Newsroom

Researchers from the Department of Drug Design and Optimisation have developed molecules that can drastically reduce the pathogenic effects of the hospital germ Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In this interview, the authors Dr. Jörg Haupenthal and Dr. Andreas Kany tell us why P. aeruginosa is such a big problem, provide insights into their novel treatment strategy and explain which steps are still necessary before clinical use. Their work was published in the journal ACS Central Science.

The Academy of Sciences in Hamburg awards Prof Fabian Leendertz, Director of the Helmholtz Institute for One Health (HIOH), the Hamburg Science Award 2023 for his fundamental work in the field of zoonotic infectious diseases using the One Health concept. Leendertz's research contributes significantly to a better understanding of the mechanisms of disease development and transmission between humans, animals and the environment. The One Health surveillance studies conducted by the Helmholtz Institute for One Health, a site of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), in sub-Saharan Africa play a crucial role in the prevention of epidemics and pandemics.

The Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany expresses its deepest condolences for the victims of the terrorist attacks on Israel. In particular, our sympathy is with our friends and colleagues in the Israeli scientific community. Israel has been and will always be a prime partner for the German research and innovation community.

How SARS-CoV-2 initiates its replication process during infection is not yet fully understood. Researchers from the Helmholtz Institute Würzburg have now shown for the first time in the journal Cell that it is the human protein SND1 which works together with the viral protein NSP9 to stimulate the virus’s genetic replication program in infected cells. The scientists were surprised to find that NSP9 acts as the first building block in the production of new viral genetic material. The findings are significant for further basic research, but they could also lead to new avenues for the treatment of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases caused by coronaviruses.

The cooperation project MICROBELIX was jointly launched in spring 2023 by researchers from the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) and the Naturlandstiftung Saar (NLS). Together, both institutions set out to compete in the citizen science contest Auf die Plätze! Citizen Science in deiner Stadt. After a public voting phase and the evaluation by a jury of experts, the MICROBELIX team could claim one of the three winning places and a 50,000 € prize. The award ceremony took place on September 28, 2023 at the Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin.

Saarbrücken, 21. September, 2023 - Researchers at the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) have again succeeded in acquiring funding under the BMBF-funded "GO-Bio Iinitial" program. The funding measure aims to identify promising research approaches in the life sciences, to exploit their innovation potential and to enable a seamless transfer into application. In the now funded project "ChloroMalaria-2", a novel class of natural products for the treatment and control of malaria will be further optimized.