Basic research forms the foundation of scientific progress. To gain insight into the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying disease, as well as fundamental biological processes, researchers often rely on mouse models. Depending on the specific research question, zebrafish and other model organisms may also be used. In practice, the distinction between basic and translational research is often fluid.
A team led by LMU immunologist Professor Peter Nelson (LMU University Hospital) and Roger Sandhoff and Peter E. Huber from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) has identified a protein called Dickkopf 3 (DKK3) as a main cause of long-term skin damage after radiotherapy – a decisive step for the development of novel, more targeted therapy options.
An LMU research team led by Professor Olivia M. Merkel, Chair of Drug Delivery at LMU, have developed a new delivery system for inhalable mRNA vaccines. Published in the journal Cell Biomaterials, the study presents a novel combination of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) and poly(β-amino esters) (PBAEs) designed to overcome key biological barriers in the lungs.
A new study by researchers at LMU Medical Center led by Professor Dominik Paquet and Professor Martin Dichgans of the Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD) identifies molecular factors that promote small vessel disease – and an active drug that can restore impaired vascular functions.
Researchers at LMU and the SyNergy Cluster of Excellence have analyzed how the proteome of specific brain cells changes as we age.
A research team led by Professor Martin Kerschensteiner, director of the Institute for Clinical Neuroimmunology, has developed an experimental platform that can be used to identify the signals that control immune cells in neuroinflammatory diseases.
A European research team led by Professor Magdalena Götz of Helmholtz Munich, LMU (Biomedical Center), and the SyNergy Cluster of Excellence, and Judith Fischer-Sternjak of Helmholtz Munich and LMU, has discovered a type of astrocyte with regenerative potential in the brain’s white matter.
An international research team led by Maria-Elena Torres-Padilla, a professor in the Department of Biology at LMU and director of the Institute of Epigenetics and Stem Cells at Helmholtz Munich, has shown that embryos can correct errors in the initial organization of their cell nuclei.
The ImmunoChick research group, which is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG), is driving forward fundamental and applied research in this field. Now the DFG has approved a second funding period. Under the leadership of Professor Benedikt Kaufer (Free University of Berlin), ImmunoChick “Analysis of avian immune response in the context of infections” investigates how the immune system of chickens responds to various pathogens. To this end, the scientists use special chickens in which certain defense cells – so-called B and T cells – have been specifically silenced.