Hinxton,
16 December 2004
Ensembl gives human geneticists a Christmas present
Linkage disequilibrium viewer provides a new perspective on disease susceptibility Human geneticists
can now see which variations on the human
genome are inherited together, thanks to a new way
of viewing genetic variations in the latest release of
the Ensembl genome browser [a joint project between EMBL's EBI and the
Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute].
Hinxton, Heidelberg,
8 December 2004
Chicken genome gives insights into the human genome
Draft sequence of chicken genome completed The draft
sequence of the wild chicken, Gallus gallus, is published
today in the journal Nature. The analysis of this genome is
not just about getting bigger eggs and tastier chicken – it's
giving scientists surprising insights into the human
genome.
Heidelberg,
Reykjavik, 7 December 2004
Iceland becomes
EMB's 18th Member State
Iceland has officially joined the European Molecular
Biology Laboratory [EMBL] to become the organization's
18th Member State. The EMBL council accepted Iceland's
application for membership during a council meeting
last month in Heidelberg. The new membership will
begin on January 1, 2005.
Heidelberg,
10 November 2004
A milestone in the history of three partners
EMBO, EMBC and EMBL celebrate their anniversaries
Three leading European life science organisations
based in Heidelberg, Germany will celebrate important
anniversaries at a joint event on November 15. The
European Molecular Biology Organization [EMBO] was
established 40 years ago, the European Molecular
Biology Conference [EMBC] is 35 years old, and the
European Molecular Biology Laboratory [EMBL] turns
30.
Heidelberg,
28 October 2004
Darwin's greatest
challenge tackled: the mystery of eye evolution
Researchers provide concrete evidence about how the human eye evolved
When Darwin's skeptics attack his theory of evolution,
they often focus on the eye. Darwin himself confessed
that it was "absurd" to propose that the human eye,
an "organ of extreme perfection and complication"
evolved through spontaneous mutation and natural
selection.
Hamburg,
13 September 2004
30 years of discovery at EMBL Hamburg
Scientists in Hamburg
were the first to use synchrotron radiation to decipher the
complicated structures of biological molecules more than
30 years ago. Their pioneering discoveries led to the
foundation of EMBL's first Outstation in Hamburg in 1974.
Monterotondo,
6 September 2004
How do
you mend a broken heart?
EMBL scientists and collaborators
receive US$6 million to study cardiac self-repair Prof. Nadia Rosenthal, Head of EMBL Monterotondo
[near Rome, Italy], and international collaborators
have been awarded a US$6 million grant for cardiovascular
research.
Heidelberg,
12 August 2004
Shedding new light on biology
New microscope gives scientists unparalleled, 3D views of living organisms EMBL Physicists have developed a state-of-the-art microscope that will undoubtedly become a standard fixture in modern biology labs.
Hinxton,
Tuesday, 27 July 2004
EBI launches ChEBI: A database of small molecules
Today the EBI launches ChEBI,
a freely available dictionary of small molecular entities.
ChEBI contains both naturally occurring and synthetic
molecules. It links the protein world with the world of small
molecules, and has many applications, from basic biology
to drug discovery and agricultural research.
Heidelberg,
Thursday, 15 July 2004
European researchers tackle mitosis
EMBL and partners begin MitoCheck, a multinational research project
on cell cycle regulation Scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory
[EMBL] join forces with top scientists from eleven
research institutes in Austria, Germany, Italy,
France and the United Kingdom for 'MitoCheck'
– the largest integrated research project
on cell cycle control within the European Commission's
6th Framework Programme [FP6].
Wednesday,
7 July 2004
EBI launches integrated genome and
proteome browser
Today the EBI launches
Integr8, a new browser that allows biologists to fully
exploit the wealth of information available in
completely sequenced genomes and their predicted
proteomes.
Tuesday,
29 June 2004
New Director
General named to head EMBL
Dr. Iain Mattaj, FRS, FRSE, will be the next Director
General of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory
[EMBL], a renowned basic research and training
institute with headquarters in Heidelberg, Germany.
The decision was reached and announced at a meeting
of EMBL's governing Council, held in Rome on June
29. Dr. Mattaj will take office starting in May
2005, when the term of the current Director-General
Fotis C. Kafatos ends.
Tuesday, 8 June 2004
New European Centre of Excellence will tackle
fundamental research problems related to human health
The Partnership for Structural Biology begins construction on new facility
in Grenoble, France Today the institutions
forming the Partnership for Structural Biology [PSB]
are pleased to announce the construction of a new
3600m2 facility for a European Centre of Excellence
for Structural Biology. The founding members of
PSB include three pan-European institutes: the
Grenoble Outstation of the EMBL, a world-wide
leader in molecular biology research; the ESRF, one
of the world's foremost synchrotron X-ray sources;
the ILL, the world's leading centre for neutron
research; and the IBS, a leading French structural
biology laboratory.
Wednesday,
2 June 2004
Cutting
out the non-sense
Scientists uncover a new way in which cells deal with flawed molecules Sometimes DNA
mutations give rise to proteins that would be too
short to function properly – a serious problem
considering that proteins carry out some of the
cell's main functions. But cells have evolved ways
to make sure that these shortened proteins are
never produced, and researchers at EMBL have
shed light on a novel and important step in this
cell 'surveillance' system [Nature, June 3, 2004].
Wednesday,
2 June 2004
International consortium launches new web-based
tool: Reactome provides map of human biological pathways
A partnership between Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
[CSHL] and the European Molecular Biology Laboratory's
European Bioinformatics Institute [EBI] has publicly
released Reactome, a curated database of biological
processes in humans. This database, available at
www.reactome.org,
is a dual-purpose project that can be used by general
biologists as an online textbook of biology, or
by bioinformaticians to make discoveries about biological
pathways.
Wednesday,
2 June 2004
EMBL Director-General receives high
German honour: the Bundesverdienstkreuz
1. Klasse
The Director-General of the European Molecular Biology
Laboratory [EMBL], Professor Fotis C. Kafatos, today
is awarded the prestigious German civil medal of
honour, the Bundesverdienstkreuz 1. Klasse. The
honour is given in recognition of his significant
contributions to Germany and Europe – encouraging
and stimulating top quality scientific research
in the life sciences during his years as leader
of EMBL.
Wednesday,
26 May 2004
Are bacteria turning our own weapons against us?
Researchers reveal that microbes have stolen some of our genes
Scientists have identified what may be a
completely new way in which bacteria defend
themselves against their hosts. The bacteria
have stolen a key defensive gene from the
very animals that they are invading –
and are now using it against them.
Wednesday,
19 May 2004
EMBL and DESY continue their 30-year
cooperation into 2015
The European Molecular Biology Laboratory [EMBL]
and the Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron [DESY]
today announce a new interdisciplinary partnership
formed between the two institutions. Building on
their 30-year track record of successful cooperation,
DESY and EMBL now formalize their partnership for
the future – looking to provide new generations
of top quality infrastructures for life science
applications.
Monday,
10 May 2004
EBI launches Genome Reviews: A new
resource for genome research
Today the EBI launches Genome Reviews, a comprehensive and standardized resource for completely sequenced genomes. Version 1.0 contains 256 chromosomes and plasmids, representing the complete genomes of 153 prokaryotic organisms.
Since the first viral genomes were sequenced 20 years ago, technological advances have made it feasible to decipher the complete DNA sequences of hundreds of organisms.
Sunday,
18 April 2004
Hemochromatosis,
inflammation and anemia
Researchers Discover a Surprising Link
Patients with inflammatory diseases such as arthritis,
chronic infections and some types of cancer, often
become anemic – a condition called anemia
of chronic disease [ACD]. While ACD rarely kills
patients, it can make their lives miserable.
Tuesday,
13 April 2004
EBI's microarray database reaches 5,000 hybridizations
ArrayExpress, the EBI's
repository for microarray-based gene-expression data,
has grown almost 100-fold in the past year, exceeding
5,000 hybridizations on April 2, 2004.
Microarrays, also known as gene chips, allow
scientists to get a bird's-eye view of the activity of all
the genes in a particular cell type, tissue or organism.
Thursday,
25 March 2004
Mosquitoes vs. Malaria: How we can win the fight
Researchers at EMBL publish
breakthrough studies that could lead to a new
means of combating the deadly disease.
EMBL scientists have identified four mosquito
proteins that affect the ability of the malaria
parasite [Plasmodium] to survive and develop
in the malaria-carrier mosquito [Anopheles].
This breakthrough, featured in recent issues of
Cell [March 5, 2004] and Science [March 26, 2004],
could be used to block the transmission of malaria
from mosquitoes to humans.
Thursday,
25 March 2004
Building the whole cell from pieces
Researchers tackle the cell jigsaw puzzle. Scientists have taken a
significant leap forward in understanding the complex
ways that molecules work together in cells. The work of
the Structural and Computational Programme at EMBLHeidelberg,
in collaboration with Cellzome AG, appears in
the current issue of the journal Science [March 26, 2004].
Wednesday, 17 March 2004
EMBL and DKFZ jointly open one-of-a-kind
screening facility
The European Molecular Biology Laboratory [EMBL]
and the DKFZ [German Cancer Research Centre] will
open the doors of the new 'Chemical Genomics Facility,'
one of the first academic small molecule screening
facilities in Europe. The opening ceremony will
take place at EMBL Heidelberg from 1 to 2 pm on
Thursday, March 18.
Wednesday,
18 February 2004
EMBL researchers discover key molecular "switch" in eye development of medaka fish
New molecular interaction found by EMBL scientists featured in Nature.
Researchers at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory
[EMBL] in Heidelberg have discovered a molecular
"switch" that guides the development of the eye
in a fish called medaka. The interaction of two
proteins determines whether cells divide or specialize
at a key moment as the eye forms.
Friday, 13 February 2004
In Silico Research: First German Center for Modeling and Simulation in the Life Sciences Established in Heidelberg
Klaus Tschira Foundation provides 2.5 million
euros for joint project involving Heidelberg research
institutions, the University, and the state of
Baden–Württemberg.
The first German center for modeling and simulation
in the life sciences [BIOMS] opens today in Heidelberg.
In international terms, Heidelberg is already an
outstanding location for the life sciences and scientific
computing.
Thursday, 12 February 2004
European researchers launch 10 Million Euro collaborative technology project
EMBL Hamburg coordinates a four-year integrated research project within the 6th Framework Programme of the European Commission.
The European Commission has given Europe a huge
boost in the field of Structural Genomics, awarding
the European Molecular Biology Laboratory [EMBL]
and its partners 10 Million Euro for an integrated
project called 'BIOXHIT.' The project aims to create
a common platform throughout Europe for researchers
working in the field of "biological crystallography."
Thursday, 4 February 2004
Making
new muscle: Researchers in Rome produce a mouse
that can regenerate its tissues
Researchers in Rome produce a
mouse that can regenerate its tissues.
Researchers at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory
[EMBL] and the University of Rome 'La Sapienza'
have found a way to restore some of the 'regenerative'
ability of tissues, which happens naturally in animals
at the embryonic stage of development, but is lost
shortly after birth. The scientists' work, published
this week in PNAS, gives new insight into how stem
cells can be mobilized across the body, and how
they take on specialized functions in tissue.
Thursday,
29 January 2004
EMBL: A leading example of innovation in
European Science
EMBL's innovative research and dynamic spirit provide scientific advisors with
an excellent example of what is needed to boost European research capabilities. Senior representatives
from the European Molecular Biology Lab, including
the Director-General Prof. Fotis C. Kafatos, will
meet an international group of key scientific advisors
at the Italian Embassy in Berlin on Thursday,
January 29. As a top internationally-recognized
research institution in molecular biology, EMBL is at
the forefront of efforts to make the European Union
a leading knowledge-based society.
Thursday,
23 January 2004
European Virtual Institute for Genome
Annotation receives 12 million Euro
The Commission of the
European Union has awarded 12,000,000 Euro to 24
bioinformatics groups based in 14 countries throughout
Europe to create a pan-European BioSapiens
Network of Excellence in Bioinformatics. The network
aims to address the current fragmentation of European
bioinformatics by creating a virtual research institute
and by organizing a European school for training in
bioinformatics. |
