'Falling Walls' Award for Nanobodies targeting Corona virus
—In early 2020, Florian Schmidt and Paul-Albert König at the University Hospital Bonn and an international team of researchers developed a special kind of antibody against SARS-CoV-2 with strong potential for therapeutic use. Today, the cluster scientists and their international team are recognized for their groundbreaking success. A success that would not have been possible without the help of an alpaca and a llama
Impaired function of white blood cells in severe COVID-19 courses
—The acute respiratory syndrome COVID-19, caused by coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), emerged in late 2019. Since then, a comprehensive understanding of both the virus itself and the respective host immune-response has rapidly been gained. Recent studies suggest a specific form of white immune cells, natural killer (NK) cells, to play a crucial role in the early antiviral immune response. But to what extend do NK cells…
How danger signaling is amplified in Influenza A-virus infected cells
—Influenza virus-induced acute respiratory infections occur in all parts of the world and represent a constant disease-burden. While the seasonal epidemic outbreaks are caused by Influenza-subtypes A and B, only Influenza-A strains are reported to have caused pandemic spreads. Overall, Influenza-A infections account for 250,000 to 300,000 deaths p.a.
—The tremendous advances made in experimental life sciences in recent years provide a wealth of data on how organisms function. To gain biomedical knowledge from these data, both mathematical modeling and numerical analysis techniques in conjunction with experimental data are essential. At a joint symposium of the Clusters of Excellence Hausdorff Center for Mathematics and ImmunoSensation2 as well as the Transdisciplinary Research Areas "Modelling" and "Life and Health" of the University of Bonn, the professors working at the interfaces and their colleagues presented their…
—Many different factors are responsible for the spread of infectious diseases. What is known is that the spread process depends essentially on the infectiousness of the pathogen and the immune response of the host, but also on human behavior. This relates, for example, to the extent to which distance regulations are observed. Less often considered, however, is the fact that the factors and their influence can vary greatly between groups of people - both at the biomedical…
—On August 21, female scientists from the universities of Bonn, Cologne and Düsseldorf will talk at the Rudolfplatz
Think outside the box is often the phrase used to describe leaving your old thinking habits behind and getting creative. This is exactly what scientists from the universities of Cologne, Bonn and Düsseldorf will be doing on August 21, starting at 2 p.m. on Cologne's Rudolfplatz: Standing on a soap box they want to inspire the general public with their research topics.
—A team of scientists from the University of Bonn and the research center caesar develop a method to observe fast movements in 3D
In the past, many discoveries have been made because better, more accurate measurement methods have become available, making it possible to obtain data from previously unexplored phenomena. For example, high-resolution microscopy has begun to dramatically change our perspectives of cell function and dynamics. Researchers at the ImmunoSensation2 Cluster of Excellence at the University of Bonn, the University Hospital and the research center caesar have now develop…
—The Institute of Medical Microbiology, Immunology and Parasitology at the University of Bonn is the recipient of a $1.48 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Together with the international IT consultancy Capgemini and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi) in Geneva, researchers are developing technology to better combat river blindness, which is caused by parasitic worms. Artificial intelligence will be used to machine-read sections of worm…
—Cluster member Jonathan Schmid-Burgk and colleagues developed a new corona test that is up to 100 times more sensitive than rapid antigen tests. The "LAMP-Seq" test is based on sequencing technology and can analyze a large number of swabs simultaneously with similar high sensitivity to the commonly used qPCR test. The innovative method offers great potential, especially for systematic testing in day care centers, schools or companies. The results of the study on the new Corona test have been published in Nature Biotechnology
