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Illustration of a heart organoid with a tubulin cytoskeleton (red), cell nuclei (blue), and cardiac muscle cells (green)
Story
Organoids might sound a bit like science fiction. Yet they have firmly established themselves as a reality in research. Offering a wide range of possibilities, they enable scientists to study organ functions, diseases, and treatment options. These mini-organs are also opening up entirely new avenues for research into infections.
30.06.2026
A man and a woman wearing white lab coats are smiling at the camera while standing in a laboratory
News
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) can cause severe lower respiratory tract infections, particularly in newborns and the elderly. How the virus manages to evade the immune system and what changes it triggers in infected cells had not yet been fully understood. Researchers from TWINCORE, Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research, have now, together with interdisciplinary colleagues from Würzburg, Regensburg, Braunschweig and Hannover, demonstrated how the virus interferes with the genetic programme of respiratory cells, inhibits the immune response and disrupts cell function. They have published these findings in the journal Science Advances.
22.06.2026
Immune cells and antibodies fighting a virus
News
Environmental factors such as chemical pollutants, psychosocial stressors, and antibiotics as well as an unhealthy diet affect the human immune system and microbiome. They can contribute to an increased risk of infection, reduced immune resilience, and an altered immune response to vaccination. To date, there has been little research into how these factors affect viral immune responses in pregnant women as well as in children and adolescents. The aim of the EMVIC collaborative project is to close this gap using data from the LiNA mother–child cohort of the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ). The project is coordinated by the UFZ with participation from the University of Leipzig, Hannover Medical School, and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), and will start on 1 July.
22.06.2026
Collecting samples at MICROBELIX Wilderness Camp.
Story
There is an urgent need for novel drugs in the fight against infectious diseases, and natural compounds derived from soil bacteria are a promising source for their development. Researchers at HIPS, the HZI site in Saarland, are counting on the public’s help: The citizen science project MICROBELIX aims to harness the biodiversity of soil bacteria for drug discovery.
18.06.2026
Portrait of Craig Crews
News
The Friends of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) in Braunschweig and Technische Universität Braunschweig have awarded Prof. Dr. Craig M. Crews (Yale University, USA) the 2026 Inhoffen Medal. Craig Crews is regarded as a pioneer of innovative therapeutic approaches. The Inhoffen Medal recognises outstanding scientific achievements in the field of organic chemistry and drug discovery. The award ceremony took place as part of the 31st Hans Herloff Inhoffen Lecture at the Haus der Wissenschaft in Braunschweig on 11 June 2026.
12.06.2026
Vaccination is on vaccination record
News
The European Vaccines Hub (EVH) for Pandemic Readiness convened its annual consortium meeting at the Old University of the Marburg University, in Marburg, Germany, from May 19 to 21, 2026. The EVH is a pan-European public private partnership co-funded under the EU4Health program by the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA) on behalf of the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (DG HERA) of the European Commission. The Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) is an affiliated entity of the initiative and leads a work package on data management and AI.
10.06.2026

HZI in the media

... ist Leiterin der Abteilung Epidemiologie am Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (HZI) und Mitglied der Ständigen Impfkommission ...

30.10.2026
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Focus Online

von Mikroorganismen und Zellkulturen und des Helmholtz-Zentrums für Infektionsforschung zwei bislang unbekannte Naturstoffe entdeckt. Die

30.10.2026
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Bionity.COM

Researchers at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) and its Saarland University partner site, the Helmholtz Institute for

27.10.2026
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Scienmag Science Magazine

experimental and modeling study led by scientists at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research in Braunschweig. The researchers found that

26.10.2026
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Bioengineer.org

... am Helmholtz Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (HZI) und dessen Saarbrücker Standort, dem Helmholtz-Institut für Pharmazeutische ...

26.10.2026
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Verband Deutscher Biologen e.V.

Dr. Milan Gerovac, Nachwuchsgruppenleiter am Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (HZI) in Braunschweig, erhält den begehrten ...

24.10.2026
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Homburg

heads the Research Group “Molecular Cell Biology” at the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research (HZI), has shed new light on the central

23.10.2026
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Health Medicine Network

... “

 

Das Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung: Wissenschaftler:innen am Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (HZI) untersuchen ...

22.10.2026
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DeutschesGesundheitsPortal

... Lange, Leiterin der Abteilung Epidemiologie am Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung in Braunschweig und Mitglied der Ständigen ...

22.10.2026
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DIE WELT

... befallen. Am HZI in Braunschweig wird daran geforscht.

 

Am Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (HZI) in Braunschweig ...

22.10.2026
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NDR Norddeutscher Rundfunk

are extremely complex.

 

Researchers at the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) have now shown that artificial

21.10.2026
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Phys.org

Würzburg (JMU) und dem Helmholtz-Institut für RNA-basierte Infektionsforschung (HIRI), einem Standort des HZI in ...

20.10.2026
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Regional Heute

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