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The folding is the key
Human Immunodeficiency Viruses (HIV) are responsible for millions of infections worldwide. By causing the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), these pathogens have led to nearly 40 million deaths since the outbreak of the HIV pandemic in the 1980s. For decades,…
What leads to severe COVID-19?
The team was able to identify underlying regulators of the malfunction of the innate immune system in COVID-19 patients and confirm that certain already known genetic risk loci play a role in the development of COVID-19. The results have been published in the journal…
Helmholtz Young Investigator Group for Yannic Bartsch
"I will initially focus on the respiratory syncytial virus RSV, which can cause severe respiratory infections, especially in young children," says Bartsch. "How do antibody responses influence the course of the disease? Can such immune responses be therapeutically…
Gérard Krause moves from HZI to WHO
After twelve years as head of the Department of Epidemiology at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) in Braunschweig, Prof Gérard Krause is moving to the World Health Organization (WHO) where he will become the director of a newly established department for…
The fifth anniversary of HIRI
In May 2017, the world's first institution combining research on ribonucleic acids (RNA) with infection biology was founded in Würzburg: the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (HIRI). Since then, the still young HIRI has gained a global reputation in…
A bright spot for microbiological diagnostics
In view of the increasing threat by antibiotic resistances, diseases should not be treated with antibiotics on suspicion. Antibiotic stewardship therefore requires prior verification that a bacterial infection is indeed present. However, microbiological methods, in…
How does an intestinal germ become a pathogen?
Escherichia coli , often abbreviated as E. coli , is part of the human intestinal flora. As a so-called commensal, it does not normally cause any damage there. However, it can become a pathogen in the gut and in other organs. In the urogenital tract, for example, E.…
1.5 million euros for research on human intestinal bacteria
Emerging infectious diseases and antibiotic resistance pose threats to global health. However, commensal microorganisms that colonize the healthy human gut may offer protection against infections. In his project “GUT-CHECK”, Alexander Westermann investigates how the…
Uncovering the HIV life cycle
Key stages in the life cycle of a virus can represent attractive targets for drugs and therapies. Therefore, basic research is important to understand and impact the underlying molecular processes. A distinguishing feature of the HIV-1 variant is that it contains two…
New CRISPR element regulates viral defense
Most bacteria use CRISPR-Cas systems to protect themselves against infecting viruses. The defense systems target snippets of viral DNA and store them between fixed, repeating sequences. These segments, consisting of alternating repeats and snippets of viral DNA, then…