DNA Methylation controls Blood Cell Decisions

How do pathogenic agents actually manage to overcome the defence barriers of the human body and attack the organism? The team around Professor Dr. Dirk Heinz at the Department of Structural Biology of the HZI pursues this question.

To 'Connecting Structural Biology and Wound Healing'

Salmonellae are bacterial pathogenic agents that rapidly proliferate in insufficiently cooked egg dishes in warm weather causing commonly known and infamous consequences. Less known, but no less interesting, is the fact that in addition to ice-cream and egg dishes salmonellae also interact with tumour tissue.

To 'With Salmonellae Against Cancer'

The genome is the genetic material stored within the nucleus of every cell, consisting of a sequence of 3.2 billion DNA building blocks. In 2003, an international research team delivered the completely decoded human genome and thus completed the work on the human genome project begun in 1990. Now, German researchers have joined a new mammoth project of biomedical genome research.

To 'On the Path towards an individualised Cancer Therapy'

The risk for diabetes or other metabolic diseases increases enormously, when unhealthy eating habits and a lack of exercise coincide with genetic disposition. Researchers of Helmholtz Zentrum München discovered variants of known diabetes risk genes and other genes, which for the first time they could definitely link with lipometabolism disorders.

To 'Metabolomics – Key Tool for Diabetes Research'

Usually, metabolic regulation ensures energy balance so that the body weight remains fairly stable. In the event of increasing obesity, more energy is deposited in the so-called white adipose tissue than is used. By contrast, brown adipose tissue has a different function, converting energy into heat. The idea is, therefore, that brown adipose tissue could possibly help to restore the disturbed balance between absorption and consumption of energy.

To 'Brown Body Fat as a Weight Loss Product'

Some 250,000 people per year in Germany sustain a stroke. The majority of people affected then suffer from consequential damages such as paralysis and language or vision disorders. In collaboration with French colleagues, researchers
led by Professor Dr. Norbert Hübner of the MDC have now developed a mouse model enabling the detailed study of risk factors for stroke development.

To 'Mouse as a Model for Stroke Patients'

Exposure to particulate matter often leads to aggravation of allergic asthma. This association has already been established by epidemiological studies. However, Dr. Francesca Alessandriniand her colleagues from Helmholtz Zentrum München and from the Centre of Allergy & Environment (ZAUM) at Technische Universität  München wanted to investigate the role of ultrafine particles more exactly.

To 'Ultrafine Particles Aggravate Asthma'

As life expectancy increases more individuals retain good health lfor a longer time. However, also the risk of cancer, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases increases with age. Today, neurodegenerative diseases take a significant toll as cause of death in old age. In Germany around one million individuals are affected by dementia.

To 'Time Lapsed Aging'