RESEARCH GROUPES

1:Cell and Immune Biology             

Head of Division: Prof. Dr. Jürgen WehlandMission:

We are working on different aspects of bacterial pathogen/host cell interactions, e.g. on deciphering the cross talk between pathogens and their host cells at the molecular level. Our work focusses on the exploitation of the host-cell actin cytoskeleton by microbial pathogens, since the actin system is one of the prime targets that facilitate pathogen invasion into cells and dissemination within and between infected cells and tissues. The work was initially focussing on Listeria monocytogenes and has recently been expanded to Shigella flexneri and pathogenic E. coli (EPEC and EHEC). Current work also involves different approaches, including proteomics and live cell imaging, to decipher signalling cascades within host cells during attachment and invasion processes by different bacterial pathogens. Together, these studies are enabling detailed insights not only into pathologic manifestations but also into fundamental cellular physiological processes.We are interested in the mechanisms of how cells control the diverse functions of microtubules and have been focussing on a particular reversible post-translational modification of tubulin, the detyrosination /tyrsination cycle of the alpha-subunit. Our laboratory (in collaboration with Didier Job, Grenoble, France) has provided detailed insights into this unique modification mechanism by an in depth analysis of one of the enzymes involved in the tyrosination cycle, the tubulin tyrosine ligase (TTL). By generating TTL deficient mice we were recently able to demonstrate a vital role of TTL for neuronal organisation.

• Department:Chemical Biology                          Head of Department:Dr. Ronald Frank
• Department:Cell Biology                          Head of Department:Prof. Dr. Jürgen Wehland
• Department:Cytoskeleton Dynamics                Head of Department:Dr. Klemens Rottner
• Department:Microbial Communication             Head of Department:Dr. Irene Wagner-Döbler
• Department:Signalling and Motility             Head of Department:Dr. Theresia Stradal
• Department:Chronic Pseudomonas Diseases     Head of Department:Dr. Susanne Häußler
• Department:Immunregulation            Head of Department:Dr. Dunja Bruder
• Department:Cellular Proteomics            Head of Department:Dr. Lothar Jänsch
• Department::Chronic Infections and Cancer    Head of Department:Dr. Lars Zender

2:Division of Microbial Pathogenicity and Vaccine Research   

Head of Division: Prof. Dr. G. Singh Chhatwal

Mission:The Division of Microbiology is focused on bacteria research. Only a small fraction of all the known species of bacteria have been reproduced in pure laboratory cultures. The work group "Environmental Microbiology" isolates new species of bacteria from a wide variety of habitats. Bacteria are not always harmful and often exhibit useful characteristics, as can be seen in the work group "Biodegradation".  Many bacteria have the potential to break down hazardous waste, for example, into smaller, benign components. Bacteria work best as a team. They live together in communities with many other species of bacteria, known as biofilms. This is the focus of "Chemical Microbiology".Disease-causing bacteria, such as streptococci and pneumococci, are studied in the work group "Microbial Pathogenesis". Researchers are looking for the factors that make them harmful to our health. In the research group "Vaccine Research", scientists are developing substances that can be used to combat bacterial infections. The work groups, "Infection Immunology" and "Immune Genetics", on the other hand, examine the role played by an ailing host during an infection

• Department:Microbial Pathogenicity                 Head of Department:Prof. Dr. Singh Chhatwal
• Department::Infection Immunology                  Head of Department:Dr. Eva Medina
• Department::Biodegradation            Head of Department:Dr. Dietmar Pieper
• Department::Vaccinology                Head of Department:Prof. Dr. Carlos A. Guzmán
• Department::Chemical Microbiology        Head of Department:Dr. Wolf-Rainer Abraham
• Department::Molecular Diagnostics-Laboratory  Head of Department:Dr. Manfred Höfle

3:Division of Molecular Biotechnology              

Head of Division: Dr. Hansjörg Hauser

The department "Genome Analysis" is responsible for sequencing and analyzing the human genome and disease-causing pathogens. Only a portion of the genome sequences code the genes. The other genome segments are responsible for regulating the genes. Researchers in the work group "Epigenetic Regulation Mechanisms" are investigating the mechanisms that turn genes on and off.Scientists in the department "Gene Regulation and Differentiation" are studying how the genes and their gene products interact with one another and what sort of networks they form. The work group "Systems Biology" focuses on explaining the complex connections between the cell networks using mathematical models.But, of course, interaction not only takes place inside the cell, but also between disease-causing pathogens and their hosts. How these interactions can be controlled to the benefit of the patient (host) is being studied by the department "Molecular Immunology".

• Department::Genome Analysis                                       Head of Department:Dr. Helmut Blöcker
• Department::Systems Biology                                         Head of Department:Prof. Dr. An-Ping Zeng
• Department::Gene Regulation and Differentiation           Head of Department:Dr. Hansjörg Hauser
• Department::Epigenetic Regulation Mechanisms             Head of Department:Prof. Dr. Jürgen
• Department::Molecular Immunology                               Head of Department:Dr. Siegfried Weiß
• Department::Systems and Synthetic Biology                    Head of Department:Dr. Vitor Martins Dos Santos

4:Divsion of Structural Biology          Head of Division: Prof. Dr. Dirk Heinz

5: Experimental Mouse Genetics                   Head of Department: Prof. Dr. Klaus

SchughartMission:The goal of our research is to describe and understand molecular mechanisms of host-pathogen interactions in order to improve current therapies and to develop new strategies for the prevention and cure of infectious diseases. But the complex and dynamic interactions between a pathogen and the infected host can only be analyzed in the living organism. Since the genetics, physiology and immune response in mice are very similar to humans, and many genetically different mouse strains and mutants are available, they represent an ideal model system for these studies. The research group Experimental Mouse Genetics (EMG) studies complex traints of host susceptibility to Influenza infections and analysis gene regulatory networks in regulatory T cells. The Central Animal Facility (TEE) is a service facility which supports research groups at the HZI to conduct their animal experiments and to ensure that all animal protection laws are respected. The Histology / Pathology Service Unit supports several projects and research groups which require histological services and pathology expertise