2025
Understanding how plants grow: The role of OPS/OPL genes
A recent "Journal of Experimental Botany" paper by the Truernit group (IMPB) sheds light on an Arabidopsis gene family crucial for overall plant growth.
Molecular features of substrate recognition in the mycobacterial Bpa-proteasome complex
A new article by the Weber-Ban group, in collaboration with the Glockshuber group and the cryoEM knowledge hub, reveals how the mycobacterial proteasome activator Bpa binds substrates via key ring-lining residues, shedding light on protein degradation in M. tuberculosis.
IL-1 protects from fatal candidiasis by inhibiting oxidative phosphorylation and hypoxia
Systemic candidiasis is a life-threatening infectious disease. A recent study by Horn et al. in the Kopf lab at ETH Zurich reveals different mechanisms by which the multi-functional cytokine IL-1 protects from Candida albicans overgrowth in the kidney and brain.
Julia Vorholt receives the 2025 Novonesis Biotechnology Prize
Julia Vorholt, Professor of Microbiology at the Department of Biology, has been awarded the 2025 Novonesis Biotechnology Prize by the Novo Nordisk Foundation.
Salmonella’s adaptability comes with evolutionary trade-offs
A recent "Nature Communications" paper by the Hardt (IMB) and Vorholt groups reveals how Salmonella's glpT gene acts as a double-edged sword: boosting replication in macrophages but hindering growth in the gut lumen during infection in mice.