Current topics
A well-functioning immune system is essential for a healthy organism. Our environment holds a multitude of pathogens. To successfully fight these threats, the immune system has developed complex mechanisms of defense. Read on...
The lungs allow the exchange of gases between our body and its environment. Thus they ensure the vital supply with oxygen to every cell. If an inflammatory response occurs, a life-threatening situation can quickly arise. Read on...
Basics
The most important basic building blocks of our body are proteins. They can act as microscopic machines, assemble macrocopic strucures, serve as signal transmitters and do many other tasks. They themselves consist to a large extent of only 20 amino acids. Read on...
Since early 2020 they have gripped the world again as SARS-CoV-2 (coronavirus), originating from China, developed into a pandemic - even though viruses are not even living beings regarding common definitions. In fact they are such simple microscopic units that it is fascinating what amount of damage they are able to cause. Read on...
Life can be small. The smallest living beings belong to the microscopic world of bacteria and archaea. They consist of one single cell (human: ~35'000'000'000'000 cells) and have a length of about 2 micrometers (that's 0,002 millimeters). They are highly specialised and can be found everywhere on our planet. Read on...
