Air pollution is often viewed as an outdoor hazard and a threat to respiratory health. Emerging research shows that air pollution may also affect our brain health. Fine particulate matter (PM2.5), is a complex mixture of many chemicals that can be inhaled deep into the lungs. While PM2.5 exposure has long been linked to tissue damage and inflammation in the lung, its role in cognitive decline is only now gaining attention. Researchers from the universities of Rostock, Bonn and Luxembourg…

– “dictionaries” make fluorescence-based data accessible. A research team from Germany and the USA led by Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) has developed a data description that can provide results from fluorescence measurements for structural and dynamic modelling of large biomolecules. The authors explain in the scientific journal Nature Methods that, for the first time, other researchers can access fluorescence-based integrative structural models and their dynamics through databases. This provides experiment-based training data for the next generation of AI tools…

In a pilot study, researchers at the University of Zurich have used artificial intelligence to detect antibiotic resistance in bacteria for the first time. This is an important first step toward integrating GPT-4 into clinical diagnostics. Researchers at the University of Zurich (UZH) have used artificial intelligence (AI) to help identify antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The team led by Adrian Egli, UZH professor at the Institute of Medical Microbiology, is the first to investigate how GPT-4, a powerful AI model developed by…

New Method for Measuring Luminescence Lifetime. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Leibniz-Institute for Baltic Sea Research and University of Copenhagen introduce an innovative approach to image luminescence lifetimes. This simple approach uses readily-available cost-effective equipment, paving the way for advanced studies of chemical dynamics in environmental and biological systems. For example, it allows to record oxygen dynamics with much higher temporal and spatial precision. Take oxygen, for example: Oxygen is a key molecule for life, and…

UFZ study demonstrates for the first time the toxicological relevance of chemical mixtures as they occur in humans. “In our everyday lives, we are exposed to a wide variety of chemicals that are distributed and accumulate in our bodies. These are highly complex mixtures that can affect bodily functions and our health,” says Prof Beate Escher, Head of the UFZ Department of Cell Toxicology and Professor at the University of Tübingen. “It is known from environmental and water studies that…

How New Chemical Products Are Made from old Frying Oil. Every year, 119 million tons of used vegetable oil are produced worldwide, mainly from commercial kitchens and restaurants. Only a small proportion of this is reused, for example in the production of fuels such as biodiesel. At the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis in Rostock (LIKAT), PhD student Fairoosa Poovan has developed a catalyst in Prof. Matthias Beller’s research group that uses used cooking oil to synthesize primary amines. These are…

A global team of researchers led by Matthias Mann at the MPI of Biochemistry has made a groundbreaking discovery that saves the lives of patients suffering from toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN). TEN is a rare but often fatal reaction to common medications, causing widespread detachment of the skin. Using spatial proteomics, the team identified the inflammatory JAK/STAT pathway as the main driver of disease. After validating their findings in pre-clinical models, they successfully treated the first seven patients worldwide with…

Hand-held instrument uses sound waves to detect biomarkers in tiny amounts of blood. Patients who go to the doctor to provide a blood sample are typically faced with a needle and syringe and hours or days of waiting to get results back from a lab. University of Colorado Boulder researchers hope to change that with a new handheld, sound-based diagnostic system able to deliver precise results in an hour with a mere finger prick of blood. The team describes the system…

A collaborative study introduces a new model for the set of gut microbes found in humans. Researchers at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, along with international collaborators, have introduced a novel method for identifying the crucial set of gut microbes commonly found in humans and essential for health. The researchers, whose study was published in Cell, said the discovery offers innovative opportunities for precision nutrition and personalized therapies aimed at managing chronic diseases associated with gut microbiome imbalances, including diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease and cancer. The…

Researchers will use tissue-on-chip technology as a new way to explore the relationship between the lungs and brain. Scientists are developing advanced tools to understand and treat neurological symptoms such as brain fog associated with respiratory diseases like influenza. The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) within the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), awarded a three-year contract to researchers at the University of Rochester to develop…

On around one in three trips someone falls ill, with gastrointestinal and respiratory complaints among the most common symptoms. These are the findings of a new study based on data from a travel app developed by researchers at the University of Zurich. The app could be used in the future to help detect outbreaks of contagious diseases at an early stage. Travelers sometimes pick up more than just memories when they go abroad. Unfortunately, they may also experience health issues…

First mRNA stabilizing substance could open new ways in the development of innovative mRNA therapeutics. mRNA-based therapeutics and vaccines are the new hope in the fight against incurable diseases. A commonly used strategy in the development of messenger RNA (mRNA) medicine is based on the destruction of disease-causing mRNA. Achieving the opposite and stabilizing health-promoting mRNA is still a great challenge. The team of Peter ‘t Hart, group leader at the Chemical Genomics Centre at the Max Planck Institute of…

New types of sensors could help to develop plant protection products that are safe for bees. The increasing global demand for plant-based foods makes the use of pesticides necessary in order to protect crops from pests and ensure crop yields. However, there is one major disadvantage: among others, the widespread use of pesticides has led to a considerable reduction in insect populations in the past. The decline in wild bees, which make a significant contribution to pollination and are therefore…

In Germany, around 17,000 people are diagnosed with gastric cancer every year. The disease is one of the leading causes of tumour-related deaths. This is due to late diagnosis and the rapid spread of tumour cells throughout the body. In two international clinical trials, a team of scientists involving the University of Leipzig Medical Center have investigated a drug that can prolong patients’ survival. Thanks to the recently published data, zolbetuximab has now been approved as a drug in Europe….

Plants have a sophisticated mechanism for monitoring the production of new proteins. The “U1 snRNP” complex ensures that the protein blueprints are fully completed. This is important because cells tend to halt the process prematurely. This type of quality control, so-called telescripting, was previously known to exist only in animal cells. A research team led by the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) has now shown that a similar process also occurs in plants. The study was published in the journal…

Tiny transmitters provide first insights into precise migration routes of bats. Some bat species are among the world champions of seasonal migration in the animal kingdom. Leisler’s bat, for example, which weighs between 12 and 22 grams, flies from central or Eastern Europe to the Mediterranean every late summer – and back in spring. Until now, it has only been possible to trace these approximately 1,500-kilometre routes on the basis of sporadic findings of ringed individuals. A scientific team from…