News from the Institute

 IBC2 group leader Christian Münch was recently admitted as a member to the JQ Young Academy. Within the “Science funding” program of JQYA, Christian will now receive financial support for his independent research group until October 2023.

The Münch group is deciphering quality responses upon mitochondrial protein misfolding, a field with very high biomedical impact. Misfolding of mitochondrial proteins occurs e.g. as part of neurodegeneration, and little is known about how cellular response mechanisms contribute to the onset of respective diseases and their progression. The JQYA is an independent academy within Goethe University which foster researchers at the start of their independent careers.

Rukmini Mukherjee was awarded with one of the prestigious Research Fellowships from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, which enable postdoctoral researchers from abroad to pursue their next career step in Germany.

The proposed project focuses on a selective autophagy process which targets the endoplasmic reticulum (ER phagy). The molecular events driving ER phagy still remain elusive, but it is well known that the reticulon family of proteins (RTNs) plays a key role in the process. Rukmini’s project now aims at deciphering the molecular function of reticulons in ER phagy using high resolution microscopy and biochemistry.

IBC2 Director Ivan Dikic is one of the worlds’ most influential scientists as revealed by Clarivate Analytics’ Highly Cited Researchers List. He has been selected for his exceptional performance in the newly introduced category “Cross-Field”, based on his multiple high impact papers published across several fields.

The methodology used by Clarivate Analytics to curate this annual list aims at identifying scientists who have substantial contemporary impact. It is calculated from the number of highly cited papers produced, with a highly cited paper being defined as ranking amongst the top 1% as measured by citations for the field and year.

The genetic information in our cells is at constant risk of damage, and sophisticated DNA repair mechanisms have evolved to maintain genome stability. Whilst many of the mechanisms have been studied in molecular detail, their regulation and concerted action is still unclear. A new collaborative research center (CRC 1361) on this topic has now received funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG).

As announced by the Max Planck Institute (MPI) of Biophysics today, IBC2 Director Ivan Dikic has been appointed as Fellow of the Max Planck Society and will start his 5-year-term immediately, including supervision of a small working group at the Frankfurt-based Institute. The Max Planck Fellow Programme has been set up to strengthen cooperation between outstanding university professors and Max Planck Society researchers.