in living cells – indications of new approach to preventing heart attacks and strokes

Heidelberg scientists decode the genetic foundations of rapid testicle evolution in mammals and humans. Evolutionary pressure across male mammals to guarantee the procreation of their own offspring led to a rapid evolution of the testicle.

The health of nerve cells is closely linked to the auxiliary cells that surround them, the so-called glial cells. It still remains largely unknown what role glial cells play in age-related diseases.

Targeted molecular interventions in the replication cycle and the immune recognition of viruses are intended to prevent viral entry into cells and virus replication. Scientists work on new approaches to combating highly dangerous viral diseases such as yellow fever or Lassa fever. The European Union is supporting the project over a period of five years to the tune of just under eight million euros.

On the basis of the cooperative relations that have developed over time, Heidelberg University and Harvard University are going to deepen and expand their cooperation. They have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to that effect. As an institutional internationalization project, the state of Baden-Württemberg is providing ten million euros to support this initiative, which is part of the state’s “Global Partnership in Science” activities.

Freiburg-Prague research collaboration achieves scientific breakthrough in understanding cell division. The international research collaboration has uncovered a new mechanism of the crosstalk between microtubules and actin cytoskeleton during cell division and revealed unique characteristics of the previously unexplored protein FAM110A.

The weight of expectant mothers could play a role in the development of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in daughters – but not in sons. This has been shown by researchers at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ).

The European Commission has launched a new strategy to make Europe the most attractive place in the world for life sciences by 2030. Life sciences – the study of living systems, from cells to ecosystems – are central to our health, environment and economy. They drive innovation in medicine, food and sustainable production, adding nearly €1.5 trillion in value to the EU economy and supporting 29 million jobs across the Union.

Initial Phase 1 part started with multivalent modified mRNA influenza vaccine candidates. Candidates developed in collaboration with GSK within broad infectious disease vaccine program encode for antigens covering four WHO-recommended flu strains.

Microrobots have the potential to revolutionize medicine. Researchers at the Max Planck ETH Centre for Learning Systems have now developed an imaging technique that for the first time recognises cell-sized microrobots individually and at high resolution in a living organism. This is an important step towards precise control of the robots and their clinical translation.

Brain tumor cells with a certain common mutation reprogram invading immune cells. This leads to the paralysis of the body's immune defense against the tumor in the brain. Researchers from Heidelberg, Mannheim, and Freiburg discovered this mechanism and at the same time identified a way of reactivating the paralyzed immune system to fight the tumor.

With mice, researchers showed that experimentally induced lack of blood flow in the brain epigenetically reprograms astrocytes into brain stem cells, which in turn can give rise to nerve progenitor cells. This discovery shows that astrocytes could potentially be used in regenerative medicine to replace damaged nerve cells.

In order to develop approaches for the prevention and treatment of Alzheimer's dementia in clinical trials, it would be helpful to be able to identify people with a particularly high risk of developing the disease. But which biomarkers can indicate an increased likelihood of disease early on in symptom-free people who actually develop Alzheimer's later?

Researchers of the University of Freiburg introduce biosensor for the nucleic acid amplification-free detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA.