Like all other cells in the body, skin cancer cells need a cholesterol metabolism. With the support of the Austrian Science Fund FWF, a Viennese research group discovered deviations and particularities of this process in malignant melanoma that could help improve prognosis and therapy. Continue reading “Proven biochemistry methods for new skin cancer therapy”
For almost three decades, Peter Holzer has been dealing with the question of how the bowels and the brain communicate with each other. The results are remarkable. Continue reading ““Never stop, always keep thinking things over””
What happens and where, when the body’s fat stores are activated? With the support of the Austrian Science Fund FWF, the biochemist Ruth Birner-Grünberger investigates the complex interaction of activation and regulation in fat breakdown, thus providing a basis for new therapeutic approaches for illnesses such as diabetes or arteriosclerosis. Continue reading “Many proteins must set to work so as to activate fat”
In a project funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF, the biochemist Markus Keller demonstrated successfully how important metabolic mechanisms were able to develop in cells four billion years ago. His research provides completely new insights into the origin of life. Continue reading “The Archean ocean as an ideal breeding ground for life”
The use of biochar in agriculture improves soil fertility, especially in tropical regions, and mitigates greenhouse gas emissions. A project funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF studied the positive impact of the “fertiliser of the future” on ecosystems and nutrient cycles. Continue reading “Biochar improves crop growth and climate”
Scientists have succeeded in making real-time measurements of changes in the concentration of the important messenger substance nitric oxide (NO) in human cells for the first time. The breakthrough, which has been published in the journal “Nature Communications”, was achieved by fusing two special proteins which then acted as a measurement probe. Continue reading “Messenger substance live on show”
The biochemist Martina Paumann-Page does research in Christchurch, New Zealand at the renowned Centre for Free Radical Research. The Erwin Schrödinger Fellowship offered the scientist a re-entry option into her scientific career. Continue reading “Kia Ora from Aotearoa – Land of the Long White Cloud”