Epigenetics - packaging artists in the cell

Biomaterials - patent solutions from nature

Animals and plants can produce amazing materials such as spider webs, wood or bone using only a few raw materials available. How do they achieve this? And what can engineers learn from them? more

Chaperones - folding helpers in the cell

Nothing works without the correct form: For most proteins, there are millions of ways in which these molecules, composed of long chains of amino acids, can be folded - but only one way is the right one. Researchers in the department "Cellular Biochemistry" at the Max Planck Institute for Bi ... more

Gene-editing with CRISPR/Cas9

The discovery that bacteria use a kind of immune system to fight viruses initially was only interesting for microbiologists. But when the discovery that CRISPR/Cas9 system is able to manipulate genes of many organisms was made, also non-scientists were alerted. But how does this method works? more

Those who live longer have fewer children

A long life and lots of children – that was quite a common aspiration until not so long ago. But the world of animals reveals that high fertility and longevity are often mutually exclusive: Particularly animals with shorter lifespans are often very fertile while animals that live longer fre ... more

Wound healing with the power of nanofibers

The healing of injuries, especially of severed nerve tracts, nowadays requires complex methods, such as sewing the two nerve stumps together. Scientists from the department of Prof. Tanja Weil (Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research), led by Dr. Christopher Synatschke, have now developed ... more

Multitasking with perfection: Nerve cell works like 1400 individual cells

CT1 is different. In general, a nerve cell receives input from a number of presynaptic cells, processes the signals, and passes its output to downstream cells. In the cell CT1, however, each of the approximately 1400 cell areas works like a separate neuron. This allows CT1 to access informa ... more

Max-Planck-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Wissenschaften e.V.

The research institutes of the Max Planck Society perform basic research in the interest of the general public in the natural sciences, life sciences, social sciences, and the humanities. In particular, the Max Planck Society takes up new and innovative research areas that German universiti ... more