Protection from an unexpected source

How viruses can protect against aggressive giant viruses

15-Mar-2024 - Contrary to common belief, not all viruses are harmful to their hosts. Sometimes viruses can even protect their hosts from infection by other viruses. Scientists at the Max-Planck-Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg and their collaborators have now demonstrated that this is the case for ...

A new approach to recording cellular activities

Potential for accelerating research: A novel chemical labeling method allows transient events in cells to be recorded for later analysis

27-Feb-2024 - In living cells, a vast number of transient events occur simultaneously, each of them important for a given cell in carrying out its function. The faithful recording of these transient activities is a prerequisite for a molecular understanding of life, yet obtaining such recordings is extremely ...

A further advance in super-resolution fluorescence microscopy

Fast even at the nanometer level

14-Mar-2023 - Scientists led by Nobel Laureate Stefan Hell at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg have developed a super-resolution microscope with a spatio-temporal precision of one nanometer per millisecond. An improved version of their recently introduced MINFLUX super-resolution ...

Creating 3D objects with sound

Scientists introduce a new technology to assemble matter in 3D using sound waves for 3D printing

14-Feb-2023 - Scientists from the Micro, Nano and Molecular Systems Lab at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research and the Institute for Molecular Systems Engineering and Advanced Materials at Heidelberg University have created a new technology to assemble matter in 3D. Their concept uses multiple ...

Another step towards synthetic cells

Introducing functional DNA-based cytoskeletons into cell-sized compartments

23-Jun-2022 - Building functional synthetic cells from the bottom-up is an ongoing effort of scientists around the globe. Their use in studying cellular mechanisms in a highly controlled and pre-defined setting creates great value for understanding nature as well as developing new therapeutic approaches. ...

Building synthetic virus particles to study Sars-CoV-2

Researchers create minimalistic Sars-CoV-2 virions and discover the spike protein switching mechanism

25-Feb-2022 - Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg and their collaborators at the Max Planck Bristol Center for Minimal Biology at the University of Bristol have developed a new approach to study Sars-CoV-2. For systematic and standardized research of Sars-CoV-2 they built ...

Programming synthetic exosomes to optimize wound healing

Scientists create synthetic exosomes with natural functionalities and present their therapeutic application

08-Sep-2021 - Scientists from the MPI for Medical Research and colleagues have engineered synthetic exosomes that regulate cellular signaling during wound closure. The synthetic structures resemble naturally occurring extracellular vesicles (EV) that play a fundamental role in communication between cells. The ...

New microscopy method resolves fluorescent molecules with resolution at the nanometer scale

22-Mar-2021 - Scientists working with Stefan Hell at the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen and the Heidelberg-based MPI for Medical Research have developed another light microscopy method, called MINSTED, which resolves fluorescently labeled details with molecular sharpness. ...

Long-term memory in the cortex

Game changing results: Brain uses the cortex for making sensory associations, not the hippocampus

28-Aug-2013 - ‘Where’ and ‘how’ memories are encoded in a nervous system is one of the most challenging questions in biological research. The formation and recall of associative memories is essential for an independent life. The hippocampus has long been considered a centre in the brain for the long-term ...

Blinking neurons give thoughts away

07-May-2010 - Electrical currents are invisible to the naked eye – at least they are when they flow through metal cables. In nerve cells, however, scientists are able to make electrical signals visible. Working with fellow experts from Switzerland and Japan, scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Medical ...