MDC Berlin

A team led by MDC researcher Marina Chekulaeva has figured out why protein production slows down in the nerve cells of people suffering from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease. This discovery could lead to a new therapeutic approach, the scientists report in the journal "Nucleic Acids Research".

It’s a small switch with a big impact: the operon has the ability to turn genes on and off. Cell and developmental biologist Michael Levine will talk about the crucial role it plays in mutation occurrence and thus in evolution during his keynote lecture at our EMBO workshop running from September 13 to 17.

If the cerebral hemispheres of the forebrain fail to divide properly in an unborn child, this results in holoprosencephaly. An MDC team led by Annette Hammes has discovered candidate genes that can positively influence the severity of this congenital malformation of the forebrain, as the researchers now report in the journal Development.

Stiftung Charité Foundation and the Berlin Institute of Health at the Charité are continuing their format for recruiting outstanding female scientists. MDC researcher Kathrin de la Rosa is among the four new Johanna Quandt Professors. The immunologist will continue to lead her research group here.

After providing funding for single-cell analysis of adult hearts, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative is now supporting the creation of a cell atlas of children’s hearts. An international team led by Christine Seidman of Harvard University and Norbert Hübner of the MDC is again among the funded networks.

Viruses come and go – most of the time, at least. Some, however, stay around forever. A team led by Markus Landthaler at the MDC intends to find out what enables viruses to set up home permanently in a host, as part of the DFG Research Unit DEEP-DV.

Tumor cells search for niches in tissue where they can grow and multiply. Uta Höpken studies how these cells migrate through the body and interact with other cells in their special niches. Her goal is to use this knowledge to train therapeutic CAR T cells to detect and destroy cancer cells.

If you’ve ever survived the onset of winter in the Arctic, you can hopefully keep your cool when hackers attack. Karsten Häcker, CIO at the MDC, tells us how adventure holidays help him keep his composure at work. And he reveals what Swiss cheese has to do with IT.

This year marks a special anniversary for Berlin's scientific community, and our recommended book relates to this event. 200 years ago, in 1821, two men were born who would make a huge impact on science, not just in Berlin but beyond: Rudolf Virchow and Hermann von Helmholtz.