On November 27, 2025, the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) celebrated its 60th anniversary with a ceremony attended by cooperation partners, alumni, and guests from the worlds of science, politics, and industry. The research institution has been located on the Science Campus Braunschweig-Süd since 1965 and underwent several reorientations and renaming in the following decades. Among those offering their congratulations at the ceremony were Lower Saxony's Minister President Olaf Lies, the new President of the Helmholtz Association Prof. Martin Keller, and his predecessor and long-time companion of the HZI, Prof. Otmar D. Wiestler.

When the hospital germ Pseudomonas aeruginosa infects the body, it uses the sugar-binding protein LecA to attach itself to human cells, invade them, and form so-called biofilms. LecA thus plays a central role in the development and progression of infections with this pathogen, which is classified as particularly critical by the WHO. Researchers at the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) have now discovered that the approved Parkinson's drug tolcapone is able to specifically inhibit the activity of LecA. This finding allows the research team to develop new strategies for combating Pseudomonas infections. The researchers published their findings in the journal Angewandte Chemie International Edition.

Liver transplants often save the lives of seriously ill patients. However, there remains a risk that the body will reject the new organ. Doctors distinguish between acute and chronic rejection. While acute rejection is easy to diagnose and treat, chronic rejection causes lasting damage to the organ, is difficult to detect – currently only possible by examining tissue samples under a microscope – and is often overlooked. An international research team led by Hannover Medical School (MHH) and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) has now discovered clear molecular signatures for chronic rejection even after liver transplantation, which could aid diagnosis. After ten years of work, the findings have now been published in the Journal of Hepatology.