Institute & Campus

Jiyan Xu is a doctoral student in Sofia Forslund's lab. She is investigating how diet, allergies, and potentially harmful microbes interact and shape the human gut microbiome. Jiyan Xu recommends a deeply thought-provoking, philosophical book for us. It is a classic of Japanese literature.

Lena Fürst, a member of Annette Hammes-Lewin's team, is being honored by the Berlin Chamber of Commerce and Industry for finishing at the top of her biology lab technician training class. In this interview, she talks about the obstacles she has had to overcome and offers advice to other trainees.

The Max Delbrück Center has once again been awarded the “audit berufundfamilie” certification – an acknowledgment of our commitment to supporting employees through all stages of their lives, whether caring for children or aging parents.

Jose Nimo 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.

Katharina Brecht has been part of the Max Delbrück Center since July 2025, where she is responsible for Faculty Affairs and Recruitment within the staff unit ‘Strategic Programs, Resources and Implementation’. She moved only recently to Berlin. Her tip takes us to London and to Shakespeare — and to the question: Was he a woman?

According to a survey conducted by the ‘Sozialwissenschaftliches Institut Schad’, the Max Delbrück Center is one of Berlin's best employers and training companies. A good 600 companies took part in the survey, and around 100 received the award – making them ‘Berlins Beste’.

Two women, one mission: Kathrin Saar, our newly elected Equal Opportunities Officer at the Max Delbrück Center, and her deputy Aileen Cunningham want to make women in science more visible and promote equality within our institution.

With great sadness, we say farewell to Dr. Heinz Sklenar, who passed away on September 2, 2025 in Bernau at the age of 86. The structural biologist was a research group leader at the Max Delbrück Center for many years.

On July 4, Max Delbrück Center doctoral students gathered with supervisors, colleagues, friends, and family to celebrate their graduation, a milestone that was years in the making. Graduate Anita Waltho recounts her experience of the event, which brought together a community.

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.