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Illustration Gene
News
Systematically attenuating DNA targeting activity can achieve CRISPR-driven editing in bacteria, greatly boosting colony counts and even increasing the frequency of precise genome editing. This was shown in a study of the Helmholtz Institute Würzburg (HIRI) in collaboration with the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) in Braunschweig. The findings were published today in the journal Nature Communications.
09.02.2023
Fluorescence staining of Arlo cells
News
Before new drugs can be tested in animal experiments and later in clinical trials, they must undergo a large number of laboratory tests. This involves the use of so-called cell lines, i.e. human or animal cells of a specific tissue that can be cultivated in the laboratory. A team led by Prof Claus-Michael Lehr of the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) has now developed a novel human lung cell line that should enable much more accurate predictions of the behavior of active substances or dosage forms in humans than previous systems. The cell line could be used, among other things, in the development of drugs against SARS-CoV-2. The scientists published their results in the journal Advanced Science.
08.02.2023
Portrait Anna Hirsch
News
The European Research Council (ERC) grants are among the most prestigious awards in the scientific community. Prof Anna Hirsch from the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) has now succeeded in acquiring a coveted ERC grant for the second time. Under the "Proof of Concept" funding program, she will receive €150,000 to bring her basic research findings closer to a potential application. Thematically, Hirsch's project focuses on medicinal chemistry approaches to develop novel antibiotics against resistant bacteria.
24.01.2023
Pseudomoas aeruginosa and Quorum Sensing Inhibitors
News
The pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa is the cause of a large number of serious infections and places a particular burden on immunocompromised patients. The increasing spread of antimicrobial resistance makes it even more difficult to combat the dreaded hospital pathogen. A research team led by Dr Martin Empting of the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) has now discovered a new class of active compounds that disrupt the bacterium's chemical communication pathways. This not only reduces the pathogen's disease-causing properties, but also simultaneously enhances the effectiveness of antibiotics. The researchers published their findings in the journal Advanced Science. HIPS is a site of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) in collaboration with Saarland University.
23.01.2023
Host cells stained in blue with binding of LecA (green)
News
The hospital pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa requires the sugar-binding proteins LecA and LecB to form biofilms as well as to attach to and penetrate host cells. These so-called lectins are therefore suitable targets for active substances to combat Pseudomonas infections. Researchers from Saarbrücken and Freiburg have now produced potent inhibitors for LecA and LecB that are more stable and soluble than previous drug candidates. These optimized molecules have been tested in virulence assays and show promising properties for the development of new drugs.
16.01.2023
Symbolic image: Illustration of human cells
News
Würzburg, January 10, 2023 — Do we simply ingest a diagnostic probiotic based on programmed ribonucleic acids to analyze the intestinal health from individual cells in the future? Researchers at the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (HIRI) and the Julius-Maximilians-Universität (JMU) in Würzburg have developed a new technology they call TIGER. It allows complex processes in individual cells to be deciphered in vivo by recording past RNA transcripts. The findings were published in the journal Nature Biotechnology on 5 January 2023.
10.01.2023

HZI in the media

Die Zellen kontrollieren die Reaktion des Immunsystems und verhindern Schäden durch Selbstangriffe. Forschende arbeiten daran, sie zur Therapie einzusetzen.

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NDR Norddeutscher Rundfunk

Nachwuchsgruppe „Nanoinfektionsbiologie“ am HZI. Diese Lücke soll das Projekt ONEMUC (Respiratorischer Mukus als One Health-Schnittstelle) ...

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DeutschesGesundheitsPortal

Hochschule Hannover (MHH) und des Helmholz-Zentrums für Infektionsforschung (HZI) erforschen im Rahmen des Projektes StopPSC ( ...

03.03.2026
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Biermann Medizin

Mdisk, stock.adobe.com

 

Braunschweig – Das Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung ( HZI ) in Braunschweig erhält für sein ...

03.03.2026
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Deutsches Ärzteblatt

Josef Penninger, wissenschaftlicher Geschäftsführer des Helmholtz Zentrums für Infektionsforschung in Braunschweig und Professor für

01.03.2026
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EUROPE SAYS

... Körperzellen. Damit tragen wir, wie das Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (HZI) es treffend beschreibt, unseren „ganz ...

27.02.2026
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MSN Deutschland

Eine Impfung bringt das Immunsystem in Stellung, bevor der echte Erreger kommt. Erfahren Sie, wie ...

26.02.2026
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Apotheken Umschau

Livia V. Patrono, one of the senior authors at the Helmholtz Institute for One Health (HIOH) in Germany, said in a statement .

 

The research

25.02.2026
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IFL Science

says Livia Patrono, a veterinarian and disease ecologist at Helmholtz Institute for One Health in Greifswald, Germany. In 2012, an infected

24.02.2026
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Science News

... Dr. rer. nat. Jakob Wirbel vom Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (Braunschweig). Das Experiment aus Stanford sei ...

20.02.2026
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Deutsches Ärzteblatt

... unseres Immunsystems zu entziehen. Strukturbiologen des Helmholtz-Zentrums für Infektionsforschung (HZI) konnten nun mittels ...

18.02.2026
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Bionity.COM

of our immune system. Structural biologists at the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research (HZI) have now used cryo-electron microscopy to

16.02.2026
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Phys.org

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