The Pieters Laboratory—News

August 18, 2026

STUDY CHALLENGES A LONG-HELD VIEW IN CELL BIOLOGY

Scientific progress comes not only from discovering something entirely new, but also from taking a fresh look at long-held assumptions. In a recent study, Prof. Jean Pieters’ team at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel challenges the decades-old view that coronin proteins primarily regulate the cytoskeleton. See here for more.

November 08, 2022

CONTROL OF CELL POPULATION SIZES: WHEN IS ENOUGH ENOUGH?

The team led by Prof. Jean Pieters at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel has uncovered a cell-intrinsic mechanism, that controls the appropriate number of T cells in the organism and thus ensures that the immune system functions properly. This mechanism has also been found in slime moulds, suggesting that this regulation of cell density is evolutionarily conserved. See here for More.

December 21, 2021

T CELLS: NO TIME TO DIE

They are at the forefront in the fight against viruses, bacteria, and malignant cells: the T cells of our immune system. But the older we get, the fewer of them our body produces. Thus, how long we remain healthy also depends on how long the T cells survive. Researchers led by Prof. Jean Pieters of the Biozentrum, University of Basel, have now uncovered a previously unknown signaling pathway essential for T cell viability. See more.

January 14, 2019

ENGINEERED T CELLS PROMOTE LONG-TERM ORGAN TRANSPLANT ACCEPTANCE

Organ transplant rejection is a major problem in transplantation medicine. Suppressing the immune system to prevent organ rejection, however, opens the door to life threatening infections. A team of researchers led by Prof. Jean Pieters at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel has now discovered a molecular approach preventing rejection of the transplanted graft while simultaneously maintaining the ability to fight against infections. See here for more.

April 1, 2014

LACK OF CORONIN 1 PROTEIN CAUSES LEARNING DEFICITS, AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR

Learning and memory relies on the proper processing of signals that stimulate neuronal cells within the brain. Researchers have uncovered an important role for the protein coronin 1 in cognition and behavior. They found that a lack of coronin 1 in mouse and in humans is associated with poor memory, defective learning and aggressive behavior. See here for more.