idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
idw - Informationsdienst
Wissenschaft
Maria Rosenthal expands research group
Dr Maria Rosenthal has taken up her professorship in Structural Virology at the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) and the University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf. The professorship is funded as part of the Leibniz Programme for Female Professors. Rosenthal and her team are researching new therapeutic approaches to combating bunyaviruses – a group of RNA viruses with high pandemic potential.
With this new professorship, BNITM strengthens its expertise in structure-based drug development. Rosenthal’s research focuses on Lassa virus and related pathogens for which there are currently no approved treatments. Her goal is to block the viral polymerase – a key enzyme in the virus replication cycle – using highly specific inhibitors.
To achieve this, her team combines methods from virology, structural biology, biochemistry and drug discovery. In collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology (ITMP), the group screens potential drug candidates using high-throughput technologies. Promising substances are tested for antiviral activity in cell culture experiments at BNITM’s high-containment laboratories. Cryo-electron microscopy and X-ray crystallography provide atomic-level insight into the molecular structures targeted by the inhibitors.
The Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and member of the Executive Board of the University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), Prof. Dr Schwappach-Pignataro: "With the appointment of Maria Rosenthal, we are gaining an outstanding scientist who closely links basic research and medical application. Her work on the structure of viruses is paving the way for new treatment approaches against infections that have been virtually uncontrollable until now. We particularly welcome the fact that she will also be contributing her expertise to teaching at the University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, thereby introducing students to current, research-related issues at an early stage."
The W3 professorship is part of the Leibniz Professorship Programme and has long-term structural integration at both host institutions.
Professor Dr Jürgen May, Chair of the BNITM Board of Directors, said: “Maria Rosenthal stands for scientific excellence, innovative approaches and a clear, forward-looking vision in antiviral fundamental research. We are delighted that she has chosen to continue her career with us – a decision made possible also thanks to the Leibniz Professorship Programme and our strong institutional links with UKE, the University of Hamburg and CSSB.”
The research group will move into the Centre for Structural Systems Biology (CSSB) in Science City Hamburg-Bahrenfeld. CSSB scientists investigate the molecular mechanisms of infection to identify new therapeutic targets. Rosenthal’s research fits seamlessly into this environment and will benefit from CSSB’s state-of-the-art infrastructure.
About the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM)
The Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) is Germany's largest institution for research, care and teaching in the field of tropical and emerging infectious diseases. BNITM's research has always been focused on global health/One Health and translation – the transfer of basic research into application. This research approach is also reflected in the institute's five sections: Pathogen (infectious agents) -> Interface (immunology, host/infectious agent) -> Patient (clinical) -> Population (epidemiology) -> Implementation (successful establishment of knowledge). The Data Science Centre has just been newly established.
Current thematic priorities include malaria, haemorrhagic fever viruses, neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), immunology, epidemiology and the clinic of tropical infections, as well as the mechanisms of virus transmission by mosquitoes. The institute has laboratories with the highest biological safety level (BSL4) and a secure insectarium (BSL3) for handling highly pathogenic viruses and infected insects. The BNITM's mobile laboratories are available for global outbreak control of highly pathogenic or highly infectious viruses.
The BNITM is the National Reference Centre for the detection of all tropical infectious agents, a consultation laboratory for bornaviruses, a WHO Collaborating Centre for Arboviruses and Haemorrhagic Fever Viruses, a WHO Collaborating Centre for Behavioural Research to Promote Global Health, and an institute in the Leibniz Association.
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