International cooperation

Malaysia’s last male Sumatran rhino, Kertam, died in 2019. Now, a team from the Max Delbrück Center has successfully grown stem cells and mini-brains from his skin cells. As they report in "iScience", their goal is to create sperm cells that may help to save the endangered species from extinction.

At the end of September, a group of female medical scientists who have fled Ukraine paid a visit to the Max Delbrück Center. Their purpose was to find out more about the institute's work and explore professional career opportunities.

With its "Back to the roots" Lab, the Max Delbrück Center aims to enable young international researchers to become ambassadors for Research in Germany in their home countries. It is one of the winners of the DFG Community Prize.

MyoPax, a new spin-off of the Max Delbrück Center and Charité, receives a 1.3 million euros loan to jump-start its entrepreneurial activities. The start-up develops regenerative therapies for previously incurable muscle diseases using its innovative muscle stem cell technology.

Mammals possess a gene that controls a novel structure in nerve cells. Researchers at the Max Delbrück Center and the Milner Centre for Evolution have discovered it and describe it in the journal „Molecular Biology and Evolution”.

A CRISPR-based rapid test called CrisprZyme could help general practitioners to diagnose heart attacks and distinguish between different types of prostate cancer. They do not even need a lab, as an international team of scientists – including Michael Kaminski – reports in "Nature Nanotechnology".

Mixing and mingling on Hydra: For the anniversary of the Lewin Lab, leading somatic sensation experts, colleagues and students of Gary Lewin all came to a Greek island. In this interview, he talks with his former mentee Stefan Lechner about the symposium, dazzling personalities and what makes a good PI.

Cardiomyopathy is not a uniform disease. Rather, individual genetic defects lead to heart failure in different ways, an international consortium reports in “Science”. MDC researcher Norbert Hübner is one of the senior authors.

Glia cells are as indispensable as neurons. Yet they were long considered a mere “neural glue” – until Helmut Kettenmann came along. He initiated international glia cell research and helped it gain recognition. He was also part of the MDC’s founding generation and has continued to leave his mark on the institution over the last 30 years.

An international consortium brings together 7,200 segments of the human genome that are virtually unexplored and presents a roadmap for integrating them into genome databases in “Nature Biotechnology”. They could hold information about what sets humans apart from other animals.