FMI News Archive
Rainer Friedrich receives ERC Synergy Grant to study mechanisms of intelligent behavior
Rainer Friedrich, a senior group leader at the FMI, is part of a team of researchers awarded an ERC Synergy Grant for their project, “Neuronal implementation of cognitive maps for navigation.” The €10 million grant will fund a six-year study into how zebrafish re...
Read MoreLaure Plantard: A journey through microscopy, mountains and inclusion
In this interview, we spoke with Laure Plantard, a research associate at the FMI’s Facility for Advanced Imaging and Microscopy (FAIM). With a strong passion for hands-on work, Laure found her niche in supporting researchers with microscopy techniques, while also being comm...
Read MoreVideo: Uncovering the complex roles of transcription factors in gene regulation
Throughout their lifespan, cells must continuously activate and deactivate genes. This process is regulated by transcription factors, a class of proteins that control gene expression by binding to DNA. However, binding is complex due to the tightly compacted structure of DNA, whi...
Read MoreYeast chit-chat: How microorganisms talk food shortages
To grow and survive, tiny organisms such as yeast must sometimes adapt their nutrient sources in response to changes in the environment. FMI researchers have now found that yeast cells communicate with each other to use less favorable nutrients if they foresee a shortage of their...
Read MoreFMI Science Prizes — winners 2024
On September 18-20, the FMI hosted its Annual Meeting, bringing together the institute’s entire scientific community in the iconic Gehry Building on the Novartis Campus in Basel. A key highlight of the event was the award ceremony for the FMI internal science prizes, celebr...
Read MoreVideo: Homing in on the role of chromatin organization in gene regulation
Chromatin is a structure in the cell nucleus that helps pack DNA tightly by wrapping it around proteins called histones. These DNA-protein units, called nucleosomes, control how genes are turned on or off by allowing or blocking DNA access to factors that regulate gene activity. ...
Read MoreThe FMI unveils state-of-the-art research facility on Novartis Campus in Basel
On August 23, 2024, the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI) celebrated the opening of its new, ultramodern research center on the Novartis Campus in the presence of some 100 guests from politics, business and the life sciences sector. At the heart of the ce...
Read MoreExploring the frontiers of infection: a chat with Selma Dahmane
Selma Dahmane is FMI’s newest group leader, leading a team of researchers who will investigate how cells defend themselves against viral invaders. Selma talks about her fascination with infection biology, the research questions her lab is tackling, and a fictional conversat...
Read MoreEmpowering female scientists at the intersection of research and innovation
The feminno programme, a pioneering initiative designed to foster female innovation and career development in science, has launched a new call for applications. The FMI will continue to subsidize the participation of successful applicants, highlighting the institute's commitment ...
Read MoreBasel honors Prisca Liberali with prestigious Science Prize
The City of Basel has awarded this year's Science Prize to FMI senior group leader Prisca Liberali in recognition of her groundbreaking research on the collective properties of developmental and regenerative systems. The award, valued at 20,000 Swiss Francs, is presented annually...
Read MoreInspiring the next generation of scientists
On June 4 and 5, we welcomed more than 100 high-school students for a two-day event featuring biomedical research education and hands-on activities, including building brain-inspired circuits....
Read MoreVideo: New light-sheet microscope for multicellular systems unveiled
Researchers at the FMI and Viventis Microscopy teamed up to develop a cutting-edge light-sheet microscope that has the potential to transform imaging studies and enable scientific breakthroughs....
Read MorePrisca Liberali to hold double appointment at FMI and ETH Zurich
Prisca Liberali, a senior group leader at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI), joins the Basel-based Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering (D-BSSE) of ETH Zurich as a Professor of Multicellular Systems. While continuing her appointment at the...
Read MoreNew small molecule helps scientists study regeneration
Regenerating damaged tissues or organs has been a dream of scientists for decades. Now, researchers at the FMI and Novartis Biomedical Research have discovered a new molecule that activates a protein involved in regeneration. The tool holds promise for advancing our understanding...
Read MorePrisca Liberali receives International Suffrage Science Award
FMI senior group leader Prisca Liberali received the 2024 International Suffrage Science Award for Life Sciences. The award recognizes the exceptional contributions of female scientists worldwide....
Read MoreLargest study of developmental microRNA dynamics uncovers mechanism of their regulation
Gene expression is controlled by numerous small RNA molecules called microRNAs, or miRNAs. However, specific functions of most miRNAs remain poorly understood. Working in worms, FMI researchers created an encyclopedia of miRNA dynamics during development, uncovering mechanisms of...
Read MoreCongratulations to our 2023 fellows and prize winners
Throughout the year, FMI researchers secure competitive grants and fellowships, underscoring the caliber and promise of their work. In this overview, we present FMI postdocs and PhD student who have been recipients of fellowships, grants, and awards in 2023 that will provide supp...
Read More‘Mini-placentas’ shed light on early events that are key for a successful pregnancy
The placenta provides oxygen and nutrients to a growing baby, but its early interactions with a mother’s uterus remain an enigma. Working with lab-grown versions of developing placentas, FMI researchers have shed light on some of the mechanisms underlying the earliest stage...
Read MoreFMI 2023 Year in Review
Learn more about our institute’s key 2023 scientific publications, events, projects, and facts & figures in this short, interactive PDF publication, which is also available in print....
Read MoreCracking the secrets of virus ‘uncoating’ may help fight infections
Influenza and other viruses pack their genetic material into a protein shell, which must be disassembled for the viruses to efficiently replicate. But how viruses ‘uncoat’ their genes remains largely unknown. Now, FMI researchers have identified crucial features of th...
Read MoreWishing you a happy holiday season and a wonderful new year
As we approach the end of 2023, the FMI extends warm wishes to you and your loved ones for a joyful and festive holiday season. This time of the year provides a great opportunity to reflect on the accomplishments and milestones achieved, and we want to express our gratitude for y...
Read MoreZuzanna Kozicka awarded Science & SciLifeLab Prize for Young Scientists
Zuzanna Kozicka, a former PhD student in the Thomä lab at the FMI, is the grand prize winner in molecular medicine of the 2023 Science & SciLifeLab Prize for Young Scientists. Kozicka was recognized for her work on molecular glue degraders, small molecules that ...
Read MoreIn remembrance of Thomas Hohn
It is with great sadness that we share the news that Thomas Hohn passed away last week, aged 85. Thomas was a group leader at the FMI for 25 years and Titular professor at the Botanical Institute of the University of Basel. He was a pioneer in plant molecular biology and made fun...
Read MoreCharlotte Soneson: embracing the command line
Spotlight on FMIers showcases the lives, work and passions of the institute’s researchers and support staff. Charlotte Soneson, a member of the FMI Computational Biology Platform, told us about her career path in a field that is dominated by men and discussed efforts to bui...
Read MoreExpectation vs. Reality: study maps the neurons that tell the difference
When our expectations differ from reality, specific sets of brain cells are activated. Working in mice, FMI researchers have characterized these neurons based on their gene-expression patterns, paving the way for a better understanding of some of the neuronal deficits associated ...
Read MoreVideo: How AI can help uncover the way memory works
A symphony of electrical signals and a dynamic tangle of connections between brain cells help us to make new memories. Using AI-powered models of groups of neurons, FMI researchers are working towards unlocking how the brain orchestrates this dance. Their latest study has achieve...
Read MoreSmall molecules to treat big diseases
Despite leaving behind thousands of deformed infants, thalidomide — and newer drugs derived from it — have proved effective cancer treatments. Researchers in the group of Nicolas Thomä at the FMI provided key insights into the mechanism of action of thalidomide-l...
Read MoreNicolas Thomä leaving the FMI
Nicolas Thomä, who has been a group leader at the FMI since 2006, has decided to take on a new role as Full Professor at the Faculty of Life Sciences of the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), where he will hold the Paternot Chair in Interdi...
Read MoreFMI science prizes — winners 2023
The FMI just held its three-day “Annual Meeting” with all the institute’s scientists in the Swiss alpine resort Davos. As every year, a highlight of the event was the award ceremony for the three FMI internal science prizes — recognizing respectively the b...
Read MoreFrom postdoc to entrepreneur
After a 1.5-year postdoc in the Liberali lab — where he co-developed and tested a new microscope to track the development of organoids in real time — Andrea Boni co-founded a company that provides live-imaging systems based on a revolutionary microscopy technology. Si...
Read MoreMouse study sheds light on how antipsychotics work
Antipsychotic drugs are used to treat and manage symptoms of many psychiatric disorders, but their mechanisms of action remain a mystery. FMI researchers found that antipsychotics reduce long-range communication within a specific layer of the brain cortex — a finding that m...
Read MoreLuca Giorgetti elected as EMBO Member
Today, the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) announced that Luca Giorgetti, Senior group leader at the FMI, has been elected as EMBO member. Giorgetti is among the 69 new members and associate members joining the EMBO community of more than 2,000 leading life scienti...
Read MoreZeroing in on how the ‘guardian of the genome’ works
The tumor suppressor protein p53 has been dubbed the ‘guardian of the genome’ because it protects the DNA from stress or long-term damage by regulating the expression of numerous genes involved DNA repair, cell division and cell death. Now, FMI researchers have homed ...
Read MoreMolecular ‘hub’ regulates gene-silencing proteins
To keep their vital functions in balance, many organisms use small snippets of RNA to ‘silence’ messenger RNAs that code for certain proteins. New research from FMI scientists revealed a molecular hub that integrates the activities of different protein complexes invol...
Read MoreZuzanna Kozicka: diversity in science and ‘molecular glues’
Spotlight on FMIers showcases the lives, work and passions of the institute’s researchers and support staff. We talked to FMI PhD graduate Zuzanna Kozicka about her efforts to promote equity, diversity and inclusion in science, her work on ‘molecular glues’, and...
Read MoreBuilding face structures by remote control
Craniofacial birth defects, including cleft lip and palate, are among the most common human congenital malformations. Now, FMI researchers have identified a DNA region containing multiple regulatory elements that interact with genes across distant chromosomal neighborhoods, ensur...
Read MoreVideo: Embryo-like models help map early stages of development
An organism’s body plan arises through a process called gastrulation, during which the embryo forms three distinct layers of cells that will later give rise to all organs. Now, FMI researchers have mapped the development of three-dimensional clusters of cells that mimic asp...
Read MoreRevealing how an embryo’s cells sync up
Scientists have known that when a mouse embryo is developing, the cells that will become its spine and muscles switch specific genes on and off repeatedly, in a synchronous fashion. However, there are deep mysteries about how these cells synchronize. FMI researchers have now deve...
Read MoreThe double-helix 70 years on: five FMI studies that helped decipher the DNA
On April 25, 1953 an iconic research paper was published in the journal Nature: the description of the double-helix structure of the DNA, by James Watson and Francis Crick. Their study revolutionized the field of molecular biology and laid the foundation for modern genetics and g...
Read MoreCell mapping and 'mini placentas' shed light onto human pregnancy
For the first time, researchers have mapped the full trajectory of placental development. Their work could offer new insights into pregnancy disorders and help develop better experimental models of the human placenta....
Read MoreCongratulations to our 2022 fellows
FMI researchers are awarded competitive grants and fellowship throughout the year, which speaks for the quality and potential of their work. Here we present FMI postdocs and other young scientists who received fellowships, grants, and prizes in 2022 that will support their resear...
Read MoreLuca Giorgetti receives SNSF Consolidator Grant
Today the SNSF (Swiss National Science Foundation) announced the recipients of the SNSF Consolidator Grants 2022, a transitional funding measure aimed at researchers who planned to apply for an ERC Consolidator Grant in 2022. FMI group leader Luca Giorgetti is among the grantees;...
Read MoreTranslating an RNA boosts its degradation
In the cell, messenger RNAs — or mRNAs — are translated into proteins and eventually degraded, but the relationship between translation and mRNA decay remains cloudy. FMI researchers developed an innovative tool to control and visualize mRNA translation and decay, one...
Read MoreFMI 2022 Year in Review
In 2022, life at the FMI snapped back into pre-pandemic normality — a normality where our institute is buzzing and people are meeting in person, where scientific and social events play a prime role, and where visitors of all ages are welcome. As always, our scientists were ...
Read MoreIdentified: components of the molecular clock that helps some animals shed their skin
Shrimps, flies and other animals shed their outer body covering at specific times of the year or at specific points in their life cycles through a process called molting. Working in worms, FMI researchers identified the mechanisms underlying a molecular ‘molting clock&rsquo...
Read MoreBecoming a lab head
In this new series, we feature FMI alumni and the diverse careers they have chosen after leaving our institute. We begin with Sabine Krabbe who was a postdoc in the Lüthi group for eight years. In 2020, she started her own lab at a leading institute for brain research in Ger...
Read MoreHow cells choose between two fates
Our body is made of billions of cells that have the same overall genome but play specialized roles to create different tissues and organs. Working in a freshwater invertebrate, FMI researchers found that a protein called Zic4 drives the formation and maintenance of the tentacles ...
Read MoreTime to part: how to produce sex cells with the right number of chromosomes
FMI researchers have honed in on a key process that happens when yeast cells divide to form gametes, which are the equivalents of human sperm and egg. Their work suggests that proteins conserved from yeast to humans ensure the production of gametes with the right number of chromo...
Read MoreVideo: Mighty proteins keep DNA regions close for longer
New work by FMI researchers shows that key proteins help to stabilize the interaction between otherwise highly dynamic DNA structures. The findings shed light onto how the complex folds that help to fit nearly two meters of DNA into the cell’s nucleus influence important bi...
Read MoreHow chemical modifications on DNA keep genes off
Several diseases, including certain types of cancer and some neurodevelopmental conditions, have aberrant patterns of DNA methylation, a chemical modification that regulates gene expression in ways that keep genes in the ‘off’ position. FMI researchers found that DNA ...
Read MoreMarilyn Vaccaro: three decades of supporting scientists
Spotlight on FMIers showcases the lives, work and passions of the institute’s researchers and support staff. We talked to Human Resources associate Marilyn Vaccaro — one of FMI's longest serving employees — about how work practices and people at the institute ha...
Read MoreFMI science prizes — winners 2022
The three FMI internal science prizes are awarded yearly and recognize respectively the best thesis, the best postdoc study and an ingenious new method or tool. The prizes 2022 were awarded last week at the FMI Annual Meeting, in Grindelwald, in the Swiss Alps. Read more about th...
Read MoreElements of scientific success
FMI Director Dirk Schübeler is one of the four top scientists who were interviewed for a Novartis live.magazine article about the elements of scientific success. Schübeler expresses his concern that researchers in Switzerland – notably at the FMI – do not ha...
Read MoreJumping into the unknown
Prisca Liberali and her team have developed new tools to study how cells self-organize into systems, paving the way for a deeper understanding of biology and medicine. Risk-taking and a keen sense of competition have served Liberali as a compass in her scientific quest, which, sh...
Read MoreFilippo Rijli elected to Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei
Filippo M. Rijli, group leader at the FMI and Professor in Neurobiology at the University of Basel, has been elected Member of the Italian Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, one the world’s oldest and most prestigious scientific academies....
Read MorePhD reps: the voice of our students
Spotlight on FMIers showcases the lives, work and passions of the institute’s researchers and support staff. We spoke to the current PhD reps to learn about their work and activities — and what they enjoy the most about their role....
Read MoreVideo: Watching how cells deal with stress
FMI researchers developed an imaging approach that allowed them to visualize individual molecules involved in the cell’s response to stress. Watch this video to find out more....
Read MorePrisca Liberali awarded EMBO Gold Medal 2022
Prisca Liberali, a research group leader at the FMI and Professor at the University of Basel, receives the Gold Medal of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO). She is recognized for her exceptional contributions to understanding the formation of intestinal organoids ...
Read MoreAndreas Lüthi receives SNSF Advanced Grant
Andreas Lüthi has been awarded a highly endowed Advanced Grant from the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF). This new transitional grant scheme is aimed at researchers who intended to apply for an ERC grant. Lüthi’s project addresses the fundamental question ...
Read MoreIskra Katic: what worms can teach us about life
Spotlight on FMIers showcases the lives, work and passions of the institute’s researchers and support staff. Iskra Katic, head of the FMI C. elegans facility, tells us about her job and how a tiny worm can help researchers understand the building blocks of life....
Read MoreHow animals reach their correct size
Even small differences in how fast animals grow during development can sum up to large differences in their adult body size. Nevertheless, adults of the same species are usually nearly identical in size. Benjamin Towbin, a postdoc in the Grosshans lab who is now at Uni Bern, disc...
Read MoreWhat it is like to be a researcher
Over 200 high school students visited the FMI to learn more about biomedical research and the everyday life of a researcher. The goal of the event was to help the student better understand what it really means to work in research so that they can take more informed decisions abou...
Read MoreThwarting cellular enzyme can fight viral infections
FMI researchers have identified a synthetic protein that dampens the activity of a cellular pathway involved in viral infection. The findings could help to develop drugs that combat viruses such as influenza A and Zika....
Read MoreNicolas Thomä receives the Otto Naegeli Prize 2022
Nicolas Thomä, a research group leader at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI) in Basel, receives the Otto Naegeli Prize for Medical Research, one of the most prestigious scientific awards in Switzerland. Thomä is recognized for his groundbreak...
Read MoreStructural insights into the assembly of cilia
Cilia, the little “hairs” attached to almost all cells of the human body, play a role in various cellular functions and cause diseases called ciliopathies when they are defective. Researchers from the group of Patrick Matthias and the FMI Structural Biology platform d...
Read MoreEnhancer-promoter interactions — distance matters
When and where a gene is transcribed in a living organism often depends on its physical interactions with distal genomic regulatory regions called enhancers. Researchers in the group of Luca Giorgetti have thrown light on how such interactions control transcription thanks to a no...
Read MoreEnlightening the brain’s circuitry
For nearly 50 years FMI Neurobiology has played a crucial role in shedding light on neuronal circuits that program how we behave, learn, and remember. In particular, neurobiologists at the FMI contributed – and are still contributing – to providing answers to a fundam...
Read MoreCommunity-based initiative improves reproducibility in microscopy and imaging
Researchers from the FMI Facility for Advanced Imaging and Microscopy (FAIM) are drivers of a large-scale international initiative dedicated to improving quality assessment and quality control in light microscopy. Recently, the workgroup chaired by the Head of FAIM delivered the ...
Read MoreBrain Prize 2022 for Silvia Arber
Silvia Arber from the FMI and the Biozentrum, University of Basel receives the Brain Prize 2022, the world’s largest neuroscience Prize. With this award, the Lundbeck Foundation recognizes this year's three prize winners for their pioneering research into the neuronal circu...
Read MoreFamiliar objects can prevent autism-like behaviors in mouse model
The emergence of autism traits can result from different factors, such as a person’s environment and genetic background. FMI researchers and their Novartis collaborators showed that exposing mice with an autism mutation to a new environment can trigger autism-like behaviors...
Read MoreA "resolution revolution": how cryo-EM accelerates biomedicine and drug discovery
Cryo-electron microscopy, or cryo-EM for short, has revolutionized the way scientists image the smallest of structures. In a short video, the heads of the joint Novartis-FMI cryo-EM center discuss how the technique is advancing biomedical research and drug discovery, and where th...
Read MoreGisèle Ferrand: advancing research, protecting animals
Spotlight on FMIers showcases the lives, work and passions of the institute’s researchers and support staff. In this Q&A, Gisèle Ferrand — head of the FMI animal facility — talks about her career trajectory, how her team cares for lab animals, and wha...
Read MoreCongratulations to our fellowship winners
Three FMI postdoctoral researchers were among the recipients of the prestigious EMBO postdoctoral fellowships, autumn 2021 selection. In addition, an FMI student was recently awarded a Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds (BIF) fellowship. Read on to learn more about these researchers and ...
Read MoreThe neuronal mechanism behind motivation
Our actions are motivated by the goals we want to achieve. However, little is known about the mechanism in our brains that allow us to make the right decisions to reach our goals. Researchers in the Lüthi lab now identified the sequence of events taking place in a mouse brai...
Read MoreHow neurons that wire together fire together
For amplifying sensory stimuli quickly and accurately, neuronal circuits require specific wiring. Some 70 years ago, the compelling idea that “neurons that fire together wire together” emerged. Yet, in computational models, neurons that wire together tend to succumb t...
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