Press Releases

Cancer can develop when genes get out of control. A feedback mechanism to prevent just that is reported by scientists from the Biozentrum of the University of Würzburg in “Molecular Cell”.

Over the coming months, all students in Würzburg will be receiving new ID cards. The new card is multifunctional and forgery-proof thanks to its modern encryption technology. The project has three sponsors.

People who feel they just do not get enough calls should perhaps take a closer look at their phone number. If the string of digits, written as an SMS, would produce a word with an unpleasant connotation, potential callers may feel ill at ease dialing it - even if they are completely unaware of its literal meaning.

Asthma, diabetes, rheumatism: Such diseases can arise when the immune system does not work properly. Researchers from the Universities of Würzburg and Mainz have discovered new findings about the regulation of the immune defense.

Würzburg zoologists describe a remarkable partnership in the scientific journal "Biology Letters": Tropical bats interact with carnivorous pitcher plants – for mutual benefit.

The news caused great excitement in the laboratories of chemist Holger Braunschweig and physicist Laurens Molenkamp: The two professors of the University of Würzburg have each been awarded 2.5 million euros in funds for their respective research by the European Research Council.

Plastics-based electronics are becoming more and more prevalent in everyday life. Yet, the fundamental processes behind them have only partly been understood to date. Now, physicists from the University of Würzburg have succeeded in taking an important step towards understanding the complex properties of these components.

In the future, tiny antennas made of metal with the ability to capture the sunlight might lead to a more efficient photovoltaic power generation. Physicists of the University of Würzburg have now produced such antennas from gold – with a previously unheard of precision.

Three-dimensional scaffolds on which cells can reside and grow into tissue or organs are in great demand in regenerative medicine. For the purpose of building such structures, materials scientists of the University of Würzburg have successfully developed new fibers with special characteristics.

About 40 years ago, scientists recognized the importance of its existence. Now, for the first time, physicists have managed to provide experimental evidence of a so-called "vortex-antivortex pair". The required material was supplied by the nano experts of the University of Würzburg.

Plans to set up a Graduate School of Law, Economics and Society (GSLES) were first conceived three years ago. These came to fruition last week with the official opening of the Graduate School. Doctoral students from three of the University of Würzburg’s faculties will receive mentoring there while they work toward their doctorates.

Good news for kidney patients: Blood lipid lowering drug treatment reduces the risk of life-threatening cardiovascular diseases in these patients as well. This is the result of a clinical trial, involving almost 10,000 patients.

Even pathogenic bacteria can suffer from stress – when they are attacked by the immune system of their host, for instance. How salmonella bacteria react to such stress conditions is described by Würzburg infection biologists in the scientific journal PNAS.

Bacteria that are resistant to antibodies pose a threat, particularly to people who are sick or feeble. In the search for new drugs, scientists from the University of Würzburg have made a breakthrough.

Stiff person syndrome: this is the name given to a rare disorder of the central nervous system whose causes still puzzle scientists. A research team from the Department of Neurology at the University of Würzburg (Germany) has now made a new discovery about this disease.