News

Anton Henssen of the ECRC has been awarded the Kind Philipp Award for Pediatric Oncology Research for his study of ring-shaped DNA and its significance in the development of childhood neuroblastoma. A publication in the scientific journal Nature Genetics was decisive for this award.

Theoretical physicists from Berlin teamed up with experimental physicists from Munich to determine the precise mechanics involved in cell motility. The findings were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

MDC researchers have developed a new approach to CAR T-cell therapy. The team has shown in Nature Communications that the procedure is very effective, especially when it comes to fighting follicular lymphomas and chronic lymphocytic leukemia, the most common type of blood cancer in adults.

On January 1, 2021, the Berlin Institute of Health (BIH ) has become the translational research unit of Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and will then form – alongside the hospital and the medical faculty – Charité’s third pillar.

Bone regeneration, dynamic hydrogels and the novel coronavirus – these three topics are currently being researched by MDC scientists in two new Collaborative Research Centres and as part of the COVID-19 Focus Funding initiative of the German Research Foundation (DFG ).

Colon cancer stem cells have one weak spot: the enzyme Mll1. An MDC team led by Walter Birchmeier has now shown in Nature Communications that blocking this protein prevents the development of new tumors in the body.

More than 150 postdocs and senior Ph.D. students from across the capital joined for a virtual Berlin Science Postdoc Day to present research, build skills and network. Emmanuelle Charpentier, who shares the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, was the keynote speaker.

Earning your doctorate deserves a celebration. At MDC, this takes place every year in the form of a graduation ceremony. But this year, given the unprecedented situation, doctorands were awarded their diplomas in an online event.

Many researchers would like to see the results of their work put to use in practical applications. Anja Mähler helps to make this a reality. She leads the Clinical Research Unit at the ECRC , which carries out studies to test basic research findings. We paid her a visit for our series “We at the MDC”.

A muscle fiber consists of just one cell, but many nuclei. A team at the MDC led by Professor Carmen Birchmeier has now shown just how varied these nuclei are. The study, which has been published in Nature Communications, can help us better understand muscle diseases such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy.