News

All current DZIF news can be found here.

AI-generated image of a DNA helix accompanied by glowing lines and a background of stylized microorganisms

A clearer picture of microbial communities: Metax improves taxonomic profiling

In acute, life-threatening infections, rapidly characterizing the microorganisms in a patient sample can help guide diagnosis and treatment. This is possible by using computational methods known as

Molecular structures of corramycin and DNA gyrase, with a graphic illustration showing where corramycin binds to the gyrase

A new mechanism of action against an old enemy

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), tuberculosis (TB) affects more than 10 million people and causes over a million deaths each year, making it one of the world’s deadliest infectious

Common standards for the use of phages against hard-to-treat infections

An international working group led by the German Society for Infectious Diseases (DGI) has developed a guideline for personalized phage therapy. Twenty professional organizations, 18 international

Faster diagnostics, deeper insights: Researchers strengthen response to Ebola outbreaks

The current outbreak of Bundibugyo virus (BDBV) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo highlights the challenges of responding to rare but potentially devastating infectious diseases. Two studies led

Scientist working with an automated bioreactor system in a biotechnology laboratory.

PANTIPA project: Antibody against Pseudomonas aeruginosa reaches next development phase

The DZIF flagship project PANTIPA has reached an important milestone. Following successful preclinical work at the University Hospital Cologne and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, the

First authors of the study Dr. Metodi Stankov (left) and Dr. Matthias Bruhn at TWINCORE.

Booster vaccination strengthens existing defenses

The SARS-CoV-2 virus is constantly mutating. As a result, vaccines become less effective and require regular adaptation. This was the case in 2025 with the JN.1 variant. An interdisciplinary team from

Graphic illustration depicting, in stylized form, a liver, numerous spherical viruses, and a human body in the background with an area of inflammation in the left lung.

New immune signaling pathway could inform future treatments for excessive inflammation

Researchers at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), including several scientists from the German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), have worked with colleagues at the University

The picture shows a scientist examining a Petri dish containing a bacterial culture. The person is in a laboratory; other laboratory equipment and sample containers can be seen in the background.

Thinking beyond antibiotics in the treatment of urinary tract infections

A research team from Switzerland and Germany has explored the combined use of phage and fecal microbiota transplantation to treat female patients with recurrent urinary tract infections that do not

Medical Laboratory Scientists Working with Blood Samples and Equipment in a Lab Setting

Tuberculosis: An immune signature in the blood indicates whether treatment is working

Researchers at the Research Center Borstel, Leibniz Lung Center (FZB) and the German Center for Infection Research (DZIF) have identified a novel whole blood-based immune signature that could improve

Black-and-white electron micrograph of a rod-shaped, dark gray bacterial cell surrounded by a thick layer of light gray filaments.

From urinary tract infection to brain abscess: How bacterial subpopulations can spread to distant body sites

Researchers from the University of Cologne, the German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT present a remarkable clinical case in the New England Journal of