Major depressive disorders are characterized by a significant health burden, including changes in appetite and body weight. Identifying biomarkers such as changes in brain function to treat depression is difficult due to the varying symptomatology of affected individuals. However, a research team - led by Prof. Dr. Nils Kroemer of the University Hospital Tübingen as well as the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the University of Bonn investigated whether conclusions can be drawn about the direction of appetite changes - increase or decrease - based on the functional architecture of the reward system in the brain. The results are now published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
Our own immune system can become the enemy when mechanisms that are actually protective get out of control. In ANCA-associated vasculitis, excessive inflammatory reactions lead to pulmonary hemorrhages that can be fatal if left untreated. Researchers at the University of Bonn, together with colleagues from Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland and England, have deciphered a mechanism in mice and patients that leads to the severe disease. The results are now published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.
Many tumor cells mist themselves with a protective perfume that disables the immune system. But a drug already approved for other purposes can apparently render this weapon harmless. This is shown in a study by the University of Bonn and the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, which has now appeared in the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer. The researchers now want to further optimize the compound. In the medium term, this could pave the way for new anti-cancer drugs.
When it comes to royalty, things are clear: The monarch's first child inherits the crown. Siblings born later must make do with a less glamorous profession. This is quite similar for some nerve cells in the brain. In their case, it is not the order in which they are born, but at least the time of their emergence that determines their further career. This is shown by a recent study by the University of Bonn. The results were obtained in mice; the extent to which they can be transferred to humans is therefore still uncertain. They have now been published in the journal eNeuro.
How effective is biodiversity conservation of European and African national parks? This seems to be strongly associated with societal and economic conditions. But even under the most favourable conditions, conservation efforts cannot completely halt emerging threats to biodiversity if conditions outside of the parks do not improve. This is the conclusion of a new study led by the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology (MPI EVA), and the University of Bonn, in collaboration with the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Leipzig University, the Friedrich Schiller University Jena and many other institutions. The study published in the journal Nature Sustainability highlights the urgent need for a better design of national park networks.
The recently published Shanghai Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) puts the University of Bonn among the four best universities in Germany. It has been placed 13th in the list of top universities in the EU and 76th in the world. The University of Excellence has thus moved up eight places on last year in a global comparison and five within the EU.
What are the researchers of the Clusters of Excellence at the University of Bonn actually working on? They provide an up-close look on August 22 at 8 p.m. in the Arkadenhof of the University Main Building. At the Excellence Slam, scientists from the clusters will present their research in short talks in a generally understandable and humorous way. At the end, the audience votes - and the most popular slam wins. The free event takes place one day after the finale of the Bonn Silent Film Festival and uses the festival's stage in the courtyard of the Baroque Palace. Please note: The event and the slams will be held in German.
Based on conservative calculations, every single euro that North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) provides to its universities as core funding generates €4.01 in value. This is the main finding of a study that Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Lambert T. Koch, Chairperson of the Rectors’ Conference in NRW, officially presented to Ina Brandes, its Minister of Culture and Science, earlier today.