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Human blood cells can be directly reprogrammed into neural stem cells

Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the stem cell institute HI-STEM* in Heidelberg have succeeded for the first time in directly reprogramming human blood cells into a previously unknown type of neural stem cell. These induced stem cells are similar to those that occur during the early embryonic development of the central nervous system. They can be modified and multiplied indefinitely in the culture dish and can represent an important basis for the development of regenerative therapies.

Together with stem cell researcher Frank Edenhofer from the University of Innsbruck and neuroscientist Hannah Monyer from DKFZ and the Heidelberg University Hospital, Andreas Trumpp (German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and Director of HI-STEM in Heidelberg) and his team have succeeded in reprogramming different human cells: connective tissue cells of the skin or pancreas as well as peripheral blood cells. "The origin of the cells had no influence on the properties of the stem cells," said Marc Christian Thier, first author of the study. In particular, the possibility of extracting neural stem cells from the blood of patients without invasive intervention is a decisive advantage for future therapeutic approaches. More...

Erfolgreiche Forschung zu Multipler Sklerose: 2,7 Millionen Euro für die nächste Förderperiode

Bei Multipler Sklerose (MS) greift das Immunsystem körpereigenes Nervengewebe an, Nervenzellen sterben ab. Könnte ein gestörter Kalzium-Haushalt der beteiligten Zellen Ursache und Antrieb der chronischen Erkrankung sein? Dieser zentralen Frage geht die Forschungsgruppe 2289 der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) unter Federführung von Professor Dr. Ricarda Diem, Neurologische Universitätsklinik Heidelberg, und Professor Dr. Veit Flockerzi, Institut für Pharmakologie und Toxikologie der Universität des Saarlandes, nach. Beteiligt sind Wissenschaftlerteams aus Heidelberg, Homburg und Hamburg-Eppendorf. Die DFG unterstützt die Forschungsgruppe "Kalzium-Homöostase bei Neuroinflammation und -degeneration" für weitere drei Jahre mit insgesamt 2,7 Millionen Euro. Mehr...

Highly Cited Researchers 2018

Four IZN Investigators included in the list of world-class researchers selected for their exceptional research performance, demonstrated by production of multiple highly cited papers that rank in the top 1% by citations for field and year in Web of Science.

EMBL researchers discover that four organs in a marine worm’s head can sense different chemicals

We sense the world around us using primarily our eyes, ears and nose. Marine worms, on the other hand, have long been thought to understand the world very differently – primarily by detecting chemicals in the ocean water that surrounds them – although this has not been investigated in detail. Now, researchers in the Arendt group have recorded nerve cell activity in the head of marine worms. The worm’s small size and transparency, means that all of the nerves and neurons within the head can be imaged at once. They found that these cells located in four particular areas of the head reacted when the worms were exposed to different chemicals. Alcohols, sugars, amino acids and an ester that smells like pears were tested. Reporting in Open Biology, the group identified these four areas of the head as the worm’s chemosensory organs, capable of detecting different chemicals in the surrounding environment. The worm’s antennae could detect each chemical equally well, whereas three other organs responded to each chemical differently. These chemosensory organs could help the worm go about its daily business of eating, escaping from prey or reproducing. More...