Similar to humans and animals, which adapt their diet or behavior to given environmental conditions, the function and protein composition of single cells also depends on which resources are available in their immediate environment. Using a new approach developed by a research team led by Matthias Mann, Director at the MPI of Biochemistry, it is now possible to analyze this protein composition with a view to the environment of individual cells for the first time. By combining two new methods from the research department, they succeeded in functionally mapping the proteome of single cells with high spatial resolution. The results are published in the journal Nature Methods.

Recognizing motion requires an enormous amount of computing power from the brain. A new study from Alexander Borst’s department at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence shows how the fly brain masters this task: By performing a neuronal computation on three network levels, it distributes the workload over several steps. This is the first time that researchers have deciphered a neuronal network in which one cell type performs the same computation at all network levels. This approach helps fruit flies to reliably recognize different motion patterns – the prerequisite for staying on track.

Die Häufigkeit, mit der bestimmte kleine Moleküle, so genannte Mikro-RNAs, in Krebszellen vorliegen, kann Hinweise darauf geben, wie sich Tumoren medikamentös behandeln lassen. Dies konnte ein Team unter Leitung von Forschenden der Hochschulmedizin Dresden, des Deutschen Krebsforschungszentrums, am Nationalen Centrum für Tumorerkrankungen Dresden und Mildred-Scheel-Nachwuchszentrum Dresden erstmals zeigen. Künftig könnte die Analyse der Mikro-RNAs zusätzliche Informationen für Therapieentscheidungen liefern. Die Ergebnisse wurden im Fachmagazin Cell Reports Medicine veröffentlicht.

How do our muscles respond at the molecular level to exercise? Researchers at Helmholtz Munich and the German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbrücke (DIfE) have unraveled the cellular basis and signaling pathways responsible for the positive impact of physical activity on our overall health. Regulatory T cells, a type of immune cell, play a critical role in ensuring proper muscle function. These novel insights are paving the path towards precision medicines targeting metabolic disorders like obesity and diabetes, as well as muscle-related illnesses. Their discoveries are published in Cell Metabolism.

Was passiert eigentlich auf molekularer Ebene in unseren Muskeln, wenn wir uns aktiv bewegen? Forschende von Helmholtz Munich und des DIfE haben die zelluläre Grundlage und die Signalwege, die für die positive Auswirkung körperlicher Aktivität auf unsere Gesundheit ausschlaggebend sind, unter die Lupe genommen. Ihre Erkenntnis: Regulatorische T-Zellen, eine spezielle Art von Immunzellen, sind entscheidend für die reibungslose Muskelfunktion. Dieses Wissen trägt dazu bei, in Zukunft Präzisionstherapien zur Bekämpfung von Stoffwechselstörungen wie Adipositas und Diabetes sowie Muskelerkrankungen zu entwickeln. Die Ergebnisse wurden nun im Fachjournal Cell Metabolism veröffentlicht.

An international team of scientists has created the first comprehensive index of human cells, mapping the sizes and abundance of all cell types across the entire body. This groundbreaking study, published in PNAS, reveals surprising mathematical patterns underlying cell size and number, challenging our fundamental understanding of cell growth and proliferation.

Max Planck Scientists from Dortmund show how the signaling molecules BMP and FGF act as antagonists during embryonic development and thus guide cell differentiation

Does the human brain have an Achilles heel that ultimately leads to Autism? With a revolutionizing novel system that combines brain organoid technology and intricate genetics, researchers can now comprehensively test the effect of multiple mutations in parallel and at a single-cell level within human brain organoids. This technology, developed by researchers from the Knoblich group at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences and the Treutlein group at ETH Zurich, permits the identification of vulnerable cell types and gene regulatory networks that underlie autism spectrum disorders. The results were published on September 13 in Nature.

Dresden researchers link excessive pressure in the bile transport network of the liver to the formation of liver cell rosettes, which are observed in many liver diseases.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) ranks second in leading causes of cancer-related deaths globally, according to the WHO. For the first time, researchers from Helmholtz Munich and the University of Technology Dresden (TU Dresden) show that artificial intelligence (AI)-based predictions can deliver comparable results to clinical tests on biopsies of patients with CRC. AI predictions can speed up the analysis of tissue samples, resulting in faster treatment decisions. This novel model for biomarker detection represents a significant stride towards the realization of precision therapy approaches in the field of oncology. The method is now published in Cancer Cell.

Neue Proteine für biomedizinische oder andere Anwendungen computergestützt zu entwickeln, erfordert lange Rechenzeiten auf leistungsstarken Servern. Ein Team aus Forschenden des Max-Planck-Instituts für Biologie Tübingen und des Universitätsklinikums Tübingen hat nun eine neue Berechnungsmethode entwickelt und getestet, die die notwendigen Energiekalkulationen erheblich beschleunigt. Ihr Ansatz, nun in der Fachzeitschrift Cell Reports Methods veröffentlicht, ermöglicht eine präzise und effiziente Entwicklung von Funktionsproteinen. Die Forschenden demonstrierten darüber hinaus den Nutzen ihrer Ergebnisse, indem sie zwei Klassen von Proteinen für Krebsdiagnostik und -therapie entwickelten.

The computational design of new proteins for biomedical or other applications involves long computing times on powerful servers. A joint team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen and the University Hospital Tübingen has now developed and tested a new computational method to greatly speed up the necessary energy calculations. Their framework, now published in the journal Cell Reports Methods, allows for a precise and efficient design of functional proteins. Evidencing the usefulness of their findings, the researchers developed two classes of proteins which can be deployed in cancer diagnostics and treatment.

Genetic remnants of viruses that are naturally present in the human genome could affect the development of neurodegenerative diseases. Researchers at DZNE come to this conclusion on the basis of studies on cell cultures. They report on this in the journal “Nature Communications”. In their view, such “endogenous retroviruses” could contribute to the spread of aberrant protein aggregates – hallmarks of certain dementias – in the brain. Thus, these viral relicts would be potential targets for therapies.

The team of Dr. Elisha Krieg at the Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research Dresden has developed a dynamic DNA-crosslinked matrix (DyNAtrix) by combining classical synthetic polymers with programmable DNA crosslinkers. DNA’s highly specific and predictable binding gives researchers unparalleled control over key mechanical properties of the material. The findings published in Nature Nanotechnology August 7, 2023, are highly relevant to in vitro cell culture materials for biological research.

Endogenous metabolite directly inhibits mTORC1 activity

Cells use a variety of metabolic pathways to synthesise the building blocks for growth and proliferation. To ensure balanced growth, these biosynthetic processes must be tightly coordinated. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, together with a team of national and international collaborators, have now identified a molecular machinery that senses the ability of a cell to make lipids to then block or activate all other biosynthetic processes, such as protein synthesis, accordingly.

The application period for the DKMS John Hansen Research Grant 2024 began on August 1, 2023. With this grant, the foundation DKMS Stiftung Leben Spenden supports up to four outstanding research projects in the field of stem cell transplantation or cell therapy each year. A stem cell transplant saves the lives of many blood cancer patients. However, relapses and severe complications continue to pose major challenges. The grant is intended to promote excellent science in this field. The application deadline is November 30, 2023.

Hospital-acquired infections are often hard to treat because the corresponding pathogens become increasingly resistant against antibiotics. Here, the bacterium Acinetobacter baumannii is particularly feared, and there is great pressure to devise novel therapeutic approaches to combat it. Bioinformaticians from Goethe University Frankfurt and Research Unit FOR2251 of the German Research Foundation have now detected an unexpectedly wide diversity of certain cell appendages in A. baumannii that are associated with pathogenicity. This could lead to treatment strategies that are specifically tailored to a particular pathogen.

Wissenschaftler:innen am CeMM Forschungszentrum für Molekulare Medizin der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien haben eine neue Methode entwickelt, die es ermöglicht, wichtige Laktat-Transporter, die mit Krebs und zahlreichen anderen Krankheiten in Verbindung gebracht werden, gezielt zu hemmen. Dies könnte insbesondere für die Behandlung von Krebs einen neuen Ansatzpunkt bieten. Die Studie wurde jetzt in Cell Chemical Biology veröffentlicht.

Originally, the powerhouses of higher cells, the mitochondria, were independent organisms. Researchers at Goethe University Frankfurt have investigated to what extent their metabolism has blended with that of their host cells in the course of evolution, using the example of a mitochondrial stress response. They have discovered that mitochondria send two different biochemical signals. These are processed together in the cell and trigger a support mechanism to restore cellular balance (homeostasis). The work was partly done within the ENABLE cluster initiative (now EMTHERA) at Goethe University Frankfurt.

Tumorzellen können mitunter Chemo- und Strahlentherapien entgehen: Sie aktivieren einen Signalweg, der ihr Absterben verhindert. Forschende um Claus Scheidereit am Max Delbrück Center beschreiben nun in „Cell Chemical Biology“ zwei neue Substanzen, die den Krebszellen diesen Ausweg abschneiden.

University of Cologne Scientists discover that cleavage of the protein cFLIP is crucial to limit cell death and promote tissue regeneration / Publication in Science Advances

Like us, cells communicate. Well, in their own special way. Using waves as their common language, cells tell one another where and when to move. They talk, they share information, and they work together – much like the interdisciplinary team of researchers from the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) and the National University of Singapore (NUS). They conducted research on how cells communicate – and how that matters to future projects, e.g. application to wound healing.

In a joint project co-led by researchers from the University Medical Center Göttingen (UMG), new insights into the aging process have been gained: The reading of genes becomes faster and more error-prone with age. At the same time, the quality and accuracy of the cell components produced on the basis of these copies decreases. The research results have been published in Nature.

A research team at Helmholtz Munich revealed a specific mechanism that is able to promote cell death in cancer cells by pharmacological targeting of a ferroptosis surveillance system.

A research team led by Prof. Bart Jan Ravoo (University of Münster) and Prof. Timo Betz (University of Göttingen) describes for the first time how living cells can be reversibly deformed by specifically influencing the cell membrane using light.