News archive 2020

Biochemists around Prof Dr Andrea Rentmeister at Münster University have developed a new strategy for controlling the biological functions of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) by means of light and therefore provide a tool to investigate processes which take place in cells. The results have been published in the journal "Angewandte Chemie".

Researchers around Prof Dr Carsten Grashoff at the University of Münster have discovered how the muscle-specific adhesion molecule metavinculin modulates mechanical force transduction on the molecular level. The research results have just been published in the journal Nature Communications.

Scientists around anesthesiologist Prof Alexander Zarbock at the University of Münster have investigated the role of an integrin kinase in molecular processes of leukocyte adhesion and extravasation into tissue. The study published in the journal “Blood” was awarded the title “Paper of the Month” by the Faculty of Medicine.

Every year our glittery “Christmas ball” gives insight into the inner workings of cells and organisms. Using imaging techniques, scientists make processes that are normally hidden from the human eye visible and investigate how cells behave within organisms. Guess what’s shining on our Christmas ball this year? We wish you lots of fun with our little bit of “Science on the Christmas tree”!

The new Collaborative Research Center "inSight" at Münster University receives funding from the German Research Foundation amounting to approximately ten million euros. The researchers aim to gain a comprehensive understanding of how the body regulates inflammation in different organs and, to this end, develop a specific imaging methodology that brings together information from single cells to entire organisms.

The German Research Foundation has approved a new funding period for the Collaborative Research Centre/Transregio 128 at the Universities of Münster, Mainz and München. In order to develop new therapeutic concepts, researchers in this project are working on unravelling the changes in the immune system that underlie the disease, the role of the blood-brain barrier and the effects of the immune system's attack on the central nervous system.

In a new video series the University of Münster introduces junior researchers. The first one is Cristina Barca, a PhD student at the European Institute for Molecular Imaging: Using biomedical imaging, she is investigating how well certain drugs work in treating strokes. In the video she provides an insight into her everyday working life and explains what is so special about being a scientist.

A team of researchers headed by Münster University physiologist Prof. Wolfgang Linke has shown that oxidative stress, in combination with the extension of the heart walls, triggers a change in cardiac stiffness. A key role is played by the giant protein titin. This newly discovered mechanism is relevant, e.g., in cases of an acute heart attack. The results have been published in the journal “PNAS”.

Researchers at Münster University headed by biologist Prof Christian Klämbt have discovered that glial cells – one of the main components of the brain –not only control the speed of nerve conduction, but also influence the precision of signal transduction in the brain. The research results have been published in the journal Nature Communications.

Organs in animals and in humans have one thing in common: they are bounded by so-called epithelial cells. Researchers at the University of Münster headed by Cells in Motion Professor Stefan Luschnig have found out how two proteins called Anakonda and M6 interact in epithelial cells in fruit flies in order to produce a functioning barrier at corner points between three of those cells.

An international research team with Prof. Cornelia Denz from the University of Münster have developed light fields using caustics that do not change during propagation. For this purpose, the physicists cleverly exploit light structures that can be seen in rainbows or when light is transmitted through drinking glasses. The new method could be relevant for applications such as high resolution microsopy. The study has been published in “Nature Communications”.

Chemists have for a long time been interested in efficiently constructing polyenes – not least in order to be able to use them for future biomedical applications. However, such designs are currently neither simple nor inexpensive. Scientists at Münster University headed by Cells in Motion Professor Ryan Gilmour have now found a bio-inspired solution to the problem. The study has been published in “Science”.

The Clinical Research Unit "Male Germ Cells" at Münster University will receive further 5.7 million euros in funding for three years by the German Research Foundation (DFG). The network has been investigating the causes of male infertility since 2017.

The development of the lymphatic vasculature is crucially dependent on one specific protein – the growth factor VEGF-C. Using the zebrafish model, researchers now gained new insights into how and at which spots the individual protagonists of the VEGF-C signalling pathway need to interact with each other in the embryo. The study has been published in "Nature Communications".

The Collaborative Research Centre "Breaking Barriers" will continue to receive funding by the German Research Foundation (DFG) for four years. The network deals with inflammatory reactions at biological interfaces such as the skin or surfaces of lungs, intestines or blood vessels. Newly gained insights shall now be implemented in methods relating to new diagnostic or therapeutic approaches.

Laser light that cannot be seen, and sounds that cannot be heard: this combination produces something that is all the more visible – images from inside the body. Photoacoustics is the name of this method, whose purpose is to acoustically record the sounds of molecules. During her PhD thesis, biologist Alexa Hasenbach investigated inflammatory processes.

What is it like to do research in times of the corona crisis? Three young scientists from our CiM-IMPRS Graduate Program have recorded short video clips in which they share moments from their everyday life and give insights into how they are dealing with the situation.

15 junior researchers at the University of Münster have received nearly 20,000 euros in funding by the Cells in Motion Interfaculty Centre. They will use the money to implement their own research ideas, gain experience in another working group or present their research findings at international conferences. An example: A team of four wants to develop an imaging system for analysing sperm motility.

In the new "Chembion" Research Training Group at Münster University, which is being funded by the German Research Foundation, doctoral students from medicine and pharmacy jointly investigate ways to regulate the function of ion channels in cell membranes. An interview with Prof. Bernhard Wünsch, spokesperson of the Research Training Group and member of the Cells in Motion Interfaculty Centre.

Physicians, physicists and chemists at Münster University have developed novel iron oxide nanoparticles that can serve as contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The exceptional aspect: They can be specifically distinguished from naturally occurring iron, thus enabling targeted tracking of immune cells in mice, and providing novel insight into iron metabolism. The study was awarded the title “Paper of the Month” by the Faculty of Medicine.