Dr. David JohnsonInstitute of Ecology and EvolutionEAWAG"Pattern formation, phage predation, and the spread of antibiotic resistance" 11 December
Dr. Marco AlvesInstitut für Virologie und ImmunologieMCID"Decoding the mechanisms of virus infection using human brain organoids" 18 December
Congratulations! We congratulate Prof. Benjamin Towbin for being one of 26 new members of the EMBO young investigator program. The program supports excellent young group leaders in the early stages of their independent careers.
Pre-gelation staining expansion microscopy for visualisation of the Plasmodium liver stage In a collaboration between the Heussler and Ochsenreiter Lab at the ICB, Bianca Berger and Kodzo Atchou present a shortened pre-gelation staining expansion microscopy (PS-ExM) protocol, an improvement over the time-consuming ultrastructure ExM (U-ExM). The new protocol allows for the expansion of pre-stained samples, resulting in shorter incubation times and better epitope preservation. It was tested on the Plasmodium liver stage, showing a five-fold expansion for example of mitochondria.
Putative prefoldin complex subunit 5 of Plasmodium berghei is crucial for microtubule formation and parasite development in the mosquito In a collaborative study between the Heussler lab at the University of Bern and the Frischknecht lab at the University of Heidelberg, we focused on the development of Plasmodium sporozoites, the malaria-causing parasites, within the Anopheles mosquito. A particular gene, PbPCS5, was identified as essential for the parasite's development at various stages. By creating a parasite line lacking this gene, the study aimed to observe its effects during the mosquito stage. Findings revealed that although the absence of PbPCS5 did not significantly affect the initial formation of oocysts (a stage in the parasite's life cycle), it led to abnormal growth in sporozoites. These sporozoites were thinner, elongated, often nucleus-free, and exhibited fewer structural microtubules. This abnormal structure prevented the sporozoites from reaching the mosquito's salivary glands, a critical step for transmitting malaria to humans. Therefore, the study concludes that PbPCS5 is crucial for the proper development and life cycle progression of the malaria parasite during its mosquito stage.
Mechanical signals coordinate organ growth in C. elegans Cells sense when they are pushed and pulled, and they respond to this mechanical stress by changing their gene expression via the Hippo/YAP signaling pathway. In a new publication in Nature Communications, Klement Stojanovski et al. from the Towbin laboratory show how the YAP signaling is needed for the correct scaling of the gastro-intestinal tract of the nematode worm C. elegans. Misregulation of YAP is involved in numerous diseases from cancer to arthritis, and understanding its molecular function may reveal new disease mechanisms.
Welcome: Gaëlle Lentini The IZB is very happy to welcome Gaëlle Lentini as a new group leader. Gaëlle received a SNSF Ambizione grant and is strengthening the parasitology research at the IZB. She is developing a unique line of research in Switzerland by focusing on the cell biology of Trypanosoma cruzi, a human pathogen causing Chagas disease. She aims to understand the fundamental molecular mechanisms leading to T. cruzi egress from its host cell. We wish Gaëlle all the best in her new endeavor!
Characterization of two novel proteins involved in mitochondrial DNA anchoring in Trypanosoma brucei In the current study that was led by Simona Amodeo, Irina Bregy and Anneliese Hoffmann from the Ochsenreiter lab, we identify and characterize two novel components of a distinct complex involved mitochondrial genome segregation. As very often in science this was a team effort that also involved our collaborators Benoit Zuber from the Anatomy in Bern and Falk Butter from the IMB in Mainz, Germany.
