Latest Max Planck Institute Stories
Gene mutations on the X chromosome lead to progressive hearing impairment Excessive noise is not the only thing that causes damage to hearing. In many cases, genetic factors are responsible for the loss of hearing at a young age. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics in Berlin together with colleagues from Nijmegen have discovered a previously unknown genetic cause of progressive hearing impairment: the disease is caused by mutations of the SMPX (small muscle protein)...
Technology developed with ESA funding and drawing on long-running research aboard the International Space Station is opening up a new way to keep hospital patients safe from infections.Using plasma "“ superheated, electrically charged gas "“ Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics director Gregor Morfill is developing ways to kill bacteria and viruses that can cause infections in hospitals."What we have with plasma is the possibility to supplement our own immune system," says Dr...
Max Planck scientists uncover surprising genetic linksThey were able to show for the first time that physiologically measurable changes can be observed in the brains of healthy carriers of this risk allele. These changes affect a transporter protein involved in the production of an important neuronal transmitter. Given that traditional drugs interact with similar transporter molecules, the researchers are pinning great hopes on this factor as the target structure of future antidepressant...
A plant's sugary offering betrays caterpillars to predatory antsTrichomes, hair-like projections on leaves, are part of a plant's defense against herbivores: they can be obstacles, traps, or reservoirs for toxic substances. The hairs of wild tobacco Nicotiana attenuata contain primarily acyl sugars, which are composed of the common sugar, sucrose, bound to branched chain aliphatic acids, compounds that give baby vomit its distinctive odor. Tiny, freshly hatched caterpillars consume these...
The combination of simple codes and Captchas, which are even more encrypted using a chaotic process, produces effective password protection The passwords of the future could become more secure and, at the same time, simpler to use. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems in Dresden have been inspired by the physics of critical phenomena in their attempts to significantly improve password protection. The researchers split a password into two sections. With...
Scientists assemble genes involved in regulating olfaction in the antennae of a mothInsects have a highly sensitive sense of smell. Extremely low concentrations of odor molecules in the air are sufficient to be detected by receptor neurons on their antennae. Specific proteins, so-called receptor proteins, expressed in these neurons recognize the odors. The odor molecules bind to the receptors and produce chemical and electrical signals that are processed in the insect brain and eventually...
Two species of gorillas live in central equatorial Africa. Divergence between the Western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) and Eastern gorillas (Gorilla beringei) began between 0.9 and 1.6 million years ago and now the two species live several hundred kilometers apart. An international team of researchers including Olaf Thalmann of the University of Turku in Finland and Linda Vigilant of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany found that the divergence of Western lowland...
(Ivanhoe Newswire) "“ Turns out our sensitivity to seeing in color is not only due to cone cells in the retina, but also through the thyroid gland by controlling which visual pigment is produced in the cones.Research conducted on mice and rats has revealed that the production of visual pigment present in mature cones is regulated by the thyroid hormone. The team of researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research in Frankfurt/M., along with colleagues at the University of...
The use of different environments by males and females in the parti-colored bat makes population estimation and thereby the conservation of the species more difficult The use of different resources by males and females exacerbates the estimation of population sizes. However, the monitoring of population sizes, particularly for rare and threatened species, is pivotal to quick and effective conservation action. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Radolfzell investigated...
During the evolution of plants of the mustard family a leucine producing enzyme mutated into an enzyme that protects plants against herbivoresPlants are continually exposed to herbivore attack. To defend themselves, they have developed sophisticated chemical defense mechanisms. Plants of the mustard family, such as thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana), produce glucosinolates (mustard oil glucosides) to protect themselves against herbivory. Scientists know many different kinds of these...
