Responsible Research

When virologists become reality TV stars, biologists dream of life without illness, researchers debate organoids vs. animal testing with the general public, and biomedical scientists discuss the possibilities of AI, it can only be Berlin Science Week. This year, the MDC is holding a number of virtual events.

If mice live in pathogen-free housing conditions, they are not further burdened by immunodeficiency. This has been reported by researchers at the MDC, Freie Universität Berlin and Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin in PLOS ONE. For the first time, the researchers comprehensively investigated the well-being of these animals.

The board of the Einstein Foundation approved the preliminary stage of a new Einstein Center for the development of alternative methods for animal testing in biomedical research. The aim of the planned center is to reduce or replace animal experiments. It will be established in cooperation with the MDC.

The LabHive digital platform aims to provide necessary resources to diagnostic centres to enable more tests for SARS-CoV-2. Tobias Opialla from the MDC is one of 15 volunteers who has been involved in the project since the #WirvsVirus Hackathon organized by the German government.

SARS-CoV-2 is spreading fear, as many feel uncertain about how to deal with this epidemic. This is a reaction we can fully understand. But researchers around the world are working together to understand and help contain the new coronavirus.

Professor Udo Heinemann serves alongside Jens Reich as Ombudsperson for Good Scientific Practice. He was elected by the Scientific Council in September 2019. We spoke with him about rules and misconduct in research and how he perceives his role as an adviser in conflict situations.

The Käthe-Beutler-Haus of the BIH is currently being built on the Berlin-Buch campus - the Medizinhistorische Journal now reports on the life of the Jewish paediatrician, researcher and mother.

There are people who are open about the fact that they conduct experiments on animals – and claim they have good reasons for doing so. On November 5 in Berlin’s Urania theater, they fielded questions from the general public and injected reason into a debate often driven by emotion.

From 1 to 10 November 2019, the Berlin Science Week connected science communities with the public. Researchers from the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) contributed to this international festival at more than ten events. Here are some impressions.