Research in Germany

In addition to serving as biochemical weapons for offense and defense, the venoms produced by ants in the subfamily Formicinae also fulfill additional roles. For example, the ants use it to protect their nests from pathogens. It has long been assumed that the primary constituent of these venoms, formic acid, was responsible for these functions. However, a team of researchers from Freie Universität Berlin and Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg has now shown that these venoms also contain a complex mixture of peptidic compounds and other bioactive substances. The discovery of these substances opens up new possibilities in the field of medical research.

An international research team led by Tim Sprenger from the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in Bonn observed the flickering radio emissions from a compact stellar remnant. The observed variations are not caused by the object itself, but by the interstellar material between us and the stellar remnant. The material does not appear to be randomly distributed, but rather forms structures with a preferred orientation. One of these structures is located about 430 light-years from Earth. The used observation technique allows for images with a high spatial resolution using two of the largest radio telescopes in the world.

• A medium consisting of growing and dividing cells drastically changes the behavior of other cells or particles trying to move through it • In such a medium, moving particles show clustering and phase separation even without specific attraction • The findings provide valuable insights for the dynamics of tumor growth, bacterial biofilms and synthetic micro-swimmers

Our Solar System is currently passing through the Local Interstellar Cloud, a region of highly diluted gas and dust between the stars. On its path, Earth continuously accumulates iron-60, a rare radioactive isotope of iron produced in stellar explosions. This has now been confirmed by an international research team led by the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) through the analysis of Antarctic ice tens of thousands of years old. From the steady but time-varying influx, the researchers conclude that the radioactive isotope has been stored within the cloud since a long-past stellar explosion. The results have been published in the journal Physical Review Letters.

Microbiome analyses provide new insights into the biodiversity and biological potential of bacterial consortia

Too much checking can lead to the unwanted departure of well-trained staff. Reducing the number of checklists can lead to higher sales and fewer resignations in the retail sector. This is the finding of a study recently published as a Research Insight by the Rockwool Foundation Berlin (RFBerlin). As part of the study, two checklists were abolished at a bakery chain in Germany. Sales subsequently rose by 2.7 per cent. “That is a significant figure when you consider the low margins in the retail sector,” says Guido Friebel, project manager at RFBerlin and Dean of the Faculty of Economics at Goethe University Frankfurt.