New Helmholtz Podcast

When hearing of herpes, one usually thinks of the unpleasant blisters on lips. However, some types of herpes virus can cause far more dangerous diseases. They share a common characteristic: They manage to manipulate the cell's immune defence and permanently settle within the host body. Yet one day it may be possible to combat the herpes virus with its own weapons, for researchers around Melanie Brinkmann from the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research in Braunschweig are investigating the mechanisms by which the herpes virus fools the immune system.