Our goal is to unravel novel biological pathways and molecular mechanisms that control physiological and disease-related cellular processes to identify novel targets and design innovative therapeutic concepts.

Human cell death , 3D realistic illustration of Healthy Human Cell infected and dying Macro Illustration

Misdirected signaling processes trigger and accelerate many human diseases. Understanding all biological details is essential for developing effective therapies for serious diseases like allergies, autoimmune diseases, and cancers. Specifically triggering cell death in diseased cells, such as cancer cells, could potentially cure these diseases.

Genetic engineering and gene manipulation concept. Hand is replacing part of a DNA molecule.

Epigenetics studies factors that determine gene activity and cell development. At the MTTC, researchers explore how metabolic or environmental influences, like a high-fat diet, affect transgenerational inheritance. Innovative therapeutic concepts are being developed by studying long non-coding RNAs, RNA-binding proteins, and their interactions using integrative structural biology and chemical probing.

White pills spilled on blue wooden background

The rise in incurable diseases and frequent infection waves necessitates the development of innovative therapies. Understanding molecular mechanisms of cellular metabolic pathways enables this progress. Therapeutic developments include small molecules, protein or RNA therapeutics, genetically modified cells and viruses, immunomodulators, therapeutic antibodies, vaccines, and cell therapies.

Ancient viral remnants embedded in the human genome may be an overlooked driver of Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Michelle Vincendeau at Helmholtz Munich is investigating how so-called endogenous retroviruses influence disease-relevant mechanisms in human…

Healthy gut bacteria concept with natural probiotics for immune support.

Bacteria in the human gut can directly deliver proteins into human cells, actively shaping immune responses. Led by researchers at Helmholtz Munich, with participation from Ludwig Maximilians University (LMU), Aix Marseille University, Inserm, and…

Research into a novel form of cell death is entering its next phase and could soon help reduce complications after heart attacks or organ transplants. The Federal Ministry of Research, Technology, and Space (BMFTR) is providing continued support for…

Researchers at Helmholtz Munich, the Technical University of Munich and the LMU University Hospital Munich uncovered a mechanism that protects nerve cells from premature cell death, known as ferroptosis. The study provides the first molecular…

A new study reveals how two key molecular players – the linear ubiquitin chain assembly complex (LUBAC) and TRAF6 – work together to fine-tune immune signaling in T cells. Published in Nature Communications, the research from the group of Prof.…

How do biomolecules breathe? This question guided the recent international symposium “Ultra-Highfield NMR and 4D Structural Biology – From Mechanisms to Therapies”, hosted by the Bavarian NMR Center (BNMRZ), a joint infrastructure of Helmholtz Munich…

Prof. Dr. Michael Sattler

Head of the Molecular Targets and Therapeutics Centers, Director Structural Biology, Molecular Targets and Therapeutics Center, Institute of Structural Biology

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Prof. Dr. Ulrike Protzer

Deputy Head of the Molecular Targets and Therapeutics Center, Director Virology

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Prof. Dr. Marcus Conrad

Director Metabolism and Cell Death, MCD

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Prof. Dr. Robert Schneider

Director of the Institute of Functional Epigenetics

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Prof. Dr. Pascal Falter-Braun

Director Network Biology

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Prof. Martin Göttlicher

Director of Molecular Toxicology and Pharmacology

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Prof. Stephanie E. Combs

Director Radiation Medicine

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Prof. Vigo Heissmeyer

Head of Molecular Immune Regulation

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Prof. Daniel Krappmann

Head of Signaling and Translation

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Oliver Plettenburg Porträt 02_freigestellt

Prof. Dr. Oliver Plettenburg

Director of Institute of Medicinal Chemistry

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Orberg ET, Meedt E, Andreas Hiergeist A , Xue J, Heinrich P, Ru J , Ghimire S, Miltiadous O, Lindner S, Tiefgraber M, Göldel S , Eismann T, Schwarz A, Göttert S, Jarosch S, Steiger K, Schulz C , Gigl M, Fischer JC, Janssen K-P, Quante M, Heidegger S, Herhaus P, Verbeek M, Ruland J, van den Brink MRM, Weber D, Edinger M, Wolff D, Busch DH, Kleigrewe K, Herr W, Bassermann F, Gessner A*, Deng L*, Holler E*, Poeck H*

Bacteria and bacteriophage consortia are associated with protective intestinal metabolites in patients receiving stem cell transplantation

Boes M and Falter-Braun P*

Long-COVID-19: the persisting imprint of SARS-CoV-2 infections on the innate immune system

Wimberger N, Ober F, Avar G, Grau M, Xu W, Lenz G, Menden MP, Krappmann D*

Oncogene-induced MALT1 protease activity drives post-transcriptional gene expression in malignant lymphomas

Nakamura T, Mishima E, Yamada N, Mourão ASD, Trümbach D, Doll S, Wanninger J, Lytton E, Sennhenn P, Nishida Xavier da Silva T, Angeli JPF, Sattler M, Proneth B, Conrad M*

Integrated chemical and genetic screens unveil FSP1 mechanisms of ferroptosis regulation.

Luo S, Ru J, Khan Mirzaei M, Xue J, Peng X, Ralser A, Hadi JL, Mejías-Luque R, Gerhard M and Deng L*

Helicobacter pylori infection alters gut virome by expanding temperate phages linked to increased risk of colorectal cancer.

Ratajczak F, Joblin M, Hildebrandt M, Ringsquandl M, Falter-Braun P*, Heinig M*

Speos: An ensemble graph representation learning framework to predict core genes for complex diseases

Schmidt H, Raj T, O'Neill TJ, Muschaweckh A, Giesert F, Negraschus A, Hoefig KP, Behrens G, Esser L, Baumann C, Feederle R, Plaza-Sirvent C, Geerlof A, Gewies A, Isay SE, Ruland J, Schmitz I, Wurst W, Korn T, Krappmann D, Heissmeyer V.

Unrestrained cleavage of Roquin-1 by MALT1 induces spontaneous T cell activation and the development of autoimmunity.

Khurana A, Chadha Y, Schmoller KM

Too big not to fail: Different paths lead to senescence of enlarged cells

Tschuck J, Theilacker L, Rothenaigner I, Weiß SAI, Akdogan B, Lam VT, Müller C, Graf R, Brandner S, Pütz C, Rieder T, Schmitt-Kopplin P, Vincendeau M, Zischka H, Schorpp K, and Hadian K*

Farnesoid X receptor activation by bile acids suppresses lipid peroxidation and ferroptosis

Ebersberger S, Hipp C, Mulorz MM, Buchbender A, Hubrich D, Kang H-S, Martinez-Lumbreras S, Kristofori P, Sutandy FXR, Allcca LL, Schönfeld S, Bakisoglu C, Busch A, Hänel H, Tretow K, Welzel M, Di Liddo A, Möckel MM, Zarnack K, Ebersberger I, Legewie S, Luck K, Sattler M*, König J*

FUBP1 is a general splicing factor facilitating 3′ splice site recognition and splicing of long introns

Hadian K, Stockwell BR

The therapeutic potential of targeting regulated non-apoptotic cell death.

Soni K, Jagtap PKA, Martínez-Lumbreras S, Bonnal S, Geerlof A, Stehle R, Simon B, Valcárcel J & Sattler M

Structural basis for specific RNA recognition by the alternative splicing factor RBM5

Witzenberger M, Burczyk S, Settele D, Mayer W, Welp LM, Heiss M, Wagner M, Monecke T, Janowski R, Carell T, Urlaub H, Hauck SM, Voigt A*, Niessing D*

Human TRMT2A methylates tRNA and contributes to translation fidelity

Osborne R, Rehneke L, Lehmann S, Roberts J, Altmann M, Altmann S, Zhang Y, Köpff E, Dominguez-Ferreras A, Okechukwu E, Sergaki C, Rich-Griffin C, Ntoukakis V, Eichmann R, Shan W, Falter-Braun P* & Schäfer P*

Symbiont-host interactome mapping reveals effector-targeted modulation of hormone networks and activation of growth promotion

Ji H , Englmaier F , Morigny P , Giroud M, Gräsle P , Brings S , Szendrödi J , Diaz MB , Plettenburg O* , Herzig S* , Rohm M*

Development of a peptide drug restoring AMPK and adipose tissue functionality in cancer cachexia

Schorpp K, Bessadok A, Rothenaigner I, Strasser S, Peng T*, Hadian K*

CellDeathPred: a deep learning framework for ferroptosis and apoptosis prediction based on cell painting

Mishima E, Nakamura T, Zheng J, Zhang W, Mourao ASD, Sennhenn P, Conrad M*

DHODH inhibitors sensitize to ferroptosis by FSP1 inhibition

Pradhan T, Sarkar R, Meighen-Berger KM, Feige MJ, Zacharias M & Reif B

Mechanistic insights into the aggregation pathway of the patient-derived immunoglobulin light chain variable domain protein FOR005

Nakamura T, Hipp C, Santos Dias Mourao A, Borggräfe J, Aldrovandi M, Henkelmann B, Wanninger J, Mishima E, Lytton E, Emler D, Proneth B, Sattler M, Conrad M*

Phase separation of FSP1 promotes ferroptosis

Mishima E*, Wahida A, Seibt T, Conrad M*

Diverse biological functions of vitamin K: from coagulation to ferroptosis

Mishima E, Conrad M.*

Nonmetabolic role for CKB in ferroptosis

Su J, Brunner L, Oz EA, Sacherl J, Frank G, Kerth HA, Thiele F, Wiegand M, Mogler C, Aguilar JC, Knolle PA, Collin N, Kosinska AD*, Protzer U*

Activation of CD4 T cells during prime immunization determines the success of a therapeutic hepatitis B vaccine in HBV-carrier mouse models

O'Neill TJ, Tofaute MJ, Krappmann D*

Function and targeting of MALT1 paracaspase in cancer

Bronner H, Brunswig F, Pluta P, Krysiak Y, Bigall N, Plettenburg O* and Polarz S*

Cooperative Functionalities in Porous Nanoparticles for Seeking Extracellular DNA and Targeting Pathogenic Biofilms via Photodynamic Therapy

Einer C, Munk DE, Park E, Akdogan B, Nagel J, Lichtmannegger J, Eberhagen C, Rieder T, Vendelbo MH, Michalke B, Wimmer R, Blutke A, Feuchtinger A, Dershwitz P, DiSpirito AM, Islam T, Castro RE, Min BK, Kim T, Choi S, Kim D, Jung C, Lee H, Park D, Im W, Eun SY, Cho YH, Semrau JD, Rodrigues CMP, Hohenester S, Damgaard Sandahl T, Di Spirito AA, Zischka H*

ARBM101 (Methanobactin SB2) Drains Excess Liver Copper via Biliary Excretion in Wilson’s Disease Rats

Molitor L, Klostermann M, Bacher S, Merl-Pham J, Spranger N, Burczyk S, Ketteler C, Rusha E, Tews D, Pertek A, Proske M, Busch A, Reschke S, Feederle R, Hauck SM, Blum H, Drukker M, Fischer-Posovszky P, König J, Zarnack K*, Niessing D*

Depletion of the RNA-binding protein PURA triggers changes in posttranscriptional gene regulation and loss of P-bodies.

Keil P, Wulf A, Kachariya N, Reuscher S, Hühn K, Silbern I, Altmüller J, Keller M, Stehle R, Zarnack K, Sattler M*, Urlaub H*, Sträßer K*

Npl3 functions in mRNP assembly by recruitment of mRNP components to the transcription site and their transfer onto the mRNA

Kim DK, Weller B, Lin CW, Sheykhkarimli D, Knapp JJ, Dugied G, Zanzoni A, Pons C, Tofaute MJ, Maseko SB, Spirohn K, Laval F, Lambourne L, Kishore N, Rayhan A, Sauer M, Young V, Halder H, la Rosa NM, Pogoutse O, Strobel A, Schwehn P, Li R, Rothballer ST, Altmann M, Cassonnet P, Coté AG, Vergara LE, Hazelwood I, Liu BB, Nguyen M, Pandiarajan R, Dohai B, Coloma PAR, Poirson J, Giuliana P, Willems L, Taipale M, Jacob Y, Hao T, Hill DE, Brun C, Twizere JC, Krappmann D, Heinig M, Falter C, Aloy P, Demeret C, Vidal M, Calderwood MA, Roth FP, Falter-Braun P

A proteome-scale map of the SARS-CoV-2-human contactome

On This Page

Cell Death and Immunity

Epigenetics and RNA Regulation

Novel Therapeutic Concepts

Can Ancient Viral Remnants Trigger Alzheimer’s Disease?

More Than Just Gut Cohabitants: How Gut Bacteria Control Immune Responses

Funding for Cell Death Research Extended

Single Enzyme Failure Found to Drive Neuron Loss in Dementia

Fine-Tuning Immunity: The Role of Ubiquitination in T cell Activation

Biomolecular Breathing and the 4D View of Life: Insights from the BNMRZ Symposium