Aktualitäten 2019

Conotoxins are bioactive peptides found in the venom that marine cone snails produce for prey capture and defense. They are used as pharmacological tools to study pain signalling and have the potential to become a new class of analgesics. To date, more than 10,000 conotoxin sequences have been discovered.

The research group of Nuno Maulide from the Faculty of Chemistry of the University of Vienna has, in cooperation with the Research Center for Molecular Medicine (CeMM) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, achieved the synthesis of a potential immunosuppressive agent by modification of a naturally occurring compound.

Chemists in Vienna find a method to replace hydrogen with fluorine in organic molecules The development and improvement of pharmaceuticals plays the central role in the ongoing battle against human disease. Organic synthesis is the field that enables these developments as it offers the toolbox to diversify chemical structures.

Secondary plant compounds as an alternative to antioxidant vitamins and minerals The human organism is constantly exposed to so-called free radicals, which are a burden on the body. If they get out of hand, the result is oxidative stress, which can promote disease. While this has been treated in the past with the help of antioxidant vitamins and minerals, scientists are now increasingly turning to the use of phytochemicals, representing plant secondary metabolites.