Protein interactions: who is partying with whom and who is ruining the party?

New method for investigating protein interaction networks - also of interest for pharmaceutical research

18-Oct-2024 - Inside cells, it's like in a packed dance club: hundreds are partying. Some keep to themselves, others make their way through the crowd, chatting to everyone they meet. Some just say a quick hello, others stay with their best friends. In this club, there are all kinds of different interactions ...

Beige fat cells with a “Sisyphus mechanism”

A new class of fat cells makes people healthier: The cells consume energy and produce heat through seemingly pointless biochemical reactions.

16-Aug-2024 - Fat cells come in three colours: white, brown, and beige. White fat cells store fat in our body as an energy reserve. We need these cells, but having too many creates health problems. Brown fat cells are particularly active in infants. They produce heat and thus maintain the baby’s body ...

Scientists successfully simulate protein complex that initiates fertilisation

Research team has visualised the fertilisation dynamics of human egg cell for the first time using simulations on high-​performance computers.

06-Feb-2024 - Researchers at ETH Zurich recently developed highly realistic simulations of the proteins on sperm and egg cells coupling together before they fuse. These findings enabled the research team to solve several mysteries of fertilisation at once, which could help to accelerate development of more ...

Halting a malformation of the heart

24-Nov-2023 - Researchers at ETH Zurich have now shown that a previously unknown protein plays a key role in a congenital malformation of the heart. Their findings point the way towards new treatment options. Through the experiments on the genetically modified mice, her team determined which molecular switches ...

Under control to the very end – how our cells kill themselves

Using highly sensitive microscopes and NMR spectroscopy, the mechanism has been elucidated down to the level of individual atoms

24-May-2023 - Every day, millions of cells die in our body. Other than generally assumed, cells do not simply burst at the end of their lives but rather, a specific protein serves as a breaking point for cell membrane rupture. Researchers at the University of Basel have now been able to elucidate the exact ...

Harnessing the organisation of the cell surface

07-Dec-2021 - Scientists at ETH Zurich have developed a new method to determine how proteins are organised on the surface of cells. Insights gained with the technology could lead to the development of novel drugs to fight cancer. Biological cells have multiple functions, and they need to communicate with each ...

Researchers film fundamental life process

Study provides more detailed insights into the formation of ribosomes

29-Oct-2021 - All proteins in a cell are assembled by complicated molecular machines. The precursors of these ribosomes are produced in the cell nucleus and then enter the cell through the so-called nuclear pores. Researchers at the University of Bonn and ETH Zurich have now filmed this fundamental process in ...

The protein engineer

Spin-off to further develop protein cages and get them ready to go to market

18-Oct-2021 - Tom Edwardson modified a tiny artificial protein structure so it could be used as a vehicle for RNA molecules and other active substances. He now aims to create a spin-​off to bring his development to market. It’s not always easy to get molecules of an active substance to where they need to be in ...

Hope in the fight against cancer: They build proteins that are not known to nature

Basel-​based biotech startup has big ideas for the future: it aims to take protein engineering into a new era

15-Jun-2021 - Using chemical synthesis, Bright Peak Therapeutics can produce proteins that have never before existed. This holds great potential for cancer immunotherapy. The Basel-​based spin-​off has its beginnings at ETH Zurich. Jeffrey Bode’s long, bold journey began over an after-​work beer in Tokyo. A ...

Understanding the evolution of viruses

Key step in the evolutionary history of viruses in a laboratory experiment recreated

14-Jun-2021 - Viruses have always had a major influence on life. They emerged a few billion years ago, precisely when is difficult to estimate. There are also several theories as to how viruses originated. While exploring one possibility, researchers at ETH Zurich have managed to recapitulate a potentially ...