Eine Kamera ist auf eine reflektierende Glasscheibe gerichtet.
© DZIF

News

All current DZIF news can be found here.

Antibiotic-resistant salmonella
© cdc_James Archer

Antibiotics against severe salmonella infections in Africa increasingly ineffective

Salmonella infections in the bloodstream, caused by Salmonella enterica bacteria, are still the cause of many deaths in southern regions and Southeast Asia. Children between the age of two and five

Alexander Titz
© DZIF

Weakening dangerous bacteria in biofilms

DZIF scientists at the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) have succeeded in identifying and targeting problematic pathogens in biofilms more rapidly. The biofilm adhesion

Bat species Coleura afra: in the study, six out of 14 animals developed antibodies against the Crimean Congo haemorrhagic fever virus
© Inst. für Virologie, Uni Bonn/Corman

Do bats play a role in transmitting Crimean Congo haemorrhagic fever?

An international team of researchers led by DZIF scientists from the University of Bonn have confirmed the presence of Crimean Congo viruses in African bats. These results suggest that bats could play

Zika virus particles (red); TEM
© cdc/Cynthia Goldsmith

Zika virus: Optimised tests for reliable diagnosis

DZIF scientists from the University of Bonn have shown that not all conventional Zika virus molecular diagnostic tests are sufficiently reliable. They developed optimised assays and a control for

Cesar Munoz-Fontela (HPI) in Guinea
© Heinrich-Pette-Institut

Ebola: fatal course of disease has characteristic immune response

In a treatment centre in Guinea, DZIF researchers from the Heinrich Pette Institute (HPI) and the Bernhard Nocht Institute (BNITM) have, for the first time, identified the human immune response in

Ebola virus
© CDC

Ebola vaccine: Promising phase I trials

The clinical phase I trial of a potential vaccine against the dreaded Ebola virus has been successfully completed at four partner sites in Africa and Europe. The safety of the tested vaccine “rVSV

NLRX1 and HIV-1 infection a) NLRX1 attenuates immune reactions, thus enabling HIV replication. b) If NLRX1 is deactivated, the protective mechanisms can take effect causing a blockage of HIV replication
© PEI

Why the immune system fails to fight HIV

An international research group has identified a cellular factor of the human cell that is indispensable to the replication of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV-1). Scientists of the Paul-Ehrlich

A central focus is identifying resistance genes
© DZIF/scienceRELATIONS

United against multidrug-resistant tuberculosis bacteria

World Tuberculosis Day on 24 March is a reminder to the public that 1.5 people still die of tuberculosis (TB) every year. The rise of multidrug-resistant strains is particularly problematic, currently

HI virus particles
© CDC/A.Harrison; Dr. P. Feorino

How viral diseases can become chronic

Many viral diseases tend to become chronic - including infections with the HI virus. Scientists from the DZIF site Bonn-Köln and from the TU München have now identified an immune factor which is

Brec1 recombinase (yellow) removing the provirus (turquoise) from human DNA
© Heinrich-Pette-Institut

HIV/AIDS: A new enzyme is capable of removing HIV-proviruses from infected cells

Researchers at the Heinrich Pette Institute, Hamburg, and at the Dresden Technical University (TUD) succeeded in developing a designer enzyme that is capable of specifically removing the provirus from