Newsroom

Collage of Portraits of Mark Brönstrup and Henning Jacobsen
News
The Falling Walls Foundation has nominated two projects from the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) for the “Science Breakthrough of the Year 2026.” The award recognizes groundbreaking scientific advances that break down walls in science and have a global impact. The PROTON team led by Prof. Mark Brönstrup was nominated for the development of a novel antibiotic technology against the pathogen Staphylococcus aureus. In addition, the ENDURIVAC team, represented by Dr. Henning Jacobsen, was recognized for the development of a vaccine platform that induces long-term immunity against respiratory pathogens.
03.07.2026
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

HZI in the media

17.09.2026
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SR Saarländischer Rundfunk

international institutions including Trinity College Dublin, the Helmholtz Institute for One Health, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne,

04.09.2026
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News Medical

... der TU Braunschweig und Gruppenleitern am Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (HZI).

 

Wie DNA-Viren dem ...

04.09.2026
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Regional Heute

... verfügbaren genomischen Ressourcen erheblich. HIPS ist ein Standort des Helmholtz- Zentrums für Infektionsforschung in Zusammenarbeit ...

04.09.2026
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Bochumer-Zeitung

Technische Universität Braunschweig, das HZI – Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung in Braunschweig sowie die Medizinische Hochschule ...

03.09.2026
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Regierungsportal M-V

... des Exzellenzclusters RESIST und des Helmholtz-Instituts für RNA-basierte Infektionsforschung (HIRI) in Würzburg haben nun ...

03.09.2026
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Bio M

... die präzise Zerspanung großer Bauteile. Das Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung in Braunschweig und die Medizinische Hochschule ...

01.09.2026
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Regionalupdate.de

... zunehmen. Mit der Gründung des HIOH im Jahr 2021 als Standort des Braunschweiger Helmholtz-Zentrums für ...

31.08.2026
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Management & Krankenhaus

Wie man sich mit Mpox anstecken kann und warum sich Personen mit häufig wechselnden Sexpartnern impfen lassen sollten.

28.08.2026
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Apotheken Umschau

... des neuen Forschungsgebäudes des Helmholtz-Instituts für One Health (HIOH) in Greifswald (Landkreis Vorpommern-Greifswald) gelegt

 

. ...

28.08.2026
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Tagesschau

How Bacteria Develop Resistance to Antisense Antibiotics—and How Future Therapies Can Be Made Less Susceptible to It

28.08.2026
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Bionity.COM

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