HZB Newsroom
- Fertilisation under the X-ray beamAfter the egg has been fertilized by a sperm, the surrounding egg coat tightens, mechanically preventing the entry of additional sperm and the ensuing death of the embryo. A team from the Karolinska Institutet has now gained this new insight through measurements at the X-ray light sources BESSY II, DLS and ESRF.
- The future of BESSYAt the end of February 2024, a team at HZB published an article in Synchrotron Radiation News (SRN). They describe the next development goals for the light source as well as the BESSY II+ upgrade programme and the successor source BESSY III.
- Focused ion beam technology: a single tool for a wide range of applicationsProcessing materials on the nanoscale, producing prototypes for microelectronics or analysing biological samples: The range of applications for finely focused ion beams is huge. Experts from the EU collaboration FIT4NANO have now reviewed the many options and developed a roadmap for the future. The article, published in “Applied Physics Review”, is aimed at students, users from industry and science as well as research policy makers.
- Boosting PET recycling with higher standards for laboratory experimentsMany enzymes promise to break down plastic. But what works well in the lab often fails on a large scale. Now a new study by Gert Weber, HZB, Uwe Bornscheuer, University of Greifswald, and Alain Marty, Chief Scientific Officer of Carbios, shows how raising the bar for laboratory experiments could help identify promising approaches more quickly. The team demonstrated the new standards on four newly discovered enzymes.
- Microplastics in soil: Tomography shows where the particles are build inIt really is a problem: Microplastics are everywhere. Now, an HZB and University Potsdam team developed a method that for the first time enables us to precisely localise microplastics in soil. The combined 3D tomographies by neutrons and X-rays show exactly the location of particles and structural changes that can affect water flows and soil properties.
- Quantitative analysis of cell organelles with artificial intelligenceX-ray microscopy (cryo-SXT) enables high-resolution insights into cells and cell organelles - in three dimensions. Until now, the 3D data sets have been analysed manually, which is very time-consuming. A team from Freie Universität Berlin has now developed a self-learning algorithm based on a convolutional neural network. In collaboration with experts in cell biology (FU Berlin) and X-ray microscopy at the Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin, this algorithm has now been used for the first time to analyse cell components in cryo-SXT data sets. It identified cell organelles and produced highly detailed, complex 3D images within a few minutes.
- How much cadmium is contained in cocoa beans?Cocoa beans can absorb toxic heavy metals such as cadmium from the soil. Some cultivation areas, especially in South America, are polluted with these heavy metals, in some cases considerably. In combining different X-ray fluorescence techniques, a team at BESSY II has now been able to non-invasively measure for the first time where cadmium accumulates exactly in cocoa beans: Mainly in the shell. Further investigations show that the processing of the cocoa beans can have a great influence on the concentration of heavy metals.
- High-energy X-rays leave a trace of destruction in bone collagenA team of medical researchers at Charité has analyzed damage by focused high energetic X-rays in bone samples from fish and mammals at BESSY II. With a combination of microscopy techniques, the scientists could document the destruction of collagen fibres induced by electrons emitted from the mineral crystals. X-ray methods might impact bone samples when measured for a long time they conclude.
- Neutron experiments reveal what maintains bones in good functionWhat keeps bones able to remodel themselves and stay healthy? A team from Charité Berlin has discovered clues to the key function of non-collagen protein compounds and how they help bone cells react to external load. The scientists used fish models to examine bone samples with and without bone cells to elucidate differences in microstructures and the incorporation of water. Using 3D neutron tomography at the Berlin research reactor BER II, they succeeded for the first time in precisely measuring the water diffusion across bone material - with a surprising result.
- New monochromator optics for tender X-raysUntil now, it has been extremely tedious to perform measurements with high sensitivity and high spatial resolution using X-ray light in the tender energy range of 1.5 - 5.0 keV. Yet this X-ray light is ideal for investigating energy materials such as batteries or catalysts, but also biological systems. A team from HZB has now solved this problem: The newly developed monochromator optics increase the photon flux in the tender energy range by a factor of 100 and thus enable highly precise measurements of nanostructured systems. The method was successfully tested for the first time on catalytically active nanoparticles and microchips.
- 40 years of research with synchrotron light in BerlinPress release _ Berlin, 14 September: For decades, science in Berlin has been an important driver of innovation and progress. Creative, talented people from all over the world come together here and develop new ideas from which we all benefit as a society. Many discoveries – from fundamental insights to marketable products – are made by doing research with synchrotron light. Researchers have had access to this intense light in Berlin for 40 years. It inspires many scientific disciplines and is an advantage for Germany.
- Calculating the "fingerprints" of molecules with artificial intelligenceWith conventional methods, it is extremely time-consuming to calculate the spectral fingerprint of larger molecules. But this is a prerequisite for correctly interpreting experimentally obtained data. Now, a team at HZB has achieved very good results in significantly less time using self-learning graphical neural networks.
- New discoveries into how the body stores zincZinc deficiency is a global health problem affecting many people and results in a weak immune system in adults and especially in children. This is a challenge for health systems and is quite evident in the Mexican population, for example. Seeking explanations, researchers in Mexico teamed up with international synchrotron experts and gained new insights from studying Drosophila fruit flies, which are known to be a decent model system for human zinc metabolism.
Thanks to beamtime at BESSY II and at the SLS (PSI), they were able to show that the zinc stores in Drosophila flies depend on the tryptophan content of their diet. - Magnetic nanoparticles in biological vehicles individually characterisedMagnetic nanostructures are promising tools for medical applications. Incorporated into biological structures, they can be steered via external magnetic fields inside the body to release drugs or to destroy cancer cells. However, until now, only average information on the magnetic properties of those nanoparticles could be obtained, thus limiting their successful implementations in therapies. Now a team at HZB conceived and tested a new method to assess the characteristic parameters of every single magnetic nanoparticle.
- User research at BESSY II: Unveiling the secrets of biofilmsMost bacteria have the ability to form communities, biofilms, that adhere to a wide variety of surfaces and are difficult to remove. This can lead to major problems, for example in hospitals or in the food industry. Now, an international team led by Hebrew University, Jerusalem, and the Technical University Dresden, has studied a model system for biofilms at the synchrotron radiation facilities BESSY II at HZB and the ESRF and found out what role the structures within the biofilm play in the distribution of nutrients and water.
- HZB coordinates European collaboration to develop active agents against CoronaX-ray structure analysis at BESSY II enables the systematic testing of many thousands of molecules that could inhibit the reproduction and virulence of SARS-CoV2 viruses. Now, a team at HZB with partners from Austria and the Czech Republic has set up the NECESSITY project to investigate more than 8000 compounds in a high-throughput procedure and develop active agents against COVID-19.
- Synchrotrons accelerate corona researchInformation by the German Committee Research with Synchrotron Radiation (KFS).
Synchrotron light sources were originally built to study particles. Today, they are even used in the fight against COVID-19. The projects are as diverse as the fields of the synchrotron users, who come from universities, research institutions and companies like BioNTech. - BESSY II: universal mechanism of regulation in plant cells discoveredIn pioneering work, a German-Japanese research team at BESSY II has been able to determine the 3D structure of a metalloprotein that plays an important role as a catalyst in all plant cells. This involves the DYW deaminase domain of what is referred to as the RNA editosome. The DYW domain alters messenger RNA nucleotides in chloroplasts and mitochondria and contains a zinc ion whose activity is controlled by a very unusual mechanism. The team has now been able to describe this mechanism in detail for the first time. Their study, published in Nature Catalysis, is considered a breakthrough in the field of plant molecular biology and has far-reaching implications for bioengineering.
- “The gain in insights for structural biology has continued for five decades”
Prof. Dr. Udo Heinemann works at the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine, where he has been researching in structural biology for 40 years. From 2008 to 2012, he was a member of the Advisory Board for the Protein Data Bank in Europe. In an interview, he speaks of the value added by the Protein Data Bank for research today, and why it is important that there are specialised beamlines for structural biology analysis in Berlin.
- X-ray lightsource at DESY identifies promising candidates for COVID drugsAt DESY's high-brilliance X-ray light source PETRA III, a team from more than 30 research institutions has identified several candidates for active substances against the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. They bind to an important protein of the virus and could thus be the basis for a drug against Covid-19. The MX team from HZB examined part of the measurement data with special analysis algorithms in order to identify suitable active substances. The study has now been published in the renowned journal Science.
- Tomography brings insights into the early evolution of bonesModern biology considers bone cells (osteocytes) as essential for bone development and health. However, when bone initially evolved some 400-million years ago, it did not contain bone cells. So why did bone cells evolve? Why was it so advantageous that most subsequent vertebrates have bone cells? A joint team of palaeontologists at Berlin’s natural history museum has now for the first time analysed these structures in 400 million-year-old fossils of marine life at unprecedentedly high resolution and in 3D. To be able to view these structures, tomography experts at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) examined the samples under the focussed ion beam of a scanning electron microscope to calculate 3D images from the data, achieving resolutions in the nanometre range using technology that was initially developed to study battery corrosion.
- Dental materials science: HZB is part of a research project funded by DFGHow can dental restorations – such as fillings and crowns – be made to last longer? A new research group centered at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and Technische Universität (TU) Berlin plans to address this topic by utilizing approaches from both materials science and dentistry. The interdisciplinary ‘InterDent’ research group is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG). It will receive an initial funding of €2.1 million Euro over three years. Partners also include the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) and the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces (MPI-KG).
- Nanopatterns of proteins detected by cryo-electron microscopyA team from Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) used cryo electron microscopy to detect regular, two-dimensional structures in the form of Pascal triangles in a shock frozen protein material. The samples have been synthesized by a Chinese research group. The method of cryo electron microscopy has the potential for new insights into energy materials as well.
- New substance library to accelerate the search for active compoundsIn order to accelerate the systematic development of drugs, the MX team at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) and the Drug Design Group at the University of Marburg have established a new substance library. It consists of 1103 organic molecules that could be used as building blocks for new drugs. The MX team has now validated this library in collaboration with the FragMAX group at MAX IV. The substance library of the HZB is available for research worldwide and also plays a role in the search for substances active against SARS-CoV-2.
- User research at BESSY II: Insights into the visual perception of plantsPlants use light not only for photosynthesis. Although the plant cell does not have eyes, it can still perceive light and thus its environment. Phytochromes, certain turquoise proteins, play the central role in this process. How exactly they function is still unclear. Now a team led by plant physiologist Jon Hughes (Justus Liebig University Gießen) has been able to decipher the three-dimensional architecture of various plant phytochrome molecules at BESSY II. Their results demonstrate how light alters the structure of the phytochrome so that the cell transmits a signal to control the development of the plant accordingly.
- Corona research: Consortium of Berlin research and industry seeks active ingredients
The Berlin biotech company Molox GmbH and a team at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) have initiated a consortium of regional research groups and BASF. Together, they want to identify a starting point for the development of a potential active substance against the new coronavirus. Targets of potential inhibitors will be SARS-CoV2 proteins that promote the spread or infectivity of the viruses. Scientists from Freie Universität Berlin are also involved in the research work.
- Corona research at BESSY II: Two days of measuring operation to find the right keyThe Berlin Synchrotron Source BESSY II of the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) will resume operation for two days. Scientists intend to use the intense X-ray radiation from BESSY II to search for active substances against the corona virus SARS-CoV2. Almost two hundred samples from an important protein of the virus will be examined in the coming hours. The samples are saturated with different molecules that could be used as components of active substances. The analyses will show whether certain molecules can dock particularly well to the protein molecule and thus hinder the reproduction of the virus. These molecules are best candidates as components of a future drug.
- Coronavirus SARS-CoV2: BESSY II data accelerate drug developmentA coronavirus is keeping the world in suspense. SARS-CoV-2 is highly infectious and can cause severe pneumonia with respiratory distress (COVID-19). Scientists are doing research in order to prevent the viruses from multiplying. A team from the University of Lübeck and from Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) has now found a promising approach. Using the high-intensity X-ray light from the Berlin synchrotron source BESSY II, they have decoded the three-dimensional architecture of the main protease of SARS-CoV-2. This protein is involved in the reproduction of the virus. Analysing its 3D architecture allows the systematic development of drugs which inhibit the reproduction of the virus.
- 20 percent more patients were treated with proton therapy in 2019
For more than 20 years, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) have jointly offered the irradiation of eye tumors with protons. In 2019, more patients were treated in Berlin-Wannsee than ever before. 276 patients - 20 percent more than in the previous year - underwent proton therapy. The treatment is specialized in choroidal melanomas of the eye. The proton accelerator at HZB is the only treatment facility for this disease in Germany.
- New detector accelerates protein crystallography
Last week a new detector was installed at one of the three MX beamlines at HZB. Compared to the old detector the new one is better, faster and more sensitive. It allows to acquire complete data sets of complex proteins within a very short time.
- X-ray microscopy at BESSY II: Nanoparticles can change cellsNanoparticles easily enter into cells. New insights about how they are distributed and what they do there are shown for the first time by high-resolution 3D microscopy images from the lightsources BESSY II and ALBA. For example, certain nanoparticles accumulate preferentially in certain organelles of the cell. This can increase the energy costs in the cell. "The cell looks like it has just run a marathon, apparently, the cell requires energy to absorb such nanoparticles" says lead author James McNally.
- Watching complex molecules at workA new method of infrared spectroscopy developed at BESSY II makes single-measurement observation and analysis of very fast as well as irreversible reaction mechanisms in molecules feasible for the first time. Previously, thousands of such reactions have had to be run and measured for this purpose. The research team has now used the new device to investigate how rhodopsin molecules change after activation by light – a process that is the basis of how we see.
- Cancer research at BESSY II: Binding Mechanisms of Therapeutic Substances DecipheredIn tumor cells, the DNA is altered in comparison to normal body cells. How such changes can be prevented or inhibited is an exciting field of research with great relevance for the development of cancer treatments. An interdisciplinary team has now analysed the possible binding mechanisms in certain therapeutic substances from the tetrazole hydrazide group using protein crystallography at BESSY II.
- X-ray microscopy at BESSY II reveals how antimalaria-drugs might workMalaria is one of the most threatening infectious diseases in the world. An international team has now been able to investigate malaria pathogens in red blood cells in vivo using the BESSY II X-ray microscope and the ALBA and ESRF synchrotron sources. The scientists reveal the mechanisms used by active substances to attack the pathogen. This could contribute to improve treatment strategies and drug design.
- Faster than ever - neutron tomography detects water uptake by rootsA team of researchers from Potsdam, Berlin and Grenoble was able to visualize the transport of water in soil as well as through roots of lupine plants using ultrafast 3D neutron imaging. The high-speed neutron tomography developed at HZB generates a complete 3D image every 1.5 seconds and is thus seven times faster than before. The method facilitates a better understanding of water and nutrient uptake of crop plants. The measurements were performed at the neutron source of the Laue Langevin Institute (ILL) in Grenoble, France. The method can also be applied to investigate transport processes in various porous material systems.
- New sample holder for protein crystallographyAn HZB research team has developed a novel sample holder that considerably facilitates the preparation of protein crystals for structural analysis. A short video by the team shows how proteins in solution can be crystallised directly onto the new sample holders themselves, then analysed using the MX beamlines at BESSY II. A patent has already been granted and a manufacturer found.
- FOCUS TOPIC: Using BESSY II to combat plastic wastePlastics are excellent materials: extremely versatile and almost eternally durable. But this is also exactly the problem, because after only about 100 years of producing plastics, plastic particles are now found everywhere – in groundwater, in the oceans, in the air, and in the food chain.
- Oldest completely preserved lily discoveredAlready 115 million years ago, tropical flowering plants were apparently very diverse and showed all typical characteristics. This is the conclusion of an international team of researchers led by Clément Coiffard, Museum für Naturkunde Berlin. The team reported in the renowned journal Nature Plants on the oldest completely preserved lily, Cratolirion bognerianum, which was discovered at a site in present-day Brazil. With the help of 3D computer tomography at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, details on the back of the fossilised plant could also be analysed. The results raise new questions about the role of the tropics in the development of past and present ecosystems.
- "Molecular scissors" for plastic wasteA research team from the University of Greifswald and Helmholtz-Zentrum-Berlin (HZB) has solved the molecular structure of the important enzyme MHETase at BESSY II. MHETase was discovered in bacteria and together with a second enzyme - PETase - is able to break down the widely used plastic PET into its basic building blocks. This 3D structure already allowed the researchers to produce a MHETase variant with optimized activity in order to use it, together with PETase, for a sustainable recycling of PET. The results have been published in the research journal Nature Communications.
- Outstanding master thesis on the structure and function of a bacterial enzyme honouredOn December 17, 2018, Lena Graß, a PhD student from the Structural Biochemistry Group at Freie Universität Berlin, was awarded the Master Prize of the Gesellschaft für Biochemie und Molekularbiologie e.V. (Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology) (GBM). For her master thesis at Freie Universität Berlin and the MX beamlines of BESSY II, she deciphered the structure and function of a so-called RNA helicase.
- ERC Synergy grant with HZB participationNovel X-ray microscope to produce microstructural images in situ and in vivo
- Neutron tomography: Insights into the interior of teeth, root balls, batteries, and fuel cellsA team of researchers at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) and European Spallation Source (ESS) has now published a comprehensive overview of neutron-based imaging processes in the renowned journal Materials Today (impact factor 21.6). The authors report on the latest developments in neutron tomography, illustrating the possible applications using examples of this non-destructive method. Neutron tomography has facilitated breakthroughs in so diverse areas such as art history, battery research, dentistry, energy materials, industrial research, magnetism, palaeobiology and plant physiology.
- Novel soft X-ray spectrometer enables individual steps of photosynthetic water oxidation to be observedHZB scientists have developed a novel spectrometer at BESSY II that enables researchers to obtain detailed insights about catalytic processes in metalloenzymes. Their international collaboration was successful in delineating individual steps in the catalytic oxidation of water to dioxygen in photosystem II. They published their study in the journal Structural Dynamics. Photosystem II is a part of the of photosynthetic electron transport chain, a process that is responsible for the conversion of solar energy to chemical energy in plants, algae and cyanobacteria.
- User research at BER II: Lupin roots observed in the act of catching water from soil – so far too quick for 3D viewsLupins not only produce colourful blossoms but also nutritious beans rich in proteins. Just how these plants draw water approaching their roots in soil has now for the first time been observed in three dimensions by a University of Potsdam team at the HZB-BER II neutron source in Berlin. To accomplish this, they worked with the HZB imaging group to improve the temporal resolution of neutron tomography more than onehundred-fold so that a detailed 3D image was generated every ten seconds. This ultrafast neutron tomography is generally suitable as well for analyses of dynamic processes in porous materials.
- HZB and Freie Universität Berlin establish the joint research group “X-Ray Microscopy” for studying complex cellular processesIn May this year, the joint research group “X-Ray Microscopy” was launched, combining the expertise of teams led by Prof. Dr. Gerd Schneider (Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin) and Prof. Dr. Helge Ewers (Freie Universität Berlin). While Ewers’ group contributes its experience in the field of optical microscopy and biological research, the HZB workgroup is responsible for X-ray microscopy at the synchrotron source BESSY II. The two methods help researchers to gain a detailed insight into the processes taking place inside cells.
- X-Ray microscopy: HZB-TXM is back in operationThe X-ray microscope (HZB-TXM) is back in operation. The TXM offers significantly better quality images compared to the former X-ray microscopy station.
- HZB and Freie Universität Berlin are establishing the joint research group “Macromolecular Crystallography”For eight years, HZB’s “Macromolecular Crystallography” workgroup has been successfully cooperating with the “Structural Biochemistry” research group headed by Prof. Markus Wahl at the Freie Universität Berlin. They are about to intensify this cooperation. The two institutes are establishing a joint research group dedicated to studying the biochemistry of genetic information processing. This research group benefits in particular from access to the three MX beamlines, where it can study protein crystals using the synchrotron light from BESSY II.
- Advancing methodology at BESSY II: Automated evaluation speeds up the search for new active substanceThe macromolecular crystallography (MX) beamlines at the BESSY II X-ray source are specially designed to highly automated structural analyses of protein crystals. With up to now more than 2000 solved structures of protein molecules, these beamlines are by far the most productive ones in Germany and are in vigorous demand by groups from either an academic and industrial research area. Now teams from HZB and Philipps-Universität Marburg in Germany have automated the evaluation of data records as well. The newly developed expert system identifies small molecule fragments bound to proteins in the raw X-ray diffraction data. These fragments represent suitable starting points for the development of an active substance. Using a series of 364 samples, the collaborating partners demonstrated that the expert system works reliably and can speed up the search for a suitable active agents.
- User research at BESSY II: How water moves glassIn the realm of plants, capillary forces are a widely observed impetus for actuation. They are the physical basis for the expansion of porous materials during uptake of fluid. Such materials include the cones of conifers with their readily observable movement during drying or wetting. Scientists at the Chair of Biogenic Polymers of the Technical University Munich, located at the Science Center Straubing, have succeeded in retaining this plant-derived movement when the respective plant has been replaced by an artificial petrification process. Elaborate analyses at the synchrotron source BESSY II in Berlin showed that the internal structure of the pine cone was retained. Thereby, they laid the foundations for a new generation of sensoric materials.
- User research at BESSY II: nanostructures in human teeth
Dentin is one of the most durable biological materials in the human body. Researchers from Charité–Universitätsmedizin Berlin were able to show that the reason for this can be traced to its nanostructures and specifically to the interactions between the organic and inorganic components. Measurements performed at BESSYII, the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin's synchrotron radiation source, showed that it is the mechanical coupling between the collagen protein fibers and mineral nanoparticles which renders dentin capable of withstanding extreme forces. Results from this research have been recently published in the journal Chemistry of Materials. - Common platform for macromolecular crystallography at European synchrotronsResearchers use high-intensity X-ray light from synchrotron radiation sources to decipher the structures of biological molecules and thus the blueprints of life. A cooperation agreement has been effective since 2012 to establish common software standards at several European sources. Its aim: The eight synchrotrons involved want to create user-friendly, standardised conditions at the 30 experimental stations for macromolecular crystallography, which will greatly facilitate the work of research groups. In the new project “MXCuBE3”, the existing software platform is being adapted to include the latest developments in technology.
- Gemeinsames Treffen der Strukturbiologen in Berlin: der 6. Joint-MX-Day am 23. September 2015 am HZBDie Hauptstadt hat sich in den letzten Jahren zu einem Hotspot der Strukturbiologie in Deutschland entwickelt. Entscheidend dazu beigetragen hat das hohe Maß an Kooperation zwischen außeruniversitären Forschungseinrichtungen und Universitäten. Aber auch Wissenschaft und Industrie arbeiten in der Strukturbiologie sehr eng zusammen. Am 23. September 2015 findet der 6. Joint-MX-Day statt, bei dem sich Forscher über neue Methoden, Ansätze und Erkenntnisse in der Strukturbiologie austauschen werden.
- Gerd Schneider receives a professorship for "X-ray microscopy" at Humboldt-Universität zu BerlinOn 29 April 2015, Gerd Schneider (HZB) accepted the call to a W2-S “X-ray microscopy” professorship at the Department of Physics of Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. The professorship is associated with heading the workgroup “X-ray microscopy” at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie. With his group, the internationally recognised expert is developing new methods and applications for X-ray microscopy, which delivers crucial information for many scientific disciplines – from material and energy research to the life sciences.
- Strong teeth: Nanostructures under stress make teeth crack resistantHuman teeth have to serve for a lifetime, despite being subjected to huge forces. But the high failure resistance of dentin in teeth is not fully understood. An interdisciplinary team led by scientists of Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin has now analyzed the complex structure of dentin. At the synchrotron sources BESSY II at HZB, Berlin, Germany, and the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility ESRF, Grenoble, France, they could reveal that the mineral particles are precompressed. The internal stress works against crack propagation and increases resistance of the biostructure.
- Neutrons and X-rays show how to prepare durable tooth cementThere are many ways to mix cements for tooth fillings, but it can be difficult to tell which way works best. Now, a team of scientists from Copenhagen, Denmark, has come up with an answer: They used neutron imaging and x-ray-microtomography at HZB to analyze fillings with glass ionomere cements, prepared by different methods. Their results, now published in Scientific Reports, demonstrate how much the order of mixing steps matters to obtain a nearly homogenous filling without large liquid-filled pores which reduce stability.
- 2500 Augentumor-Patienten von der Charité mit Protonen am Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin bestrahltAm Freitag, dem 21. November 2014, wurde um 16:10 Uhr die Bestrahlungsserie der 2500. Protonentherapiepatientin, am Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin erfolgreich abgeschlossen. Seit 1998 behandelt die Augenklinik der Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Benjamin Franklin, in Kooperation mit der dortigen Klinik für Radioonkologie und Strahlentherapie Augentumore, insbesondere Aderhautmelanome, mit dem Protonenstrahl des Helmholtz-Zentrums Berlin für Materialien und Energie am Campus Lise-Meitner in Berlin Wannsee.
- “Multi-spectra glasses” for scanning electron microscopyReflection zone plates produced by HZB enable lighter elements in material samples to be precisely detected using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) by providing high resolution in the range of 50-1120 eV.
- Proteins: New class of materials discoveredGerman-Chinese research team gleans seminal insights into protein crystalline frameworks at HZB's BESSY II
- GDCh zeichnet Sebastian Seiffert ausProf. Dr. Sebastian Seiffert erhält eine weitere Auszeichnung für seine Forschungsarbeit. Die Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker (GDCh) hat mitgeteilt, dass Seiffert den Preis für Nachwuchswissenschaftler auf dem Gebiet der Makromolekularen Chemie erhalten wird. Der Preis wird ihm im Rahmen der Konferenz "Polymers and Energy" überreicht, die vom 14. bis 16. September in Jena stattfindet.
- “Muscled skin”: Simple formulas describe complex behaviorsHZB researchers help chemists understand polymeric "biomimetic" materials' mechanical properties
- Sharper imaging using X-raysHZB team develops three-dimensional volume diffraction optics for X-rays
- A new concept for the treatment of cancerA team of researchers from five Swedish universities has identified a new way to treat cancer. They present their concept in the journal „Nature“. It is based on inhibiting a specific enzyme called MTH1. Cancer cells, unlike normal cells, need MTH1 to survive. Without this enzyme, oxidized nucleotides are incorporated into DNA, resulting in lethal DNA double-strand breaks in the cancer cells. The research group at Stockholm University has determined the structure of MTH1 based on diffraction measurements at HZB´s MX-beamline at BESSY II. These detailed structural studies are important for the development of efficient inhibitors targeting MTH1.
- Kristalle in Wissenschaft und Technik: Ergebnisse auf der 22. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Kristallographie in BerlinDie Kristallographie hat enorm zum Fortschritt des 20. und 21. Jahrhundert beigetragen und ein grundlegendes Verständnis von Prozessen in vielen Lebensbereichen ermöglicht. Die Vielfalt der interdisziplinären Wissenschaft zu Struktur und Eigenschaften von Kristallen, ihrer Synthese und Anwendungsmöglichkeiten wird vom 17. bis 20. März 2014 bei der 22. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Kristallographie (DGK) in Berlin präsentiert.
- Humboldt Research Award brings Stephen P. Cramer to BerlinThe renowned synchrotron spectroscopy expert Professor Stephen P. Cramer has received a Humboldt Research Award and may now spend up to one year cooperating closely with a team at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) and Freie Universität Berlin. Cramer was nominated by Professor Emad Aziz, who heads a Joint Lab for “Ultrafast Dynamics in Solution and at Interfaces” at HZB and Freie Universität. Cramer is Advanced Light Source Professor at University of California, Davis, and at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
- Blocking the active site of thiolaseScientists at the University of Oulu, Finland, and at the HZB break new ground for drug discovery research in the fight against sleeping sickness
- Festsymposium zur 1000. Proteinstruktur an BESSY IIIm Juli 2013 wurde die 1000. Proteinstruktur veröffentlicht, die auf bei BESSY II gemessenen Daten beruht. Aus diesem Anlass lädt das HZB am Mittwoch, den 16.10.2013, zu einem Festsymposium ein.
- Göttingen scientists use BESSY II to decode basic mechanism underlying biochemical reactionsEnzymes are life’s molecular catalysts and figure prominently in cellular metabolism. It has been speculated that in the course of a biochemical reaction enzymes physically bend their substrates to split them. Now for the first time ever, scientists at the Göttingen Center for Molecular Biosciences (GZMB) have successfully used BESSY II's MX beamline to unequivocally confirm this hypothesis. The results from this study have been published in the renowned scientific journal Nature Chemistry.
- Better insight into molecular interactionsHow exactly atoms and molecules in biochemical solutions or at solid-liquid interfaces do interact, is a question of great importance. Answers will provide insights at processes in catalysts, smart functional materials and even physiological processes in the body, which are essential for health. Until now, scientists could have a look at these interactions by methods of spectroscopy, but it was hard to distinguish the many different interactions, which take place simultaneously.
- International Conference in Neutron Scattering: HZB-contributions awardedMore than 800 participants had gathered for the International Conference in Neutron Scattering, held during 8-12 July 2013 in Edinburgh, to discuss advances in neutron research and the advancement of the neutron scattering instruments and techniques. A committee selected sixteen outstanding posters from the 650 poster presentations, two of these from HZB scientists.
- 1000th protein structure decoded at BESSY IIIn July of this year, the 1000th protein structure based on measurements obtained at BESSY II was published. The molecule in question belongs to a class of proteins called sirtuins, which are involved in aging, stress, and metabolic processes within the human organism. Bayreuth University’s Prof. Clemens Steegborn and his team uncovered a clever mechanism used by active substances to inhibit sirtuin activity. The results have been published in the renowned scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, and could potentially point the way to new cancer therapies.
- Discovery of how a key enzyme of the spliceosome exerts its controlling functionTo sustain life, processes in biological cells have to be strictly controlled both in time and in space. By using the MX-Beamline of synchrotron radiation source BESSY II research workers at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen and the Free University of Berlin have elucidated a previously unknown mechanism that regulates one of the essential processes accompanying gene expression in higher organisms. In humans, errors in this control mechanism can lead to blindness. This discovery has been published in the renowned scientific journal Science (23th may 2013).
- Humboldt Fellow new addition to Aziz teamStarting June 1st, Dr. Tristan Petit will be joining Prof. Dr. Emad Flear Aziz’ team for a two-year postdoc. His Humboldt Foundation Fellowship for Postdoctoral Researchers gave Petit the option to choose his German scientific host. Ultimately, he decided on the Joint Ultrafast Dynamics Lab in Solutions and at Interfaces (JULiq) that was set up by Aziz. Says Petit: “I really wanted to be on Aziz’ team as they have a lot of collective expertise with spectroscopy in water.”
- Proteinstrukturen besser erforschenFeierlich eingeweiht: Der neue Pilatus-Detektor für die Kristallographie ist nun einsatzbereit
- Water fluctuations mediate lock-and-key fitWithout water, life as we know, it would not exist. Nearly every biological binding process that takes place within a cell requires the presence of an aqueous environment. Here, tiny molecules called ligands fit like "keys" into their matching "locks" - docking sites on larger protein molecules. This in turn activates signals or leads to the production of some other substance by the cell. But what was previously unclear, was the part water plays in all this. Is water merely a passive transport medium or does it perform other, more active jobs as well? Now, HZB's own Prof. Dr. Joachim Dzubiella and a team of physicists have looked for answers to this question using a computer simulated model system. In the process, they discovered that water is capable of actively influencing the docking speed of the ligand through subtle interactions with other molecules' unique geometry and surface topography. Their findings could become important in drug delivery.
- Mit neuem Detektor kleinsten Biomarkern auf der SpurPTB installiert vakuumkompatiblen ortsempfindlichen Röntgendetektor am Elektronenspeicherring BESSY II. Forscher können damit die Größe kontrastarmer Nanoobjekte bestimmen.
- MX-Posterprize to Bartosz Sekula, LodzThe prize for the best poster in the field of macromolecular crystallography was awarded to
Bartosz Sekula from the University of Lodz (Poland). The poster committee unanimously selected the poster titled "Complexes of equine serum albumin with ligands" as this year's best poster in MX. - Rainforest mushrooms as weather makersWhereas in urban areas, soot or dust particles often double as condensation nuclei, in rain-forests, it is mainly organic evaporations from plants, which periodically trigger fog or cloud formation. Now, at HZB’s BESSY II, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry scientists have shown that inorganic salts also play a role in the process. It appears that tiny potas-sium salt particles make up the core of cloud condensation nuclei in the rainforest. These kinds of salts are evaporated by mushrooms and plants as a way of influencing the number of condensation nuclei and, by extension, affecting cloud formation and precipitation over the rainforest.
- Festkolloquium anlässlich des 2000. Patienten bei der AugentumortherapieDie Protonentherapie von Augentumoren wird in Deutschland nur vom Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin gemeinsam mit der Charité Berlin angeboten, vor kurzem wurde der 2.000. Patient behandelt. Bei ihrem Grußwort auf dem Festkolloquium am 11. Oktober 2012 würdigte Cornelia Yzer, Berlins neue Senatorin für Wirtschaft, Technologie und Forschung, die erfolgreiche Kooperation zwischen HZB und Charité. Diese Kooperation ist nun unbefristet verlängert, sagte Yzer. Damit werden auch in Zukunft Patientinnen und Patienten von dieser Behandlung profitieren können, die in vielen Fällen die Sehkraft des Auges erhält.
- Neues Helmholtz Virtuelles Institut feierlich eröffnet
Mit einem Festakt an der Freien Universität Berlin wurde am Montag, dem 19. Dezember, ein neues Helmholtz Virtuelles Institut (HVI) eröffnet, an dem neben dem federführenden Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht in Teltow (HZG) und der Freien Universität Berlin auch das Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) einer der Kernpartner ist.
- Shedding Light on Luminescence - Scientists at HZB reveal the structure of a designer proteinFluorescent proteins are important investigative tools in the biosciences: Coupled to other proteins, they help us to study the processes of life inside cells and organisms at the molecular level. Fluorescent proteins are made to light up at specific target sites or to become dark again where necessary. In other words, they are switched on and off like light bulbs. Now, for the first time, at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) scientists have studied the structural characteristics involved in fluorescence on one single protein crystal when switched on and when switched off. Their results are published in Nature Biotechnology (doi:10.1038/nbt.1952).
- 2. Joint Berlin MX Day
Die in Berlin auf dem Gebiet der Strukturbiologie forschenden Wissenschaftler betreiben seit einem Jahr gemeinsam das Joint Berlin MX Laboratory. Am 17. August findet der zweite gemeinsame Workshop statt. Gastgeber ist diesmal das Max-Delbrück-Centrum in Berlin-Buch. Wer noch teilnehmen möchte, kann sich gern noch anmelden - per email an Prof. Dr. Udo Heinemann: heinemann@mdc-berlin.de
- Flüssigkeiten im Synchrotron: Mit weicher Röntgenstrahlung der Funktion von Materialien auf der SpurDer Karl-Scheel-Preis 2011 der Physikalischen Gesellschaft zu Berlin geht an Prof. Dr. Emad Flear Azizvon der Freien Universität Berlin und dem Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie
- Kampf gegen Antibiotika-Resistenzen - Wissenschaftler enttarnen ResistenzproteinWissenschaftler des Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin haben mit der Synchrotronstrahlungsquelle BESSY II an der Strukturaufklärung eines Proteins mitgewirkt, das für Antibiotikaresistenzen verantwortlich ist: Mit ihrer Unterstützung ist es Forschern der Universität Greifswald gelungen, die Struktur des Proteins Monooxygenase TetX zu entschlüsseln, das Bakterien eine Resistenz gegen Tetracyclin-Antibiotika vermittelt. Damit wurde erstmals ein Schlüssel zum Verständnis eines Resistenzmechanismus gefunden, noch bevor die klinische Anwendung eines Antibiotikums wirkungslos wird. Ein entsprechender Artikel wurde jetzt in der wissenschaftlichen Fachzeitschrift FEBS Letters veröffentlicht.
- Von 1 auf 500… - 500ste Protein-Struktur an BESSY II entschlüsseltHaare, Haut, Blutkreislauf und Nervensystem – alles wird von winzigen biologischen Bausteinen gesteuert. Wer nach diesen kleinsten Bausteinen des Lebens forscht, landet automatisch bei ihnen: den Proteinen. Um diese Grundbausteine des Lebens und die Vorgänge, die sie bewirken, besser zu verstehen, archivieren Wissenschaftler in aller Welt ihre Erkenntnisse über Proteine in einer gemeinsamen Datenbank. Die HZB-Forschungsgruppe Makromolekulare Kristallografie (MX) stellt Nutzern am BESSY II die Technik zur Verfügung, mit der sie Protein-Strukturen entschlüsseln können. Vor kurzem wurde die bereits 500ste Struktur an diesen MX-Strahlrohren des HZB von Wissenschaftlern der Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Berlin entschlüsselt.
- Fastest movie in the world recordedScientists develop a method to film nanostructures
- New microscope reveals ultrastructure of cellsHZB researchers can take images of small cellular components in their natural environment – while the cell remains intact
- LiXEdrom: Innovative measuring chamber for X-ray study of liquid jetsUntil now, the only way to study liquids by soft X-ray emission spectroscopy (XES) has been through a membrane window. Now, researchers of Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin have carried out an XES study of a free micro-liquid jet on the synchrotron.
- Katalase und Methämoglobin: so ähnlich und doch verschiedenWichtige physiologische Prozesse beim Fettabbau und Sauerstofftransport aufgeklärt
- Kristallisationspunkt für NachwuchswissenschaftlerWorkshop zur synchrotron-basierten biologischen Strukturforschung am HZB in Adlershof
- Wie schnell trinkt die Tomate?Wissenschaftlern am Berliner Hahn-Meitner-Institut ist es erstmals gelungen, in deutlichen Bildern zu beobachten, wie schnell eine Pflanze Wasser aufnimmt. In einer Reihe von Aufnahmen, die einen Tomatensetzling zeigen, kann man genau verfolgen, wie das Wasser im Stiel aufsteigt. Dazu haben die Wissenschaftler dem Setzling ab einem bestimmten Zeitpunkt nur noch so genanntes schweres Wasser gegeben, das sich in den Bildern markant vom gewöhnlichen Wasser abhebt. Der Kontrast entsteht beim Durchleuchten der Pflanze mit Neutronen, die auf beide Wasserarten verschieden reagieren.
- Muster im Lebendigen lesen: Erwin Schrödinger Preis 2003 für Dr. Martin Falcke
Einer deutsch-amerikanischen Wissenschaftlergruppe ist es gelungen, durch Analyse von Mustern, die von der Kalziumkonzentration in lebenden Zellen gebildet werden, die Funktionsweise von Zellorganellen zu verstehen. Für diese grundlegenden Erkenntnisse erhielten der theoretische Physiker Martin Falcke vom Berliner Hahn-Meitner-Institut und die beiden Biologen Patricia Camacho und James D. Lechleiter von der University of Texas in San Antonio den Erwin-Schrödinger-Preis 2003, den der Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft für herausragende interdisziplinäre Forschung vergibt. Die Hermann von Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft Deutscher Forschungszentren hat die Preisträger vorgeschlagen und wird die Auszeichnungen auf ihrer Jahrestagung am 16. Oktober in Hamburg überreichen.
- Verkehrsstau in der Nervenzelle vorausgesagt
Die Nervenzellen unseres Körpers sind von einem dichten Netz von Wegen durchzogen, auf denen winzige biologische Transporter kleine mit lebenswichtigen Molekülen gefüllte Pakete transportieren. In der Abteilung Theorie des Berliner Hahn-Meitner-Instituts studieren Physiker anhand einfacher mathematischer Modelle die Eigenschaften des Straßenverkehrs in der Zelle. In einem Artikel, der kürzlich in der Zeitschrift Physical Review Letters erschienen ist, zeigen sie, dass es auf den Wegen in der Zelle zu einem Stau kommen kann, der stark demjenigen ähnelt, den wir von der Autobahn kennen.
- Neutronen verraten Wasserstoff in Eiweißen
Mit immer aufwendigeren Methoden wollen Forscher die feinsten Strukturen auch der lebenden Materie erkunden. So nutzen sie Synchrotronstrahlung und Neutronen, um die atomare Architektur von Proteinen zu enträtseln. Proteine (Eiweiße) sind organische Riesenmoleküle, die aus kompliziert gebauten und phantasievoll gefalteten Ketten Tausender Atome bestehen. Von der Aufklärung ihrer Strukturen auf atomarer Ebene versprechen sich die Wissenschaftler ein tieferes Verständnis der Funktion der an nahezu allen Lebensvorgängen beteiligten Proteine.