ImmunoSensation2 is a Cluster of Excellence at the University of Bonn funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG). We are dedicated to the study of innate immunity beyond the boundaries of classical immunology. We address the immune system as a sensory organ for health, which we term the immune sensory system. We are immunologists, neurobiologists, systems biologists, biochemists, biophysicists and mathematicians from the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences at the University of Bonn and the German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) of the Helmholtz Association.
Founded in 2012, ImmunoSensation2 is currently in its twelfth year of funding. We continue to pursue our mission of innovative science in immunology. Further, we link immunology to other systems, such as the metabolic system and the nervous system. Ultimately, we want to better understand the intimate connection between the immune sensory system and human health and disease.
"We understand the immune system as a sensory organ"
—The German Society for Orthopaedic Rheumatology (DGORh) awards the Arthur Vick Prize annually. The award serves to promote research in the field of orthopaedic rheumatology. The prize is endowed with 7,000 euros.
—The formation of pores by a particular protein, gasdermin D, plays a key role in inflammatory reactions. During its activation, an inhibitory part is split off. More than 30 of the remaining protein fragments then combine to form large pores in the cell membrane, which allow the release of inflammatory messengers.
As methods for studying these processes in living cells have so far been inadequate, the sequence of oligomerization, pore formation and membrane incorporation has remained unclear until now.
—Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common cancer in children and poses a significant threat to health. The joint research project "EDI-4-ALL" (Early detection and interception for acute lymphoblastic leukemia) aims at the development of new analysis tools for the early detection of a genetic predisposition to ALL in newborns. The project is a joint endeavour by leading scientists from the Universities of Düsseldorf, Gießen and Bonn, the Charité Berlin and Zytovision, under participation of Prof. Alksandra Pandyra. The project is funded with a total of 2.6 million Euros by the BMBF.