Welcome to the DZIF -

the German Center for Infection Research

Research Areas

DZIF is doing research in nine areas:

Community-Acquired Infections at Mucosal Interfaces

Hepatitis

HIV

Infections of the Immunocompromised Host

Healthcare-Associated Infections

Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases

Emerging Infections

Novel Antibiotics

Tuberculosis

News

News and Press Releases:

Two rats eating a Hokkaido pumpkin
© kirahoffmann/Pixabay

Rare virus transmitted by rats infects woman in Germany—link to private pet rat breeding facility

A man in a smock, with his back to the viewer, pushes a bed with a patient through a hospital corridor. Also visible is a waiting area with palm trees on the left and a red brick wall with black-and-white portraits. The man pushes the bed toward an open glass door, behind which is an illuminated corridor.
© DZIF

Declining quality, risk to patient safety, rising costs: KHAG jeopardizes infectious disease care

On October 8, 2025, the German Federal Cabinet approved a draft law to amend the Hospital Reform Act (KHAG). In a joint statement, numerous professional societies and associations criticized the
Ulrike Protzer
© TUM/Astrid Eckert

German Medical Award 2025 goes to Ulrike Protzer

Prof. Ulrike Protzer, Director of the Institute of Virology at Helmholtz Munich, Chair for Virology at the Technical University of Munich and Coordinator of the research area Hepatitis at the German
Prof. Dr. Florian Klein
© MedizinFotoKöln/Klaus Schmidt

Virologist Florian Klein receives the Hamburg Science Prize 2025

Prof. Dr. Florian Klein, scientist at the German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), director of the Institute of Virology at University Hospital of Cologne, and a leading international expert in
Portrait of Prof. Rolf Müller
© HIPS/Dietze

Mannich Medal for Rolf Müller

Prof. Rolf Müller, Scientific Director of the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS), Professor of Pharmaceutical Biology at Saarland University and scientist in the German
All news

What is the DZIF? Find out more in our

DZIF movie

More than 700 people work at the DZIF with the common goal of translating basic research into clinical practice. The well-being of the patient is our primary focus. Get more insights in our new DZIF film:

Watch the movie
A GIF animation with clips from the DZIF film.

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Research in Focus

Hannover - Braunschweig | Heidelberg | München | Tübingen

Transplant Cohort

Medical data and biological samples obtained from transplant patients are collected and managed across Germany with the help of the DZIF Transplant Cohort. The data and samples form the basis of scientific studies which investigate the connections between numerous factors influencing an organ’s susceptibility to infection and organ function. In [...]

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Hamburg - Lübeck - Borstel - Riems

Clinical Tuberculosis Center

The Clinical Tuberculosis Center provides the expertise and infrastructure for the optimization, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of tuberculosis (TB) as well as for translating research results into clinical practice. The main objectives of the Clinical Tuberculosis Center include coordinating clinical research activities involving the DZIF TB cohort. This cohort includes [...]

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Hannover - Braunschweig

Preclinical development of Amidochelocardins

The challenge of antibiotic drug development today is the discovery and optimisation of novel bioactive compounds that do not show cross-resistances with clinically applied antibiotics, ideally due to a novel mode of action (MoA) which adresses unexploited microbial targets. In the case of chelocardin, this antibiotic substance was identified several [...]

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Tübingen

New strategies for specific eradication of Staphylococcus aureus

In this project, the scientists develop genetically engineered phage lysins and specific bacteriocins for the elimination of hospital germs such as Staphylococcus aureus, they clarify mechanisms of potential resistance mechanisms, and they analyse whether broad-spectrum or specifically acting agents have a more effective and lasting effect on colonization by [...]

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Our Partner Sites

Location

Hannover - Braunschweig

Research areas
Contact person
Silke Hartmann

Dr. Silke Hartmann

Hannover Medical School
Partner Site Manager Hannover - Braunschweig
Project Manager Community-Acquired Infections at Mucosal Interfaces
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Location

Heidelberg

Research areas
Contact person
Stephan Urban

Prof. Dr. Stephan Urban

Heidelberg University
Deputy Coordinator Hepatitis
DZIF Professor "Translational Virology"
Partner Site Speaker Heidelberg
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Location

Bonn - Köln

Research areas
Contact person
Prof Achim Hörauf: Coordinator of the consortium "Neglected tropical diseases" at DZIF.

Prof. Dr. Achim Hörauf

University Hospital Bonn
Deputy Partner Site Speaker Bonn-Köln
Deputy Coordinator Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases
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Location

Hamburg - Lübeck - Borstel - Riems

Research areas
Contact person
More about this location
München Tübingen Heidelberg Giessen – Marburg – Langen Bonn – Köln Hannover – Braunschweig Hamburg – Lübeck Borstel – Riems
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Databases- & Biobanks 2023