It has developed teaching and research specialisations that enjoy worldwide recognition.

Method designed to improve the transmission security of sensitive data

08 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Neuro scientists at Bonn University have developed a new process for encoding sensitive data in such a way that only the intended recipient can read them -using, for example, authentication per iris scan or fingerprint.

Risk appraisal significantly impaired after long-term consumption

07 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Long-term users of the 'club drug' Ecstasy can assess risks considerably less accurately than people who have never taken Ecstasy, even when the former are not on the drug. Furthermore Ecstasy, whose chemical abbreviation is MDMA, also seems to permanently impair memory to an appreciable extent.

The bees’ Kamasutra

07 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Female leaf-cutter bees are choosy about their sexual partners: they only fall for males who give off the appropriate smell. Zoologists at the University of Bonn have discovered that the male bees actually have to rub their scent under their partners’ noses. Glands in their front legs serve as “scent sprays”.

Hypothermia helps cardiac patients to live longer

06 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Approximately 375,000 Europeans suffer cardiac arrest every year, often with fatal consequences. Even upon successful resuscitation, several patients suffer severe and irreparable brain damage. One in seven patients could be saved and the amount of serious damage resulting from cardiac arrest could be drastically reduced by reducing the body temperature of those affected to between 32 and 34 degrees in the first 24 hours following the cardiac arrest.

Information processing in the brain not only neurons' job

06 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) For a long time gliacytes were merely regarded as a kind of glue which fills up the extra-cellular space in the brain and stabilises the nerve cells. However, researchers from the University of Bonn, together with their Swiss colleagues, have been able to prove convincingly for the first time that this 'neural glue' is more communicative than was previously assumed: some kinds of gliacytes have small storage vesicles with messenger substances, what are known as neurotransmitters, which they can suddenly release into their surroundings when a chemical signal is given, a property which until recently was only ascribed to neurons. The dogma that information processing is exclusively the preserve of the neuron is thus no longer tenable.

Bonn zoologists copy a beetle's monitoring device

05 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) They are what fire fighters have long been calling for: low-cost and highly sensitive infrared sensors that automatically monitor large forest areas and trigger an early warning in the event of fire. Zoologist at the University of Bonn have taken an important step towards this goal. They have constructed a forest fire sensor which could be produced more cheaply than commercially available infrared detectors, although it is not yet as sensitive.

Substance group normalises division of epidermis cells

04 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Cell biologists of the University of Bonn, in cooperation with the University of Leeds (U.K.) and industry may have discovered a new effective therapy for psoriasis: a specific group of what are known as metalloproteinase inhibitors can normalise the increased tendency of epidermis cells (keratinocytes) to divide, which is the cause of this unpleasant lepidosis. The researchers were not able to detect any toxic side-effects, at least not in cell cultures.

Better go to the local witch doctor

04 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Despite the competition from Western medicine, traditional medicine is still much in demand in Africa. That is the result of a study currently being undertaken in Tanzania by the Ethnomedicine Workshop at the University of Bonn’s Institute for the History of Medicine. Particularly for ailments localised in the head, convulsions, dizziness and insanity, those affected tend to turn to a traditional healer rather than someone schooled in Western medicine. Many Africans perceive the neglect of the spiritual dimension of a disease as the most serious deficit of Western medicine.

A world first: Bonn University gets high-performance tomography system

03 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) A state-of-the-art diagnosis system is now being introduced at the University of Bonn's Radiological Clinic: the first of its kind worldwide, it is a new type of high-field nuclear magnetic resonance tomography spectrometer which opens up completely new possibilities both for clinical application to patients, for clinical research and pure research. Philips have placed the multi-million euro spectrometer at the University's disposal; the Radiological Clinic beat rival applicants from the US, Japan and Europe.

Physicists at the University of Bonn build quantum data memory

03 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Physicists from the University of Bonn have succeeded in taking a decisive step forward towards processing quantum information with neutral atoms: in the latest issue of the 'Physical Review Letters' they describe how they managed to set up a quantum register experimentally. Their next aim is to construct a quantum gate in which two or more atoms interact with each other in a controlled way. By combining the register and gate there would then be all the basic components available for developing a quantum computer with neutral atoms.

Dinosaurs also had composites

02 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Some dinosaurs possessed a hard bony armoured shell similar to today's crocodiles or tortoises, presumably to protect themselves from enemies. The structure of some kinds of this armour seems to be far more complex than was hitherto assumed. Palaeontologists of the University of Bonn were able to demonstrate that some of this armour plating shows a striking similarity to modern composite materials as used, for example, in bullet-proof vests. Other dinosaurs had perfected their 'armour' even further: their armour plating was considerably thinner and lighter, though probably just as stable.

A new explanation for the death of the dinosaurs

02 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) A shower of matter from space millions of years ago could have led to drastic changes in the Earth’s climate, followed by the extinction of life on a massive scale, which also killed off the dinosaurs. This at least is a theory put forward by scientists from the University of Bonn.

Fossils point the way to black gold

01 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Drilling for oil is expensive, and only too often unsuccessful: in 80 to 90 per cent of all attempts the drill head ends up in worthless sediment rather than hitting the black jackpot as intended. In this way, with every unsuccessful drilling, companies squander several million euros.

Carbon coatings to prevent bacteria collecting on indwelling catheters

01 April 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Wafer-thin coatings from diamond-like carbon can prevent dangerous biofilms of bacteria from forming on indwelling catheters in the urinary tract. What is more, the coated catheters glide into the ureter with considerably less friction, to the delight of medical staff, and even more so to that of the patients, who experience the procedure as substantially less unpleasant.

Spitting cobras optimise their accuracy by rapid head movements

31 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Spitting cobras spit their venom into the faces of potential attackers, according to some reports even across a distance of several metres. This venomous cocktail of toxins hits the victim's eyes surprisingly often and may leave them blinded. University of Bonn zoologists have discovered how the snakes optimise their accuracy rate: while they are squirting the venom out of their fangs at high speed, they move their heads to and fro in a circling or bobbing movement.

New successes in mice with muscular dystrophy

31 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) The diagnosis 'muscular dystrophy' is usually tantamount to a death sentence for those affected. One in three thousand male babies suffer from this incurable hereditary disease. The progress of the disease can only be slowed down through physiotherapy and medication. Scientists at Bonn University and at Pittsburgh Children's Hospital (USA) have now isolated a specific type of stem cell which can improve the regeneration of damaged muscle cells in mice suffering from muscular dystrophy.

Mutation protects from HIV and increases risk of hepatitis C

30 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) More than 40 million people worldwide are infected with the human immunodeficiency virus HIV. In Africa alone this incurable immune deficiency caused more than two million deaths last year. Yet some people are resistant to infection: the reason for this is a mutation in their DNA which prevents the HIV virus from invading certain immune cells and destroying them.

Babies decode some types of information on perspective as early as five months

30 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) At the tender age of five months babies can be fooled by complex information about distances in drawings involving perspective, psychologists from the University of Bonn have shown. They fixed two rubber figures onto a picture on which a chessboard pattern appeared to be receding away from the babies. The babies then tried to grab the toy which seemed nearer to them because of the information on distance implied by the drawing.

Bonn study shows: since 1880 climate gases have caused just under half of global warming

29 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Humanity does seem to have been a major contributor to global warming after all. This has been demonstrated by new simulations carried out at the University of Bonn. The Bonn meteorologists used about 30 different models to investigate how the Earth's average annual temperature would have developed with and without the influence of climate gases.

Test persons needed for study

29 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) How do people do the washing up in Europe nowadays? Bonn researchers are examining this issue scientifically. They have launched a survey titled 'Manual dishwashing in Europe'. Test persons are required to wash a pile of dishes that the scientists have previously made dirty, according to scientific criteria, of course. With this exercise, Professor Dr. Rainer Stamminger of the University of Bonn intends to find out how Europeans differ in terms of their washing up habits.

The cradle of golf stood not in the Highlands.. but in the Low Countries, claims a sports historian

29 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Until the beginning of the British Open, everything had been just fine for the unsuspecting Scots who had always considered themselves the inventors of golf. Scotland's claim to being the country of the game's origin rested on 15th century Acts of Parliament. In a resolution of 6 March 1457, football and golf were banned, and in 1491 Parliament even went a step further and forbade football and gold and other 'unprofitable' games altogether.

New procedure for improved urinary stone prognosis

28 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) The symptoms are dramatic: unbearable pain, blood-red urine, and nausea. Approximately five percent of the German population suffer at least one episode of ureteral colic in their life. This is caused by stones which are dislodged from the renal pelvis and which then get stuck in the ureter.

A study shows that when the boss keeps breathing down your neck, your motivation plummets

28 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) 'Everyone only does as much as they absolutely have to,' is a key tenet of Economics. However, a new study by the University of Bonn proves the exact opposite: most people do more than they have to, unless they are being supervised. If they are, motivation and efficiency nosedive.

The most species-rich area is the Borneo lowland rainforest with some 10,000 different plants

27 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) For years, experts have been calling for an improved database that would enable them to develop more effective global nature conservation strategies. The atlas is arranged in 867 zones, known as ecoregions. 'This makes the data on the world's plant diversity accessible in accordance with a common geographical standard,' explains Gerold Kier, head of the project at Bonn University's Nees Institute for Plant Biodiversity. This work, says Kier, represents a significant advance because the results are needed both for nature conservation planners and those engaged in basic research.

Medical team develops 3D babyscan for children in the womb

27 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Eight out of 1000 new-born babies are born with a heart defect. It's a blessing in disguise if the anomaly is detected before birth and the expectant mother is transferred where necessary to a specialist centre: if treated properly, the baby has substantially better chances of survival, with the risk of undesirable after-effects, e.g. resulting from lack of oxygen or poor perfusion of the organs, being reduced.

Europe-wide survey reveals considerable individual differences

26 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Wastefulness already starts in the sink at home. Often enough, more than ten times the amount of water and energy is used in doing the washing-up than the resource-friendly economy dish-washer requires, without any significantly better effect being achieved. These are the initial results of a survey at the University of Bonn in which home economics technologist Professor Dr. Rainer Stamminger and his team of researchers have examined the washing-up behaviour of 75 test-persons from seven European countries.

Tendency to hair loss inherited from the mother

26 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) The male sex hormones really do seem to play a decisive role in causing hair loss in men. This has been confirmed by scientists from the universities of Bonn and Düsseldorf. Their studies show that specific changes in the genetic 'construction manual' of the androgen receptor may result in premature balding.

Effective, cheap, few side-effects

25 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) ‘The importance of these findings for therapy should not be underestimated,' Professor Hörauf emphasises. 'The mature worms are after all responsible for such symptoms of the disease as the extreme swelling of the limbs. In the past there was no effective and reliable method of combating them.'

Scientists study alternatives to growing drugs

25 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Experts estimate the world-wide turnover of drugs at almost $500 billion, despite all the attempts to prevent the cultivation, sale and consumption of drugs. Often it is simply the sheer battle for survival which forces farmers in the producing countries into the dirty business with cocaine or opium. Researchers from the University of Bonn are examining the alternatives to cultivating drugs and have been focusing on aid projects in Colombia and Bolivia. Their conclusions are sobering, in spite of all the positive aspects.

Scientists find clear indications

24 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) The figures are dramatic: 15 million people worldwide suffer from heart failure, one to three per cent of all Germans are affected, every hundredth euro which the health insurance companies spend goes on diagnosis, therapy or prevention of chronic heart failure. Even so, the prognosis is bad: every second patient, no matter whether they are young or old, dies within the first five years after the disease has been diagnosed.

Researchers to combat toxic brown mould with its non-toxic cousin

24 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Aflatoxins are regarded as one of the most virulent natural carcinogenic substances. They are mainly produced by the mould aspergillus flavus. It grows in hot, arid regions, where it attacks maize, peanuts and pistachio nuts, inter alia. In Benin, aflatoxins can be found in 99 per cent of children.

Threadworms dependent on bacteria to survive

24 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) An antibiotic which has long been used to fight infections of the respiratory tract and intestine also seems to be able to defeat the dangerous pathogens causing elephantiasis. This is proved by a study carried out by parasitologists from the University of Bonn together with colleagues from Hamburg, Liverpool and Tanzania.

East-West divide mainly due to higher jobless levels in Eastern Germany

23 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) In Eastern Germany there are three times as many right-wing extremist crimes per inhabitant as in Western Germany. Is this the result of differing socialisation patterns, as politicians and others keep maintaining? Certainly not: the reason is primarily higher unemployment levels in former East Germany. This is the conclusion reached by researchers from the University of Bonn, the Institute for the Study of Labor and the University of Zurich.

Study shows: Farmers in tropics could benefit

23 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Genetically modified pest-resistant cotton may provide yields up to 80 per cent higher than traditional types. This has been observed by scientists from the University of Bonn and the University of California at Berkeley in field trials in India. Their conclusion: peasants in the tropics and sub-tropics can benefit substantially from GM plants.

Survey on washing-up behaviour of Europeans

22 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Wastefulness starts at home, in the kitchen sink. The amount of water and energy used in doing the washing-up more is often ten times that required by a resource-friendly economy dish-washer.

People who take risks more satisfied with their lives

22 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Tall people are more prepared to take risks than small people, women are more careful than men, and the willingness to take risks markedly decreases with age: these are the findings arrived at by researchers from the Institute for the Study of Labor, the University of Bonn and the German Institute for Economic Research in Berlin. For their study they evaluated more than 20,000 interviews with people from all over Germany and additionally confirmed the findings by experiment. What is particularly striking is that people who enjoy taking risks are more content with their lives.

People who take risks more satisfied with their lives

22 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Tall people are more prepared to take risks than small people, women are more careful than men, and the willingness to take risks markedly decreases with age: these are the findings arrived at by researchers from the Institute for the Study of Labor, the University of Bonn and the German Institute for Economic Research in Berlin.

Endogenous cannabinoids retard cerebral ageing

21 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) You can´t teach an old dog new tricks! No exhaustive scientific explanation has been found for this traditional wisdom as yet. For nobody knows which molecular processes actually induce the decline in learning ability. Experimental scientists have been attempting to throw more light upon this field. Earlier experiments had already revealed that juvenile mice, once rendered genetically resistant to hashish, became 'crack' learners.

Research scientists discover gene defect responsible for epilepsy

21 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Some 70 million people world-wide suffer from what is known as idiopathic epilepsy. The symptoms can vary considerably, ranging from brief unconsciousness and twitching of arms or legs to serious attacks of cramp. Research scientists at the Universities of Bonn, Ulm and Aachen have now been able to identify a gene that, if not properly functioning, can trigger all forms of commonly occurring idiopathic epilepsy. Their findings have just been published in the renowned science journal 'Nature Genetics'.

Residue extracts are effective mould inhibitors

20 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) During the production of olive oils a huge amount of peels, stones and other solid components arises. After appropriate treatment these residues seem to be suitable for inhibiting dangerous moulds. While searching for new recycling ways the undesirable bio waste scientists of the University of Bonn discovered the mould inhibiting potential of the olive residues and could prove it in the lab scale. The project is funded by the 'Bundesanstalt für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung' (state department of agriculture and nutrition).

Hereditary factor apparently plays a role in the migration of nerve cells in the developing brain

20 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) About five million Germans have serious learning difficulties when it comes to reading and writing. It is frequently the case that several members of the same family are affected. So hereditary disposition seems to play an important role in the occurrence of dyslexia.

Plateosaurs able to adjust growth to environmental conditions

19 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Palaeontologists from the University of Bonn report on an intriguing the journal Science. A dinosaur which they have examined was apparently able to vary the speed of its growth according the conditions obtaining in its environment. Although tortoises and crocodiles also do this, plateosaurus engelhardti seems to be unique among dinosaurs, leading experts to puzzle over whether the family history of the dinosaurs will need to be rewritten.

Halves the herbicide required

19 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) The University of Bonn's agricultural scientists have developed a herbicide sprayer which identifies weeds while moving across a field and is able to pinpoint which weeds it needs to attack, thus halving the amount of herbicide required. The researchers have now found a company, Kverneland, which is partnering the project and wants to mass-produce their invention. The German Federal Foundation for the Environment and the German Research Association DFG have been funding the project.

Hormones influence which brain areas are activated

18 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) We normally recognise what the meaning of a word is by using the left-hand temporal lobe of our brain, where Wernicke's area is located. In the right-hand lobe there is the same anatomical region, which is normally not used for speech comprehension, at least according to current mainstream scholarly thinking.

Active substance reduces bone loss in mice

18 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Medical researchers at the University of Bonn, working in collaboration with scientists from Israel, the USA and Britain, have identified a previously unknown regulatory mechanism in the process of bone loss. Their findings could open up new approaches to the treatment of osteoporosis. More than four million people, predominantly women, are estimated to suffer from this distressing illness in Germany alone.

Substance could add completely new weapon to drugs arsenal

17 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Sunflowers can produce a substance which prevents the AIDS pathogen HIV from reproducing, at least in cell cultures. This is the result of research carried out by scientists at the University of Bonn in cooperation with the caesar research centre. For several years now the hopes for a completely new group of AIDS drugs have been pinned to what is known as 'DCQA'.

Vestiges of the original building blocks of the universe?

17 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) An international team of astronomers headed by Dr. Michael Drinkwater (Queensland, Australia), Dr. Michael Gregg (Livermore, USA) and Dr. Michael Hilker from the University of Bonn has discovered a new kind of small, very compact galaxy. Their findings are published in current issue of the prestigious academic journal Nature. This new type of galaxy could help to explain the discrepancy between observations and cosmological models.

Mexico's traditional plant remedies help with diabetes

16 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Shamans in the highlands of Mexico traditionally prescribe specially prepared medicinal plants for diabetes. After many years of field studies and laboratory tests researchers from the University of Bonn have been able to confirm that these natural remedies really are highly effective and, what is more, have few side effects.

One million flies can't be wrong

16 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) In a situation like this even a 'bad' share can soar dramatically in price - simply because a lot of people choose it. Assuming the first two players get the tip to buy share A from their investment banker, even if player 3 then gets a tip to choose share B, that player may decide in favour of A, after all, his predecessors have apparently been tipped off to choose this share.

The herd instinct is less important than expected in share-buying

15 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Shareholders seen to be swayed by the buying pattern of other shareholders much less than has hitherto been assumed. This at least is the conclusion arrived at by economists of the Bank of England and the universities of Heidelberg and Bonn. Together with the corporate consultants McKinsey they scrutinised the share-buying behaviour of about 6,500 persons in an Internet experiment.

Patients survive incurable disease longer

15 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Together with US colleagues researchers from the University of Bonn have developed a new treatment which enables certain types of cancer to be treated more effectively than was previously the case. The radioactive substance becomes particularly concentrated in metastases in the bones and partially destroys them. To date such metastases have been incurable.

Hereditary factors make plants more resistant to aridity

14 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Scientists from the University of Bonn have identified a gene which makes plants more resistant to a shortage of water. They have constructed a variety in which the drought gene was frequently deployed. The gratifying result is that the genetically modified version can withstand aridity appreciably longer than its cousin in the wild. The results have been published in the latest edition of The Plant Journal. On a long-term basis they may contribute to developing crops which are resistant to drought.

Bonn astronomers measure size of recently discovered solar system object

14 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Claims that the Solar System has a tenth planet are bolstered by the finding by a group lead by Bonn astrophysicists that this alleged planet, announced last summer and tentatively named 2003 UB313, is bigger than Pluto. By measuring its thermal emission, the scientists were able to determine a diameter of about 3000 km, which makes it 700 km larger than Pluto and thereby marks it as the largest solar system object found since the discovery of Neptune in 1846.

Bonn study helps to explain pay differences between the sexes

13 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) The fact that on average women earn less than men is not necessarily the result of discrimination: when given a choice between a fixed salary and performance-related pay, women choose the former far more often than men, even if they could earn more by opting for the latter.

Responding to insults: Study shows women often more sharp-tongued than men

13 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Women, it is said, shy away from conflict, also in their use of language: unlike men, they try to de-escalate a heated verbal dispute. Rubbish, says Ruth-Maria Roth, a student of English language and literature at the University of Bonn. In a recent study she debunked the popular image of female behaviour, which is also shared by linguists, exposing it as a cliché. Her work on 'resposes to insults' has now earned her the university's Queen's Prize, an annual award established in 1965 by Queen Elizabeth II for research excellence in the field of English studies.

Novel analyser presented by Bonn scientists at MEDICA

12 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Scientists at Bonn University, in co-operation with NTTF and Theisen, have developed a novel appliance for rapid and accurate determination of the actual crystal formation risk in a patient.

Proto supermassive binary black hole detected in X-rays

12 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) An international team of astronomers led by D. Hudson from Bonn University has detected a proto supermassive binary black hole in images of NASA's Chandra X-ray observatory.

Bones of dwarf sauropods found, island location led to smaller size

11 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) When unusually small dinosaur fossils were found in a quarry on the northern edge of the Harz Mountains in 1998, it was initially assumed that these were the remains of a group of young dinosaurs. This was a fallacy, as the Bonn palaeontologist, Dr. Martin Sander, recently discovered.

New quasi particle with amazing properties discovered

11 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Physicists from the University of Bonn have discovered a new quasi particle and studied it in detail. The work was done in collaboration with the Max Planck Institute of Solid State Research in Stuttgart and the University of Moscow. For this they used a crystal consisting of small gold wires, which they used to trap the light particles, as it were.

Researchers find 17 million year old hamster burrow

10 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Palaeontologists of the University of Bonn have made an unusual find in the open-cast mining area around Garzweiler. In the path cleared by an excavator they discovered strange accumulations of fossil nuts. Their theory is that a hamster had hoarded food in its burrow and the passages leading to it so as to have something to nibble on in the cold season, more than 17 million years ago. This makes the find the oldest larder ever to be discovered.

Vendors with a high positive assessment rating get higher returns

10 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) A good reputation at Ebay is worth its weight in gold: whoever was given an overwhelmingly positive assessment by their customers at previous auctions on average achieves noticeably higher returns. This is what researchers from the University of Bonn and the University of Aachen have discovered.

Dishwashers are worthwhile even in one-person households

09 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Even if you live on your own, you don't need to be afraid of getting housemaid's hands: modern detergents and dishwashers destroy dangerous germs so effectively that singles can let used plates, cups and cutlery pile up for several days without any problem before they switch on the dishwasher.

Video pictures show transport on a conveyor belt

09 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) For the first time anywhere in the world physicists of the University of Bonn have filmed individual atoms as they are being transported across a space of just under a tenth of a millimetre on a kind of conveyor belt consisting of laser beams.

Even with secondary infection with hepatitis C more benefits than drawbacks

08 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) The immune deficiency syndrome AIDS can by now be treated successfully with effective drugs cocktails. Unfortunately, however, these involve the risk of dangerous side effects, as the drugs employed in this therapy may damage the liver. For those HIV patients, particularly, who in addition suffer from the inflammation of the liver known as hepatitis C, the 'highly active anti-retroviral therapy' has thus been hitherto regarded as risky, unjustifiably so, as researchers from the University of Bonn have now confirmed in the current issue of the prestigious medical journal The Lancet (vol. 362, p.168ff.).

Munich and Bonn researchers decode mechanism of immune defence

08 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Viruses are cunning little parasites: they breed by forcing the affected cells to do what they want. By fake commands they get them to produce new viruses. However, the cell often notices that there is something fishy going on. Researchers at the University of Bonn and Munich's Ludwig Maximilian University have now discovered why: cells are in a position to attach their 'signature' to their commands, whereas viruses cannot.

Bonn scientists discover molecular basis for dark adaptation in mice

07 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) In poor light the eyes of mice react like some digital cameras: they reduce their resolution while at the same time increasing their sensitivity. Specialists in the retina focus the information of several light sensor cells for this purpose. Scientists from the University of Bonn and their colleagues from Oldenburg, Bochum and Kobe (Japan), have now discovered how all this works.

Newly discovered mechanism could be long-sought missing link in cause of disease

07 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) The suspect most often cited when discussing possible factors triggering Alzheimer's is the cell-toxic protein abeta, which regularly crops up in large quantities in the cerebral cortex of patients affected by Alzheimer's. Until recently, however, it was unclear whether it can actually enter the cell plasma and cause damage there. Bonn researchers have now succeeded in shaking the alibi of this little protein. Their findings could prove to be the long-sought missing link in the chain of factors leading up to this disease of the brain.

Researchers discover why valerian calms us down

06 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Hippocrates knew long ago that valerian calms people down and helps them to sleep. However, until recently it was a mystery how it did this. Pharmaceutists at the University of Bonn have now identified a substance which is probably partly responsible for this sedative effect. The substance, which belongs to the group of lignans, latches on to specific receptors in the brain which control the body's sleeping and waking rhythms.

Willingness to take risks & trust others are inherited, this also has implications for economic success

06 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Whether you go through life as a daredevil or tend to avoid taking risks depends a lot on your own pedigree. This is shown by a current study by the Institute for the Study of Labor (Institut zur Zukunft der Arbeit, ZIA) and the University of Bonn. According to this study, parents who are willing to take risks tend on average to have children who are more prepared to take risks.

Prion-infected mice survive longer

05 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) A new method of treatment can appreciably slow down the progress of the fatal brain disease scrapie in mice. This has been established by researchers from the Universities of Munich and Bonn together with their colleagues at the Max Planck Institute in Martinsried.

Neuro scientists in Bonn aim to communicate by sense of touch

05 March 2007 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) The interpersonal exchange of information is mostly achieved using sounds and images. Neuro scientists at Bonn University are now aiming to utilise the sense of touch for communication. SMS messages would then be read, for example, using the fingertips, and the car steering wheel would be able to convey a warning in difficult situations on the road, or provide directions as to the correct rout. Specially designed software would develop the most appropriate 'touch vocabulary' for each individual user.

Dinosaurs – who already had composites – wore bullet-proof vests

16 November 2004 - University of Bonn (Universität Bonn) Today's composite materials, which are used to make the rotor blades for wind farms or bullet-proof vests, are based on the same principle as dinosaur armour, except that in these cases the collagen mats are replaced by glass or carbon fibres.