The nuclear pore is responsible for regulating the transport of proteins from the cytoplasm into the cell nucleus and for ushering RNA out of it. It works like a molecular sieve that controls the entry and exit of…

Misfolded proteins are non-functional and cause cell damage. In order to prevent this, there is a whole arsenal of proteins – called chaperones – that assist with folding and carry out quality control. In the bacterium…

The blood vessels form a widely ramified supply system that passes through our body from head to toe. They serve as pathways for blood cells and transport oxygen as well as nutrients into each individual organ. In the…

The protein complex mTORC1 promotes muscle growth and is important for the self-cleaning process of the muscle cells. The role of mTORC1 in skeletal muscle fibers in response to nerve injury has so far not been studied in…

When someone is confronted with ‘foreign’ material, be it viruses, bacteria, fungi, but also donor organs following transplantation, immune cells called T cells come into action to inactivate and destroy the ”foreign”…

Each year, thousands of patients in Swiss hospitals become infected with dangerous pathogens that can hardly be controlled with antibiotics. The methicillin-resistant bacterium Staphylococcus aureus , MRSA for short, is…

Whether they are pathogens, deep-sea microbes or soil-dwelling organisms, in order to survive, microorganisms must be able to adapt rapidly to diverse changes in their environment, including nutrient depletion. Bacteria owe…

When infecting a host, pathogens not only need to evade the immune defense but also to survive diverse living conditions, such as the acidic conditions in the stomach or the salty intestinal environment. Gram negative…

When pathogens invade our body the immune system is put on alert. The body’s immune cells are recruited to the site of infection and an inflammatory reaction is initiated to rapidly eliminate the invaders. Some pathogens,…

The two major symptoms of cancer are muscle atrophy (loss of muscle mass) and anemia (reduced hemoglobin level), leading to weight loss, fatigue, lethargy and reduced physical performance. Moreover, both are also symptoms…