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Science, Art & Opportunities: What’s Ahead in the Microverse
As summer draws to a close, the Microverse has already seen inspiring moments of creativity and collaboration: On August 15–16, TRAFO Jena became a space where art and science met during the Künstlerische Tatsachen Arts & Science Residency. For six weeks, three artists immersed themselves in scientific environments, exchanging ideas and methods with researchers. The final exhibitions transformed this dialogue into performances, films, and process-based artworks — a truly unique way to experience science through a different lens.
From September 15–19, Postdoc Appreciation Week 2025 highlights the contributions of postdoctoral researchers. As part of the program, the Jena School for Microbial Communication (JSMC) is organizing a workshop and an information event, providing postdocs and early-career researchers with valuable insights into science communication, career planning, and addressing challenges such as hostility and hate speech in academia.
Looking ahead, November brings the 4th LIFE Symposium – TIME TO CONNECT!, where researchers, companies, and foundations will meet to share ideas and spark interdisciplinary collaborations. Other upcoming highlights include public lectures with world-renowned scientists, diversity meetups, and funding opportunities for new research initiatives.
Stay connected and explore all the ways to learn, collaborate, and engage with the Microverse this season!
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Impressions of the exhibition and opening reception at TRAFO (Photos: Sandy Ludwig)
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Turning Science into Art: Two-day exhibitions showcase results of "Künstlerische Tatsachen"
On August 15 and 16, TRAFO Jena turned into a stage for art and science at the Arts & Science Residency organised by "Künstlerische Tatsachen". For six weeks, three artists selected by different curators worked closely with scientists. They exchanged questions, methods, and perspectives. Based on this exchange, the artists developed artistic projects with this year’s focus on performance, film, and process-based artistic practices.
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Read more
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Celebrate Postdoc Appreciation Week 2025 with JSMC Events
From September 15–19, Postdoc Appreciation Week (PAW2025) shines a spotlight on the contributions of postdoctoral researchers worldwide. As part of the celebrations, the Jena School for Microbial Communication (JSMC) offers online events tailored to postdocs and early-career researchers:
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| For details and registration, visit the JSMC event calendar |
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Invitation to the LIFE Symposium
Save the date for the 4th LIFE Symposium – TIME TO CONNECT! Discover cutting-edge research, meet experts from academia and industry, and exchange ideas to spark new interdisciplinary collaborations.
- When?
November 26, 2025 | 12 to 6 pm
- Where?
Center for Applied Research (ZAF), Philosophenweg 7, 07743 Jena
- For whom?
Researchers, students and people interested in LIFE Sciences
- What´s it about?
Fund holders of the LIFE "CONNECT" and "TALENT" projects will present their research projects in short talks. Local companies and foundations will also be represented to promote dialogue between science and business.
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| Further Information & Registration |
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Graphic: Franziska Eberl edited by Dania Rose-Sperling
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Apply Now for LIFE Funding!
Deadline: September 30, 2025
Funding: 15.000 €/ 20.000 €/ 25.000 €
The LIFE “Connect” funds enable the development of scientific projects that have the potential for successful application for third-party funding. New cooperations between researchers of different groups, institutes and disciplines shall be established to stimulate top-level research.
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Microverse Diversity and Culture
Diversity Committee Meeting
September 17, 2025 | 12 pm | Leibniz HKI, Nucleus Cafeteria, Beutenbergstraße 11a, 07745 Jena
You're warmly invited to join our next Diversity Committee meeting on Wednesday, September 17 at 12 pm, in the Nucleus Cafeteria. We’ll chat about Microverse diversity topics in a relaxed setting — feel free to join just once or regularly!
Please note: food and drinks aren’t provided, so you're welcome to buy something at the café.
Hope to see you there!
Your Diversity Committe
Rosalind Allen, Silvia Kolossa & Johannes Zimmermann
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Portrait: Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (Photo: Royal Society Uploader)
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Public lecture as part of the "Noble Gespräche" series
October 23, 2025 | 5 pm | Lecture Hall of the Abbe Center Beutenberg, Hans-Knöll-Str. 1, 07745 Jena
Nobel Laureate Prof. Dr. Venkatraman "Venki" Ramakrishnan from the Medical Research Council (MRC), Cambridge, UK, will give a talk titled:
“My Adventures in the Ribosome”
The ribosome is an ancient and complex molecular machine that translates genetic information on mRNA into proteins. Although discovered in the 1950s, it took decades of research to unravel its atomic structure due to its extraordinary complexity.
In his lecture, the 2009 Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry will share insights into his pioneering research that helped decode the ribosome's structure and function. He will also reflect on his personal journey across three continents and his transition from physics to molecular biology.
The lecture will be held in English and is open to the public.
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Applications Now Open: CZS Nexus Program for Interdisciplinary Postdoc Research Groups
Deadline for Letter of Intend: October 16, 2025 | Funding: up to €1.5 million
The Carl Zeiss Foundation has launched its CZS Nexus call for proposals to support outstanding postdoctoral researchers aiming to establish their own interdisciplinary research groups. Projects must link to at least one of the foundation’s focus topics:
Key Information:
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Target group: Postdocs (PhD completed ≤ 4 years ago)
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Duration: 5–6 years
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Regions: Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Thuringia
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Project start: between 1 October 2026 and 1 February 2027
Applications must be submitted in English via the Carl Zeiss Foundation portal. Detailed guidelines, forms, and FAQs are available online.
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| More information & application portal |
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Upcoming Events
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Microverse Seminar with Rob Edwards
(Matthew Flinders in Bioinformatics, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Australia)
September 23, 2025 | 11 am | Leibniz-HKI, Building A7, Seminar Room Hodgkin, Beutenbergstraße 11a, 07745 Jena
Further Information
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NFDI4Microbiota Annual Conference 2025—“From Lab to Publication: Bridging the Gap with Best Practices"
September 30 to October 2, 2025 | ZB MED – Information Centre for Life Sciences, Gleueler Str. 60, 50931 Cologne
Infos, Program and Registration
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From PhD to Innovator – YES Workshop Jena
October 1 to 2, 2025 | Graduate Academy, Haus für den wissenschaftlichen Nachwuchs - Zur Rosen, Johannisstraße 13, 07743 Jena
Further Information
- Microverse Seminar with Evi Stegmann
(Group leader “Molecular genetics of natural producers”, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine (IMIT), Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen)
October 6, 2025 | 11 am | Leibniz-HKI, Building A7, Seminar Room Hodgkin, Beutenbergstraße 11a, 07745 Jena
Further Information
- Microverse Seminar with Amelia Barber
October 28, 2025 | 12.15 to 1.15 pm | Leibniz-HKI, Building A8, Seminar Room Pasteur, Beutenbergstraße 11a, 07745 Jena
Further Information
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Aging and Microbiome Conference 2025
October 28 to 29, 2025 | Rosensäle, Fürstengraben 27, 07743 Jena
Further Information
- Microverse Seminar with Tanmay Bharat
November 11, 2025 | 12.15 to 1.15 pm | Leibniz-HKI, Building A8, Seminar Room Pasteur, Beutenbergstraße 11a, 07745 Jena
Further Information
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More dates from the Microverse
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Selected Publications
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Kundgen M, Haufschild T, Hammer J, Lehmann K, Mutter M, Jogler M, Wang H, Lehmann R, Kallscheuer N, Totsche KU, Jogler C. Kueselia aquadivae gen. nov., sp. nov., the first member of the family Isosphaeraceae isolated from subsurface percolates. Sci Rep. 2025;15(1):32243.
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Wang H, Herrmann M, Schroeter SA, Zerfaß C, Lehmann R, Lehmann K, Ivanova A, Pohnert G, Gleixner G, Trumbore SE, Totsche KU, Küsel K. Groundwater microbiomes balance resilience and vulnerability to hydroclimatic extremes. Communications Earth & Environment. 2025;6(1).
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Schultz C, Popp J. Raman imaging of molecular groups in the wavenumber silent region. Anal Bioanal Chem. 2025.
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Hendra P, León-Torres JR, Gili VF, Gräfe M. Rubidium-doped KTiOPO4 waveguides as a dual-type photon-pair source. Journal of the Optical Society of America B. 2025;42(9).
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Grigson SR, Bouras G, Dutilh BE, Olson RD, Edwards RA. Computational function prediction of bacteria and phage proteins. Microbiol Mol Biol Rev. 2025:e0002225.
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Baborski A, Barth SA, Jung EM, Bloos F, Rodel J, Loffler B, Bauer M, Busch A. Surviving antibiotic treatment as a gut bacterium: genomic characterization of an Enterobacter cloacae. BMC Genom Data. 2025;26(1):56.
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Rocha MC, Lerer V, Adeoye J, Hayby H, Fabre ML, Barber AE, Shlezinger N. Aspergillus fumigatus dsRNA virus promotes fungal fitness and pathogenicity in the mammalian host. Nat Microbiol. 2025;10(9):2179-93.
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Barber AE. mSphere of Influence: Population-level thinking to unravel microbial pathogenicity. mSphere. 2025:e0058824.
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All publications
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