The pathogenic fungus Aspergillus fumigatus escapes elimination from surface cells of the human lung by binding to a human protein. In doing so, it is able to nest in so called phagosomes, confined areas in the lung cells, and thus prevents cell processes that would kill the fungus from being set in motion. Researchers at the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (Leibniz-HKI) have thus discovered a possible new target against the fungal infection. Aspergillus fumigatus is…
Research team from Kiel University describes unknown defence mechanism in bacteria that selectively wards off foreign and potentially harmful genetic information. Since the coronavirus pandemic, the particularly rapid evolutionary adaptability of microorganisms such as bacteria or viruses has been brought into the public spotlight. For example, when viruses develop the ability to infect new host organisms or bacteria develop antibiotic resistance, the uptake of new genetic information from other microorganisms allows them to quickly express evolutionarily advantageous traits. Bacteria, for…
… for electroreduction CO2 toward formate. Electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) to value-added chemical feedstocks has been deemed as an intriguing way to achieve carbon neutrality while alleviating fossil fuel depletion. Moreover, among all the reduction products, formate reveals the most promising prospect for large-scale industrial applications due to the high selectivity and uncomplicated two-electron transfer process. Notably, Bi-based materials have trigged significant attention in conversion CO2 to formate on account of their low toxicity, low price, and environmental benignity….
The simultaneous recording of height profiles, currents and frictional forces at solid-liquid interfaces allows exciting insights into electrocatalytically active materials. To manage the energy transition, it will also be important to rapidly develop cheap and efficient materials that can be used to split water or CO2 by electrocatalysis. In this process, part of the electrical energy is stored in the chemical reaction products. The efficiency of such electrocatalysts depends largely on the nature of the electrode-electrolyte interfaces, i.e. the interfaces…
Sex differences exist in the regulation of energy homeostasis. Current studies indicate for instance that female mammals, including humans, are better protected against metabolic diseases during reproductive age. This is particularly important with regard to obesity, whose prevalence has tripled since 1975. However, it is still not fully understood how hormones, released by sex-specific reproductive glands, signal to the brain to regulate energy metabolism in females versus males. Researchers at Helmholtz Munich pursued the question and discovered a new protein…
… helps trace chemicals in complex mixtures. An international team of scientists led by Tomáš Pluskal from the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences (IOCB Prague) has introduced a new generation of software enabling scientists to analyze large volumes of data from mass spectrometry, a technique that separates chemicals by their weights. The open-source project MZmine provides a new window into the chemical space that surrounds us and lives within. The latest advances in…
An international team with researchers from the University of Bayreuth presents a potentially groundbreaking discovery for nitrogen chemistry in “Nature Chemistry”. For the first time, a compound containing aromatic rings of nitrogen atoms has been synthesized. The compound of nitrogen and potassium was produced under extremely high pressures and temperatures. It has a very complex structure, but its major building block is the planar ring of six nitrogen atoms, which is called hexazine anion, as it has a negative charge….
… developed for humidity-resistance hydrogen sulfide sensor. A research team led by Prof. MENG Gang, from Hefei Institutes of Physical Science (HFIPS), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) used polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) in the research of high-performance humidity-resistance hydrogen sulfide (H2S) sensors, offering an avenue for the practical applications of H2S chemiresistors in an ambient humid air atmosphere. The results were published in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces and Chemical Communication, respectively. H2S is a colorless, flammable, explosive, highly corrosive, and highly toxic gas, which widely…
Despite considerable advances in research, there is still no cure for many age-related diseases, such as Alzheimer’s. One hypothesis for the development of Alzheimer’s is the aggregation of peptides, i.e. their “clumping”, in the brains of people with the disease. But stress has also been suspected as a possible trigger. Scientists from Leipzig University, Monash University in Australia, the Leibniz Institute of Surface Engineering (IOM) and the University of Göttingen have investigated the links between oxidised cell membranes and peptide…
New technology useful for cancer therapy. Cell membranes are barriers that maintain cellular homeostasis, and the intracellular delivery of biologically functional molecules, including peptides, proteins, and nucleic acids to manipulate cellular functions. Conventional intracellular uptake processes require high concentrations of biofunctional molecules with low permeability to pass through the cell membrane. This results in low drug activity because the probability of the biofunctional molecules entering target cells and their organelles is low. In addition, many drugs damage healthy cells as…
In autoimmune encephalitis, a rare but serious and sometimes life-threatening inflammation of the central nervous system, the body’s own defences are directed against the central nervous system. This disease was first identified in 2007, and the most common type is Anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis. In this autoimmune disease, a protein that plays an important role in signal transmission in the brain is disrupted: the NMDA-type glutamate receptor, or NMDA receptor for short. Researchers from Braunschweig, Jena, Leipzig and Berlin have developed…
… that paralyzes immune system cells. Bacteria of the species Pseudomonas aeruginosa are antibiotic-resistant hospital germs that can enter blood, lungs and other tissues through wounds and cause life-threatening infections. In a joint project, researchers from the Universities of Freiburg and Strasbourg in France have discovered a mechanism that likely contributes to the severity of P. aeruginosa infections. At the same time, it could be a target for future treatments. The results were recently appeared in the journal EMBO Reports….
A team of biologists led by UNIGE and UNIL has discovered how to awaken neural stem cells and reactivate them in adult mice. Some areas of the adult brain contain quiescent, or dormant, neural stem cells that can potentially be reactivated to form new neurons. However, the transition from quiescence to proliferation is still poorly understood. A team led by scientists from the Universities of Geneva (UNIGE) and Lausanne (UNIL) has discovered the importance of cell metabolism in this process…
Researchers from the group of Eva van Rooij in collaboration with the UMC Utrecht identified a new mutation that leads to the cardiac disease arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ACM). They assessed the effect of this mutation on heart muscle cells and obtained new insights into the underlying mechanism that causes the disease. The results of this study, published on March 2nd in Stem Cell Reports, could contribute to the development of new treatments for ACM. Desmosomes Millions of heart muscle cells contract…
Researchers working with pharma collaborations to develop better treatments. Bone marrow is the spongy tissue inside bone responsible for making red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. Bone marrow failure syndromes lead to an increased risk of developing dangerous infections, anemia and an increased risk of blood cancers. Research led by Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has identified a possible treatment strategy for a rare bone marrow failure syndrome that is named poikiloderma with neutropenia. The…
In the worst-case scenario, getting chemicals in your eyes can lead to blindness. Until now, the eye irritancy potential of chemical substances has had to be assessed using the Draize test on live rabbits – a standard implemented worldwide. Researchers at the Translational Center for Regenerative Therapies TLC-RT of the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research ISC want to work with partners to replace animal testing: Tissue models of the human cornea cultivated in the laboratory are expected to completely replace…
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