Max Delbrück Center MDC - Max-Delbrück-Centrum für molekulare Medizin in der Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft

Our Research

Research at the Max Delbrück Center aims to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of health and disease, and translate those findings into medical practice.

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Data Science and Artificial Intelligence

Enabling multi-modal prediction from molecules to cohorts.

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Research Highlights

Our research teams publish around 450 specialist articles every year. Our research highlights can be found here, presented in a comprehensible format.

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Selection of research highlights
induced pluripotent stem cells in a pluripotency test

Research News & Events

Group photo of attendees smiling on stage at a conference event
Science

Our inventors meet Berlin’s venture capitalists

The first VC Day at the Max Delbrück Center brought together our budding entrepreneurs with the CLIC incubator and top venture capital working in Berlin biotechnology for a day of pitching, exchange and networking.
Large group photo of attendees waving at Summer Science Day 2025 outside a research facility.
Institute & Campus

Summer Science Day 2025: Uniting under one goal

Lab tours, lively talks, music and awards – Summer Science Day 2025 brought the Max Delbrück Center community together like never before. In addition to food and games, this year's new format created space to spark dialogue across our diverse teams.
T-cells (highlighted red) attacking a cancer cell
Science

Model partnership with NCT Berlin

Starting in 2027, Captain T Cell – a Max Delbrück Center biotech spin-off – will begin the first clinical trial of its TCR-T cell therapy. This has been made possible through funding from the National Center for Tumor Diseases and close collaboration with Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin.
Porträt

Treating brain tumors with MRI

Thoralf Niendorf at the Max Delbrück Center has won a Proof of Concept Grant from the European Research Council to study the use of heat generated during MRI scans to selectively destroy brain tumors. The method could pose significantly fewer risks than laser ablation or surgery.
Oliver Daumke
Science

The cellular engineer

Molecular machines carry out many vital processes inside our cells. When their components – protein building blocks – are faulty, it can lead to disease. Structural biologist Oliver Daumke investigates how these machines are built, what makes them work, and what goes wrong when they malfunction.
fridge
Science

Cutting the environmental impact of research

From reducing freezer usage to plastic waste, Max Delbrück Center labs have been implementing strategies from the LEAF program for sustainable research. As more labs join the program, they are not only contributing to reaching our sustainability goals, they are also improving research quality.
woman

Maike Sander elected member of EMBO

The European Molecular Biology Organization has elected Scientific Director of the Max Delbrück Center Maike Sander to its membership. She will join a community of more than 2,100 leading life scientists who guide the organization and help shape the future of life science research.
Scientific image
Science

Two first-place awards in scientific image contest

Helmholtz Imaging once again selected many outstanding scientific images during its annual contest: The Max Delbrück Center came out on top twice in the Best Scientific Image Contest, with Jana Kroll winning the Jury Award and Rafael Deliz Aguirre taking the Public Choice Award.
Herz einer Maus im späten Embryonalstadium
Science

How the early heart develops

The ion channel PIEZO2 doesn’t just convey touch stimuli. It also plays a key role in the development of coronary vessels, a team led by Annette Hammes from the Max Delbrück Center reports in “Nature Cardiovascular Research.” The findings could improve our understanding of congenital heart defects.

All News & Events

Publications

HDAC inhibitors engage MITF and the disease-associated microglia signature to enhance amyloid β uptake

Brain Behav Immun

ACE2/Angiotensin-(1-7)/Mas and the brain

Brain Res

Neuroprotective role of high dose Vitamin D supplementation in multiple sclerosis: Sub-analysis of the EVIDIMS trial

Mult Scler Relat Disord

An acetylated Lysine Residue of Its Low-glucose Inhibitory Domain Controls Activity and Protein Interactions of ChREBP

J Mol Biol

All Publications