Petri dishes with Aliivibrio fischeri  at the Microverse Science Event at this year's MINT Festival. (Photo: Anna Schroll)

From Microbes to Mental Health: Your Essential Microverse Update

Welcome to the latest edition of our newsletter, packed with insights, exciting events, and opportunities to get involved!

• overse Education Team inspired students in grades 5 to 9 at the MINT Festival at the Zeiss Planetarium Jena on September 16, bringing the world of microbes to life with demos and our film "Into the Microverse"!

• In research, we welcome Tanmay Bharat from the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge for our JEMS Seminar on November 11, 2025.

• If you want to sharpen your Data Visualization Skills, don't miss the online workshop by NFDI4Microbiota from November 18 to 20, 2025.

• We also ask for your vote: Support the "The Smartest Traffic Lights in Jena" proposal in the Citizen Budget 2025 to literally bring science onto the streets.

• Plus, let your creativity flow in our "Petri, Pixels, Possibilities" Logo Contest (Submission deadline: November 15).

• Save the date for the Microverse Diversity Committee Meeting on October 30 and take advantage of the Online Info Event for Parents(-to-be) on October 16, 2025.

• We also focus on essential upcoming dates: The University of Jena's Mental Health Days (October 28 to 30, 2025) invite you to join workshops and discussions on well-being and stress management under the theme "We need to talk about mental health".

• Find all further details, DFG funding information, upcoming events, and our publications below!

Happy reading, and may the rest of your week be awesome!

Team work makes the dream work - Our Microverse Team at the MINT-Festival. (Photo: Anna Schroll)

Discovering the Microverse at the MINT Festival
On September 16, 2025, the Zeiss Planetarium Jena hosted a fully booked Microverse Science Event for students in grades 5–9. Our team—Dr. Anna Kommor, Dr. Silvia Kolossa, Dr. Kathi Fröhlich, Dr. Dania Rose-Sperling, Dr. Andreas Ulmer, Dr. Stefanie Wagner, and Sandy Ludwig—brought the fascinating world of microbes to life with stories, demonstrations, and our full-dome film “Into the Microverse”. A special thanks to our speakers, our organisation team and moderator Jack Pop for inspiring the next generation of young scientists.

Read more

Portrait by GraceMNews - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

JEMS in November 2025

We are excited to announce the upcoming talk in the Jena Excellence in Microbiology Seminar (JEMS) series:

• Speaker: Tanmay Bharat
  ("Role of Surface Molecules in Microbial Multicellularity "at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology at Cambridge, England)
  
• Date: November 11, 2025
• Time: 12.15 pm
• Location: Leibniz-HKI – Seminar Room Pasteur, Beutenbergstr. 11a, Jena

JEMS brings together leading experts to share cutting-edge research and foster collaboration within the microbiology community.

The seminar is open to all interested members of the Microverse Cluster and beyond. No registration is required.

Further Information

Credits: Alex from the Rock

Boost Your Data Visualization Skills

November 18 to 20, 2025 | Online

The “Data Visualization for Biological Sciences” workshop, offered by NFDI4Microbiota, will be held online via Zoom. Participants will learn how to turn complex biological and genomic data into clear, publication-ready visualizations.

Workshop Highlights

• Create accurate visualizations using R, Python, and Inkscape.

• Work in small groups on real datasets, including allele frequencies and mutation patterns.

• Explore AI tools such as ChatGPT or Gemini for coding support, with guidance on responsible use.

• Receive practical feedback on figure design, layout, and publication standards.

Requirements

• Laptop with R and Python (or Google Colab)

• Access to an AI assistant (ChatGPT, Gemini, etc.)

• Inkscape installed

• Some prior programming experience

Schedule Highlights

• Nov 18: Basic plotting (scatter, bar, violin, boxplots, histograms)

• Nov 19: Advanced techniques (PCA, heatmaps, color theory, layout strategies)

• Nov 20: Publication-ready graphics and figure assembly

Registration Deadline: November 2, 2025 – Register here

More training opportunities: NFDI4Microbiota calendar.

Credits: Adobe Stock, edited by Juliane Seeber

Science in the City: Vote for the Smartest Traffic Lights in Jena

Imagine standing at a red light – and instead of the classic pedestrian figure, a stylised microscope or a thinker with a thought bubble lights up.

That’s the idea behind “The Smartest Traffic Lights in Jena”, a proposal submitted to this year’s Citizen Budget 2025 by the University of Jena. The project aims to install 2 to 4 special pedestrian traffic lights across the city, featuring symbols from the world of science.

Each motif stands for what makes Jena unique: research, education, innovation, and togetherness. These creative traffic lights bring science out of the labs and into everyday life – right onto our streets and squares.

A bright idea with added value:
Each traffic light will also feature a QR code linking to short, accessible insights into Jena’s current research – including highlights from the Clusters of Excellence "Balance of the Microverse" and "Imaginamics".

The goal:

to spark curiosity, make science visible in the public space, and show what Jena as a city of science is proud of.

Possible locations include the University Main Building, Beutenberg Campus, EAH Jena, the Paradies train station, and the Goethe Gallery.

Why vote for it?

• It connects science, creativity, and community

• It makes Jena’s research identity visible and engaging

• It inspires curiosity for all ages – from kids to adults

• It’s perfect for a #GreenLightForScience moment on social media

Everyone registered in Jena can take part in the Citizen Budget 2025 vote – and help bring these clever lights to life.

Cast your vote here!

Let’s make Jena’s scientific spirit shine – one traffic light at a time!

Photo & Collage: Juliane Seeber

Petri, Pixels, Possibilities: Reinvent the Microverse Logo!

We’re looking for creative, surprising, and smart visual interpretations of the Microverse Logo!
Whether you recreate it in a Petri dish, under the microscope, in nature, or through digital art – let your imagination run wild.

What you can win:

• 100 €

• A Microverse Goodie Bag

• And of course: eternal fame and glory among your fellow Microverse members!

Submission deadline: November 15, 2025
How to enter: Send your creation in print quality and a commonly used image format (e.g., JPG, PNG, TIFF) to contact@microverse-cluster.de.

Logo files are available on the Microverse intranet for your reference and inspiration.

Microverse Diversity and Culture

Diversity Committee Meeting

October 30, 2025 | 12 pm | Leibniz HKI, Nucleus Cafeteria, Beutenbergstraße 11a, 07745 Jena

You're warmly invited to join our next Diversity Committee meeting on Thursday, October 30 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!

Information event parents(-to-be)
October 16, 2025 | 12 pm | Online (via Zoom: https://uni-jena-de.zoom-x.de/j/69180836254 Meeting-ID: 691 8083 6254; PW: 843978)

Topics covered include working while pregnant, paperwork and benefits from the state, organizing childcare and more.
Contact: anna.komor@uni-jena.de with any questions about the event.

We also have two great info sheets on our website, one for parents-to-be and one about enrolling children in school.
Your Diversity Committe
Rosalind Allen, Merle Hammer, Silvia Kolossa, Anna Komor & Johannes Zimmermann

Credits: Adobe Stock, edited by die University of Jena

Taking Care of Ourselves: Mental Health Days at the University of Jena

From October 28 to 30, the University of Jena invites all members to join this year’s Mental Health Days—a three-day event dedicated to mental health, stress management, and well-being.

Under the theme “We need to talk about mental health”, keynote speaker Lisa Niendorf (@frauforschung) will open the event with insights and impulses for reflection, exchange, and positive change.

Throughout the week, participants can look forward to:

• Workshops and lectures on stress and mindfulness
• Well-being cafés, micro-coachings, and discussion rounds
• Outdoor and relaxation activities in Schiller’s Garden House
• Digital breaks for mind and body

Mental health plays a vital role in our academic and professional lives—recent surveys show that nearly one in four employees and one in three students at the University report experiencing poor mental health. These numbers underline the importance of open conversations and supportive initiatives like these.

Take this opportunity to gather ideas, connect with others, and explore practical ways to enhance well-being in your daily work and study life.

Prospects: Online Talk Series on DFG Funding Opportunities for Research Careers

Germany’s largest independent research funding organisation offers funding opportunities for all career stages between doctorate and professorship. Join the DFG online talk and get to know them and their funding portfolio for postdocs.

Upcoming talks in the Prospects Series

• The Walter Benjamin Programme
  October 14, 2025 | 1.30 to 3 pm | online
• DFG Funding Opportunities for Postdocs
  November 12, 2025 | 4 to 5:30 pm | online

Upcoming Events

• Public lecture as part of the "Noble Gespräche": Prof. Dr. Venkatraman "Venki" Ramakrishnan
  October 23, 2025 | 5 pm | Lecture Hall of the Abbe Center Beutenberg, Hans-Knöll-Str. 1, 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

• Aging and Microbiome Conference 2025
  October 28 to 29, 2025 | Rosensäle, Fürstengraben 27, 07743 Jena
  Further Information

• KI Barcamp Jena
  November 14 to 15, 2025 | Freie Gesamtschule Universaale, Burgauer Weg 1, 07745 Jena
  Registration
• LIFE Symposium
  November 26, 2025 | 12 to 6 pm | Center for Applied Research (ZAF), Philosophenweg 7, 07743 Jena
  Further Information

More dates from the Microverse

Selected Publications

• Krespach MKC, Rosin M, Scherlach K, Stroe MC, Hertweck C, Brakhage A. The Linear Arginoketides Neotetrafibricin A, B, and C have Algicidal and Signal Function in Microbial Interactions. Chembiochem. 2025;26(19):e202500479.
• Meyer D, Hennig A, Hums AB, Guntinas-Lichius O, Schmitz M, Marz M. Nanopore sequencing-derived methylation biomarker prediction for methylation-specific PCR in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Clin Epigenetics. 2025;17(1):149.
• Ulrich HF, Klein T, Zhao Z, Cseresnyes Z, Carravilla P, Gerst R, Kasberg A, Scharfenberg FP, Figge MT, Eggeling C, Brendel JC. Selective Activation of Dynamics in Kinetically Frozen Supramolecular Polymer Bottlebrush Assemblies. Small. 2025:e05481.
• Schafer T, Haun F, Rupp B, Hoffmeister D. Dissimilar Reactions and Enzymes for Psilocybin Biosynthesis in Inocybe and Psilocybe Mushrooms. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2025:e202512017.
• Lakemeyer M, Latorre R, Blazkova K, Wood HM, Jensen DD, Shakil N, Thomas SC, Saxena D, Mulpuri Y, Poolman D, Duran P, Keller LJ, Reed DE, Schmidt BL, Jimenez-Vargas NN, Xu F, Lomax AE, Bunnett NW, Bogyo M. A Bacteroides fragilis protease activates host PAR(2) to induce intestinal pain and inflammation. Cell Host Microbe. 2025;33(10):1686-702 e11.
• Sprague JL, Schille TB, Lange T, Sonnberger J, Allert S, Schönert J, Kasper L, Hube B. Fungal determinants contributing to translocation of Candida albicans yeast cells through the intestinal epithelial barrier. microLife. 2025;6.
• Reina F, Eggeling C, Lagerholm C. High-Speed Interferometric Scattering Tracking Microscopy of Compartmentalized Lipid Diffusion in Living Cells. Chemphyschem. 2025:e202400407.
• Otto JFM, Pohnert G, Wichard T, Bauer M, Busch A, Ueberschaar N. Global DNA-methylation in quantitative epigenetics: orbitrap mass spectrometry. Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences. 2025;12. 2025.1681568.
• Graf M, Sarkar A, Svensson CM, Munser AS, Schroder S, Muller E, Hengoju S, Figge MT, Rosenbaum MA. Multiplexed, rapid phenotypic antibiotic susceptibility testing based on angle-resolved light scattering imaging of microfluidic droplets. J Adv Res. 2025.
• Frois-Martins R, Lagler J, Schille TB, Elshafee O, Martinez de San Vicente K, Mertens S, Stokmaier M, Kilb I, Sertour N, Bachellier-Bassi S, Mogavero S, Sanglard D, d'Enfert C, Hube B, LeibundGut-Landmann S. Dynamic expression of candidalysin facilitates oral colonization of Candida albicans in mice. Nat Microbiol. 2025;10(10):2472-85.
• Küsel K. Mikrobielle Netzwerke verstehen und steuern. BIOspektrum. 2025;31(6):678-9. (only available in German)

All publications

Feedback, ideas or suggestions for the newsletter? - Then get in touch with us at juliane.seeber@uni-jena.de!