Division of Biology and Chemistry (BIO)
News and Highlights
Catching Alzheimer's Toxin
Single-particle cryo-electron microscopy of a functional Aβ42 pore equivalent, created by fusing Aβ42 to the oligomerizing, soluble domain of the α-hemolysin toxin, offers new insights into structure and function of proteins forming amyloid aggregates in Alzheimer’s disease.
Cell cytoskeleton as target for new active agents
Using a combination of computer simulations and laboratory experiments, PSI researchers have identified new binding sites for active agents on the vital protein tubulin.
"Ultimately, we aim to understand how diseases start in single cells"
Imaging and sequencing techniques combined with machine learning offer researchers countless opportunities to look inside cells with greater precision than ever before. G.V. Shivashankar, lab head at PSI, describes how such information can be used to find answers to pressing questions.
PSI Thesis Medal 2021 for pioneering Structural Biology at SwissFEL
Dr. Petr Skopintsev received PSI Thesis Medal 2021 for his work on the sodium pump KR2.
A new generation of optogenetic tools for research and medicine
The European Research Council (ERC) is funding an interdisciplinary collaborative project with 10 million euros for the structural and biophysical analysis of selected photoreceptors and their development into "OptoGPCRs", light-controlled molecular switches with a wide range of applications in biology and medicine.
