Other July News in Brief
Poul Nissen and researchers from Aarhus University show first structure of important membrane protein
Professor and former DNRF head of center Poul Nissen is the senior author behind a study in Nature that with the help of groundbreaking electron microscopy has determined the first structures of a lipid-flippase – a membrane protein that plays a vital role in maintaining healthy cells. The study provides a better understanding of the basics of how cells work and stay healthy and can eventually increase our knowledge of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Professor Nissen was the head of center at the Center for Membrane Pumps in Cells and Disease (PUMPkin) from 2007 to 2017 and is now a group leader at Nissen Lab at the DNRF’s Center for Proteins in Memory (PROMEMO) at Aarhus University.
Read the scientific article in Nature here
Read more about the study in a press release from Aarhus University here
Lars Peter Nielsen notes on cable bacteria in Science Stories
At the end of June, Professor Nielsen from the DNRF’s Center for Electromicrobiology (CEM) was interviewed by Danish radio den2radio in an episode called “Kablet op til nature” (“Cabled to Nature”) as a part of the radio series “Science Stories.” In the episode, Henrik Prætorius interviews Nielsen about the peculiar cable bacteria that transmit electricity hidden underneath various sediments. Almost simultaneously with the den2radio, Professor Nielsen was also interviewed by The New York Times, which recently wrote an article on cable bacteria.
Listen to the episode of Science Stories: “Kablet op til nature” in den2radio here
Matthew Collins comments on the study of ancient proteins in Nature -article
The scientific journal Nature recently published an article about the research on ancient proteins. Here, Professor Matthew Collins, who holds one of the DNRF Niels Bohr Professorships, was interviewed to give his perspective on the study of so-called proteomics. In the article, proteomics is outlined as a method to gain important knowledge on ancient populations and their genetic heritage through the examination of ancient proteins, since some proteins are hardier than DNA and therefore can survive from deterioration for thousands – and even millions – of years.
Read the article about ancient proteins in Nature here
Article in Jyllands-Posten about Ph.D. project on Red Giants by Ditte Slumstrup from SAC
Ditte Slumstrup, from the Center of Excellence Stellar Astrophysics Centre (SAC) at Aarhus University, recently defended her Ph.D. project on Red Giants, which are gigantic stars with a radius wider than the sun’s. In her project, Slumstrup examines how to determine the age of the enormous stars as a way to map further parts of the Milky Way as well as provide a better understanding for the future development of our galaxy. In a recent article, the Danish Newspaper Jyllands-Posten wrote about Slumstrup’s project on the Red Giants and research in galactic archeology.
More information about Slumstrup’s Ph.D. project can be found here