Dear reader,

Berlin Science Week kicks off this Saturday November 1st – and we are looking forward to hosting several events. Be sure to check the program for a complete list, which includes a discussion about sharks and pain and a world premiere of jazz composer Wolfgang Köhler’s Cello Sonata as part of our “Spark” series. 

In other news, Thomas Willnow discovered a mechanism by which the APOE4 gene variant raises the risk of Alzheimer’s disease; Michael Gotthardt showed that an experimental therapy to treat a common form of heart failure is effective in a mouse model of the disease. There were new grants awarded, a new PhD exchange with Edinburgh and a podcast with Michael Bader. And don’t miss our profile of epidemiologist Tobias Pischon!

Enjoy reading!

Your Insights Team

PS: For more news about the Max Delbrück Center, just follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram or Bluesky.

IN FOCUS

Sharks, microbes and a world premiere

Berlin Science Week 2025 kicks off on November 1. The Max Delbrück Center invites science enthusiasts to talks and tours, a concert, and exhibitions highlighting our research and to join discussions on a wide range of topics.

Our highlights

Our full program

RESEARCH

Why APOE4 raises Alzheimer’s risk

Researchers led by Thomas Willnow at our center and Aarhus University have found a mechanism through which the APOE4 gene variant, long linked to a high risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, impairs neuronal function in the aging brain. The research was published in “Nature Metabolism.”

Read more

 

A potential new drug for stiff hearts

Michael Gotthardt and collaborators are developing a drug to treat a common type of heart failure characterized by impaired cardiac filling. In “Cardiovascular Research,” his group and a U.S. team showed the therapy improves cardiac function in a mouse model of the disease.

Read more

 

 

How malaria harms unborn babies

U.K.-based Wellcome has awarded over €2 million to an international research effort to uncover how malaria can injure developing babies. Emanuel Wyler from the Landthaler lab will be studying the molecular interaction between the parasite Plasmodium falciparum and the placenta.

Read more

OUR PEOPLE

The investigator of risk

Epidemiologist Tobias Pischon not only studies the incidence of chronic diseases in populations, but also why they develop. To better predict and prevent these conditions, he searches for molecular markers in the blood and studies the influence of environment, genes, and lifestyle.

Read more

 

Five Berlin-based leading minds honored

Five scientists from our institute have been named among the 100 most important minds in Berlin science in 2025 by the newspaper Tagesspiegel: Simone Spuler, Clara Vázquez García, Thoralf Niendorf, Gabriele Schiattarella and Ana Pombo.

Read more

 

 

Furthering careers through scientific exchange

Yun-Hsuan Huang spent two intense weeks at the University of Edinburgh as part our PhD exchange program in Medical Systems Biology. She returned with new skills, scientific insights – and a broader outlook on research and collaboration.

Read more

RECOMMENDED READING

What are you reading, Mr González?

José Antonio Nimo González is a PhD student in Fabian Coscia’s lab, where he works with proteomic data. His book recommendation addresses the ongoing threat of tuberculosis and raises powerful questions about global health and justice.

Read more
 

SOUND ON

The multiple roles of serotonin: A podcast with Michael Bader

The neurotransmitter serotonin is not only responsible for the feeling of happiness in the brain, it is also present in the body. In the podcast “Forschungsquartett” (Research Quartet), a collaboration between detektor.fm and our center, Michael Bader reports on what happens when our bodies have too little – or too much – of it.

Learn more
 

Zoom in on the cell: A podcast with Evangelia Nathanail

Evangelia Nathanail is fascinated by the structures of biological macromolecules. The biochemist from Oliver Daumke's lab discusses zooming in on the details of the protein machines in our cells, creativity in the lab, and role models in the podcast “Zia – Audible Women in Science.”

Learn more
 

OPEN POSITIONS

Curious about a career that combines science and innovation? At the Max Delbrück Center you can expect exciting challenges, interdisciplinary and international teams and the opportunity to help shape the medicine of tomorrow – whether in administration or in the lab.

All open positions

SAVE THE DATE

 

November 1 - 2

 

Museum für Naturkunde Berlin
CAMPUS
Invalidenstr. 43
10115 Berlin


Biopolis: The Podcast

Berlin Science Week

Join us at the Biopolis station, where we explore the fascinating world of microbe science through the podcast “Biopolis.” Hosted by Theda Bartolomaeus and producer Michiel van Poelgeest, this podcast reveals how the tiny organisms living in our bodies shape our health and identity.
 

November 3 - 10

 

Monday - Friday
11 a.m. - 6 p.m.

MDC-BIMSB
Lobby
Hannoversche Str. 28
10115 Berlin


Photo Exhibition: Discoverers

Berlin Science Week

Curiousness drives humanity – it has taken us to the depths of the ocean and all the way into outer space. When it comes to our bodies, who are the people most compelled to explore how they work? To develop cures that benefit us all? Welcome to “Discoverers”! In our portrait exhibition, meet the scientists of Max Delbrück Center. Enjoy the intimate photographs taken by Pablo Castagnola.
 

November 4

4 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

MDC-BIMSB
Large Conference Room - Elsa Neumann
Hannoversche Str. 28
10115 Berlin


Podium Discussion: 50 Years After “Jaws”: Sharks, Pain, Ethics

Berlin Science Week

A shark rises from the water, biting off limbs – this is the image we have of sharks. Join neuroscientists and divers as they explore the other side: how do sharks process painful stimuli?
 

November 4 & 6

6 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.

MDC-BIMSB
5th floor
Hannoversche Str. 28
10115 Berlin


One Cell at a Time: Measuring The Building Blocks of our Bodies

Berlin Science Week

We begin with an introduction to single cell technologies. Researchers will share insights into how organs and tissues form, how our blood and immune system develop, how mutations can trigger disease, and how we can make our immune system fight cancer. Along the way, you will see how machine learning and data science help us make sense of millions of measurements.

After the talk, small guided lab tours offer an up-close look at how these discoveries are made.
 

November 5

6 p.m. - 8:15 p.m.

MDC-BIMSB
Large Conference Room - Elsa Neumann
Hannoversche Str. 28
10115 Berlin


Spark "Beauty is truth, truth beauty"?

Berlin Science Week

CONCERT 6 p.m. - 7 p.m.

SooJin Anjou, piano and Cicely Parnas, cello

Claude Debussy, Sonata for cello and piano (1915)

Wolfgang Köhler, Jazz Sonata for cello and piano (2022), world premiere

DISCUSSION 7:15 p.m. - 8.15 p.m.
"Beauty is truth, truth beauty"?

In times of uncertainty, imagination is easily lost to urgency. Yet it is precisely now that we must ask: What lies beyond the immediate, and how can beauty help us see it? As we look “beyond now” with Berlin Science Week 2025, we invite bold ideas that transcend disciplines. Can beauty become a language of science? Can science, in turn, be a source of beauty and hope?
With Cicely Parnas, Wolfgang Köhler, Georg Braune, Stefanie Grosswendt
 

November 6 - 7

 

Thursday: 9:00 a.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Friday: 9:15 a.m. - 2:45 p.m.

Max Delbrück Center
MDC.C, Axon 1
Robert-Rössle-Straße 10
13125 Berlin


Shaping the future of animal research communication

EARA Conference

We are thrilled to announce the first-ever European Animal Research Association (EARA) Conference, celebrating our 10th anniversary and bringing together EARA members, the wider biomedical community and science communicators to shape the future of animal research communication.
 

November 7

6 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Auditorium CharitéCrossOver (CCO) Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin Campus Charité Mitte (CCM)
Charitéplatz 1
Geländeadresse: Virchowweg 6
10117 Berlin


Zeitenwende in der Gesundheitsforschung

Berlin Science Week

Podiumsdiskussion Verantwortung und Kommunikation im Umgang mit Tierversuchen mit

Adrian Grasse, CDU, Mitglied des Deutschen Bundestages 

Klaus Kronewitz, Patientenvertreter, Vorsitzender der Selbsthilfegruppe Prostata Berlin Nord

Dr. Anna Löwa, Postdoktorandin, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin

Julia Koch, Der Spiegel, Ressort Wissenschaft und Technik

Prof. Stefan Treue, Direktor des Deutschen Primatenzentrums GmbH — Leibniz-Institut für Primatenforschung, Sprecher der Informationsinitiative Tierversuche Verstehen

Dr. Roman Stilling (Moderation), Wissenschaftlicher Referent der Informationsinitiative Tierversuche Verstehen der Allianz der Wissenschaftsorganisationen
 

November 18

6 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Max Delbrück Center
MDC.C, Axon 1
Robert-Rössle-Straße 10
13125 Berlin

 

Von Kobalt-Kanone bis Schlaftherapie


Der Medizinstandort Berlin-Buch war regelmäßig Thema in den DEFA-Wochenschauen. Es galt, eine erfolgreiche Gesundheitspolitik der SED zu demonstrieren. Elena Demke kuratierte eine Zusammenstellung mit Ausschnitten von 1950 bis 1986.

Campuskino, organisiert gemeinsam mit dem Berliner Beauftragten zur Aufarbeitung der SED-Diktatur (BAB)
 

November 21

7 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Jeanne Mammen Saal at the Torhaus (A8),
Campus Berlin-Buch,
Robert-Rössle-Str. 10
13125 Berlin

 

The Jeanne Mammen Salon – "A True Treasure"


On the occasion of Jeanne Mammen's 135th birthday, we are reviving the salon evenings so cherished by Jeanne and Max Delbrück. Dr. Jochen Müller and Dr. Martina Weinland (consultant at the Berlin City Museum) will guide visitors through the exhibition in the Torhaus, providing insights into the artist's life through exemplary works. Musical accompaniment on the guitar by Stefan Maria Rother.

Event in German.

Registration required.