Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology

beta-catenin discovered as a new key player in the formation of the main body axis during mammalian embryogenesis

A strategy by Max Planck scientist to assess the role of liquid-liquid phase separation drivers in cell division reveals poor predictive power of established assays

Max Plank researchers from Dortmund unveil how ring-like formin proteins promote actin filament growth

Scientists have identified the first inhibitors of a cancer-related RNA-modifier

Max Planck researchers from Dortmund reveal the first-ever detailed structure of the bacterial toxin Mcf1
 

Nothing works with incomprehensible code – not even a cell. Patrick Cramer is carrying out research on the enzyme that transcribes the DNA code to enable a protein to be synthesized from a gene. To do so, he relies on high-resolution microscopes and artificial intelligence.

Bacteria, plants and animals are full of unknown substances that could be beneficial for humans. At the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology in Dortmund, Herbert Waldmann tests natural products for their biological efficacy and tries to mimic their effects with simpler molecules.

In movies, 3-D effects are spectacular. And also at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology in Dortmund, Stefan Raunser finds that three-dimensional images offer a visual feast. His electron microscopes enable him to determine the position of individual atoms with great precision and to study the spatial structure of proteins. In doing so, he occasionally encounters some bizarre constructions.

How does HIV get a host cell to produce viruses? Researchers are looking for the key in order to develop efficient therapies.

Billions of cells in our body constantly undergo cell division, a complex process that usually occurs error-free in healthy cells. Even minor errors can result in cell degeneration or resistance to chemotherapy. The kinetochore, a complex, multi-layered protein structure attached to the chromosome, monitors faithful cell division. We reconstituted the main components of its outermost layer, the corona, determined its structure, and unveiled its cellular function. Our findings significantly advance our understanding of cell division in healthy and malignant cells. 

Just a few weeks a completely new organism develops from a fertilised egg cell. It is almost a miracle when complex structures form from a bunch of stem cells as if by magic, without a blueprint or any further intervention. But stem cells do not leave their fate to pure chance: they live in an active, social community that is characterised by constant consultation. Our research on stem cells in the test tube shows how cells communicate with each other and how they encode and decode complex messages.

Whether antibiotics, cholesterol-lowering agents or fluorescent proteins: natural substances, for example from fungi and marine organisms, have always been used in medicine and science. Applying high-resolution cryo-electron microscopy, we have now been able to elucidate for the first time how two natural toxins influence the structure of actin filaments and thus the regulation of the cytoskeleton. While these toxins are already of great use for research, one day they could be used to specifically agglutinate the cytoskeleton of cancer cells and thus kill them. 

Tumours grow much faster than healthy tissue. Cancer cells get the energy and building blocks they need by a ten times higher sugar uptake compared to normal body cells. One could say that cancer cells are addicted to sugar. We exploit this natural weakness and put cancer cells on a radical sugar diet by applying a series of self-developed active substances so that they starve and die.

Cell division requires the coordinated activities of multiple cellular components, such as the kinetochore. This large protein assembly connects chromosomes to the mitotic spindle apparatus and thereby enables their movement. Understanding cell division requires a multidisciplinary approach in which the function of kinetochore components is studied either individually, in a test tube, or inside the living cells. To overtake the challenges of integrating these two approaches, we developed a method to study cell division, or other cellular processes, by directly delivering proteins into cells.