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Bacteriophages are viruses that specifically attack bacteria but are harmless to humans. They attach themselves to bacteria, inject their genetic material, and reprogram the cells so that they only produce phage genetic material – until they eventually burst and release new phages. In theory, phages are a promising alternative to antibiotics, but in practice, major challenges must be overcome. In this episode of the HZI podcast “InFact”, Jun. Prof. Jens Hör, head of the junior research group “Molecular Principles of RNA Phages” at the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (HIRI), talks about his research on this fascinating tool in the fight against resistant germs.

04.09.2025

HIRI

News

The Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) in Braunschweig succeeded with three project proposals in the zukunft.niedersachsen funding program of the Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture (MWK) and the Volkswagen Foundation. In the “MacroAB-Delivery” project, a research team coordinated by Prof. Dagmar Wirth from the HZI aims to advance a new method for the local treatment of implant-associated infections. The “MoreHealth” project, coordinated at Hannover Medical School (MHH) with the participation of Prof. Jochen Hühn (HZI), is establishing an infrastructure with comprehensive health data that can be analyzed for various diseases with a focus on individual risk and severity. Prof. Alice McHardy and her team at the HZI are involved in the INDIVO research network, which is coordinated at the MHH and seeks new methods for more accurate diagnosis and targeted treatment of bacterial infections in liver cirrhosis patients. Five joint projects to expand personalized medicine are being funded as part of zukunft.niedersachsen with a total budget of nine million euros.

01.09.2025

HZI Campus

News

Why do people infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) often suffer from cardiovascular, liver, and other comorbidities? Researchers at the Centre for Individualised Infection Medicine (CiiM) investigated this question as part of the 2000HIV study, a multi-omics cohort coordinated by several research centers in the Netherlands. They identified various molecules and mechanisms that could be linked to the development of these comorbidities. The scientists are making the extensive results of their study freely available. They hope that they will be used for new research approaches and lead to a better understanding of the underlying causes and to helpful therapies. The researchers have now published their study results in the journal Nature Medicine. The CiiM is a joint institution of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) and Hannover Medical School (MHH).

21.08.2025

CiiM

News

The former President of Hannover Medical School (MHH) and Clinical Director of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), Prof. Michael P. Manns, passed away on 15 August 2025. Manns succumbed to a tumor disease at the age of 73. As a renowned gastroenterologist, he belonged to the worldwide scientific elite, was one of the most cited scientists, and enriched both the German and international research landscape as an excellent communicator. Until the very end, Manns was still actively involved in research at the MHH and promoted the scientific organization of the Centre for Individualised Infection Medicine (CiiM), a joint institution of the HZI and the MHH, which he co-founded. Manns also supported another joint center of the HZI and MHH, the TWINCORE, with his extensive expertise.

18.08.2025

CiiM

Electron micrograph of Klebsiella oxytoca

News

A balanced gut microbiome not only contributes to digestion, but is also an important protective factor against infections. Researchers at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) led by Prof. Till Strowig, scientist in the German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), want to harness the power of the microbiome to prevent serious infections. They have discovered that bacteria of the species Klebsiella oxytoca can displace pathogenic bacteria from the gut and want to develop a living biotherapeutic based on this finding. The DZIF is now providing 2.2 million euros in funding for product development until the first tests on humans.

07.08.2025

HZI Campus

HIOH

News

Since the start of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, several variants of the virus have developed into Variants of Concern (VOCs), as classified by the World Health Organization (WHO). VOCs are virus variants that are predicted or known to cause large waves of infections due to their altered phenotypic characteristics and with risk of altering disease severity, reducing vaccine effectiveness or otherwise leading to increased burden of health care systems. Researchers at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) and the German Center for Infection Research (DZIF) have developed an analysis method to detect VOC early in their development. The study was published in the journal Nature Communications.

22.07.2025

HZI Campus

BRICS

HZI in the media

... diesem Ergebnis kommt ein Forschungsteam des Helmholtz-Zentrums für Infektionsforschung (HZI) in Zusammenarbeit mit der ...

14.10.2025

Deutsches Ärzteblatt

Individualisierte Infektionsmedizin, einer gemeinsamen Einrichtung des Helmholtz-Zentrums für Infektionsforschung und der MHH. Bis zuletzt

13.10.2025

Springer

Ein Grippe-Test könnte in Zukunft womöglich sehr schnell gehen: einfach ein Kaugummi kauen. Ein deutsches ...

09.10.2025

Apotheken Umschau

... am 1. Oktober 2025. Das HIPS ist ein Standort des Helmholtz-Zentrums für Infektionsforschung (HZI) in ...

07.10.2025

juraforum.de

... „Epidemiologie und Ökologie antimikrobieller Resistenz“ am HZI-Standort Helmholtz-Institut für One Health (HIOH), am Projekt ...

06.10.2025

Bochumer-Zeitung

” says Mark Brönstrup, a professor at both the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research and Leibniz University Hannover, who wasn’t involved

04.10.2025

MIT CSAIL

... Hannover (MHH) und Klinischer Direktor des Helmholtz-Zentrums für Infektionsforschung (HZI). Auch an der Gründung des ...

03.10.2025

Deutsches Ärzteblatt

... des Sensormoleküls

Prof. Carlos A. Guzmán (Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung, Braunschweig) mit den Teams um Dr. ...

02.10.2025

Medizin Aspekte

... ” Seit Mai 2025 im Humanprogramm des Helmholtz-Zentrums für Infektionsforschung (HZI), Dr. Max Kellner-Leiter der jungen ...

25.09.2025

Die heutigen Nachrichten

” (Vico) within the Human program at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI).the‌ Vico group continues to investigate resilience

25.09.2025

World Today News

Forschende des Helmholtz-Instituts für RNA-basierte Infektionsforschung (HIRI), einem Standort des Braunschweiger Helmholtz-Zentrums für ...

19.09.2025

Verband Deutscher Biologen e.V.

purposes.

Researchers at the HIRI, a site of the Braunschweig Helmholtz Center for Infection Research (HZI), in cooperation with the Julius

19.09.2025

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