Biomedical research at the faculty aims to identify disease mechanisms at the molecular level and develop biotechnological methods that can influence these processes in order to enable more precise diagnostics and the development of novel active substances. The faculty's biomedical research departments are closely linked with research groups at the University Hospital's Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Chemistry through the Center of Medical Biotechnology (ZMB). The One Health Ruhr research focus of the University Alliance Ruhr, which opened in November 2024, and the Alexander von Humboldt Professorship established in April 2025, which was filled by the internationally renowned molecular biologist Dana Branzei, complement this network to create a highly attractive research environment.

Each year, approximately 50 students from approximately 1,500-2,000 applicants are admitted to the interdisciplinary, research-oriented Bachelor's and Master's program in Medical Biology and trained to become highly qualified young scientists. Five years ago, the Bachelor's and Master's degree program in Molecular Biology was also newly established. Students have the opportunity to pursue their doctorate after completing their Master's degree or, in the case of excellent performance, in the fast-track program after completing their Bachelor's degree. MD/PhD programs are also available.

Internationally renowned scientists and laboratories equipped with the latest scientific and technical equipment offer researchers and students ideal conditions.

Peter Bayer Structural and Medicinal Biochemistry

Structural and Medicinal Biochemistry

Research Overview
Prof. Dr. Peter Bayer's group focuses on the elucidation of protein-protein and protein-ligand interactions using biochemical and biophysical strategies in addition to NMR as the main tool for the structure determination of biomolecules. Their research is geared towards predominantly human enzymes/proteins and their macromolecular complexes involved in posttranslational modification processes.
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Dominik Boos Molekulare Genetik II

Molekulare Genetik II

Research Overview
The aim of Prof. Dr. Dominik Boos' research is to better understand the mechanisms of DNA replication in vertebrate cells and to decipher their integration into cellular processes. One focus of his work is on the Treslin-TopBP1-MTBP protein complex, which he was able to identify as one of the main players in DNA replication initiation processes. These findings can make a significant contribution to understanding the causes of genetic instability associated with cancer, for example.
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Dana BranzeiBiological and Genomic Treatment Approaches

Biological and Genomic Treatment Approaches

Research Overview
Prof. Dr. Dana Branzei investigates how cells are able to repair and tolerate DNA damage and how the various DNA repair mechanisms are coupled with each other and with other cellular processes. With her studies on the inner workings of error-free DNA damage tolerance, she achieved a breakthrough: she was able to demonstrate that DNA repair mechanisms are integrated into the recognition of DNA damage and into the reactions of chromatin assembly. Dana Branzei started her Alexander von Humboldt Professorship at the Faculty of Biology at the University of Duisburg-Essen in April 2025.
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Michael Ehrmann Mikrobiology

Mikrobiology

Research Overview
Prof. Dr. Michael Ehrmann's group investigates evolutionarily conserved cellular factors, in particular the HtrA family of serine proteases, which are involved in key aspects of quality control. The aim is to uncover the general concepts underlying the molecular mechanisms of protein diagnosis, repair and degradation. Failure of quality control can affect cell growth and cause serious diseases ranging from bacterial infections to neurodegenerative and arthritic diseases or cancer. Work on human HTRA1 has shown that it plays a role in cancer, arthritis and Alzheimer's disease. Together with Markus Kaiser and biotech and pharmaceutical companies, the group is developing tools for basic research and drug development using chemical-biological approaches.
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Farnoush Farahpour Farahpour Lab

Farahpour Lab

Research Overview
Dr. Farnoush Farahpour’s research group aims to understand complex biological processes, with a particular focus on those relevant to oncology, by applying mathematical models and computational methods. The group is primarily interested in developing mechanistic, hypothesis-driven models to explain the spatial and temporal dynamics of interacting systems. A key area of her research involves modeling molecular and cellular responses to radiation using differential equations, agent-based models, and data analysis. She is also interested in fundamental eco-evolutionary processes that shape diverse and heterogeneous systems in biology.
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Doris Hellerschmied-Jelinek Mechanistic Cell Biology

Mechanistic Cell Biology

Research Overview
Prof. Dr. Doris Hellerschmied-Jelinek's group uses chemical biology to decipher protein homeostasis. Cells have to withstand stress caused by diverse, changing environmental conditions. Eukaryotic cells use cellular compartments, the organelles, to maintain their functions and overall cellular homeostasis. While the stress response mechanisms at the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) level have been extensively studied, the group is investigating the previously unexplored role of the Golgi apparatus and its mechanisms in response to stress and in dealing with unfolded proteins.
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Daniel Hoffmann Bioinformatics and Computational Biophysics

Bioinformatics and Computational Biophysics

Research Overview
Daniel Hoffmann's group develops mathematical and computational models of biological systems. As biological systems are complex, variable and thus uncertain, a probabilistic modeling methodology that deals with uncertainty quantitatively is often appropriate. With such quantitative probabilistic models, especially Bayesian models, we can directly compare computational predictions with measurements and learn about our biological systems of interest. This general approach works like a “Swiss knife” that can be adapted to a large class of biological systems. Accordingly, the group collaborates with scientists from different biomedical fields, e.g. immunologists or cancer researchers.
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Markus KaiserChemical Biology

Chemical Biology

Research Overview
The Kaiser group develops and uses chemical biology approaches to investigate diverse aspects of regulated proteolysis and to study the molecular mechanisms behind bioactive small molecule action. Our interests are however not limited to basic research; rather, we aim to capitalize on our scientific findings for drug discovery or other medicinal applications.
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Shirley Knauer Molecular Biology II

Molecular Biology II

Research Overview
Prof. Dr. Shirley Knauer's group focuses on the interface between basic and translational molecular biology research. She studies cell fate decisions in development and disease, with a focus on the mechanistic (patho)biological networks of the apoptosis-inhibiting protein survivin and the protease taspase1. Their projects aim to understand the biological functions of survivin in stress states of the cell, including DNA damage response and cellular senescence, and how Taspase1 and its targets contribute to cell fate decision by substrate-specific cleavage. To investigate these scientific questions, they combine innovative tools such as high-end live cell microscopy with cancer-specific and biochemical protein-protein interaction analysis assays, chemicals, nanoprobes, specific nanobodies and targeted protein degradation (TPD).
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Hemmo Meyer Molecular Biology I

Molecular Biology I

Research Overview
The research of Prof. Dr. Hemmo Meyer's group focuses on elucidating the molecular mechanisms that enable cells to maintain homostasis and respond to stress, with a particular focus on the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) and its role in the regulation of protein degradation and autophagy. One focus is the AAA+-type ATPase VCP/p97, which has emerged as a central element of the UPS. It controls a variety of processes such as ER-associated degradation, ribosomal quality control, the response to DNA damage and autophagy. Mutations in VCP/p97 lead to degenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) in humans, while pharmacological inhibition of VCP/p97 is being considered as a strategy for cancer therapy. The group has been instrumental in elucidating the molecular function of VCP/p97 and understanding how it interacts with a variety of accessory factors to trigger different stress responses in different compartments. Read more

Andrea Musacchio Mechanistic Cell Biology (MPI Dortmund)

Mechanistic Cell Biology (MPI Dortmund)

Research Overview
The group of Andrea Musacchio (Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology in Dortmund) investigates the molecular mechanisms of cell division in human cells. Topics range from the organization of the microtubule cytoskeleton, in particular the mitotic spindle apparatus, to the organization of centromeres and kinetochores. Musacchio’s laboratory combines biochemical reconstitution with biophysical investigations and cell analyses, and its focus are the detailed molecular mechanisms underpinning cell division. Musacchio's laboratory reported structures and functions analyses of the inner kinetochore CCAN complex, of the outer kinetochore KMN complex, and of the kinetochores corona, all of which are essential for the organization of human centromeres and kinetochores. Musacchio also investigated the molecular mechanisms of centromere maintenance, which are essential for chromosome segregation. For his work, Musacchio was awarded the Leibniz Prize of the DFG in 2020 and was elected to the German Academy of Science Leopoldina.
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Perihan NalbantMolecular Cell Biology

Molecular Cell Biology

Research Overview
Prof. Dr. Perihan Nalbant's group is researching the molecular mechanisms of cell migration. In cancer, many regulatory processes are disrupted, which leads to highly invasive cell behavior and metastasis. The proteins of the Rho GTPase family, RhoA, Cdc42 and Rac, are known to be crucial for cell migration and other processes related to cancer invasion. The focus of their research is on how the spatial and temporal regulation of Rho GTPase activity is organized during cell migration and how these mechanisms are altered in cancer. To achieve this, the group uses fluorescence biosensor imaging to visualize localized GTPase activity in living cells. Combining these tools with other modern cell biology methods such as siRNA technology is a powerful means to determine how the complex network of upstream regulators influences localized Rho protein signaling and how this affects normal or abnormal cell migration.
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Stefan RaunserStructural Biochemistry (MPI Dortmund)

Structural Biochemistry (MPI Dortmund)

Research Overview
The research of the group of Prof. Dr. Stefan Raunser, Director of the Department of Structural Biochemistry at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology in Dortmund, generally focuses on structural and functional studies of macromolecular protein complexes. The focus of the Institute's three research groups is on important biological questions related to processes at or in the cell membrane, in particular toxin-mediated membrane permeation, membrane homeostasis and membrane fusion. In addition, they want to understand the molecular aspects of muscle contraction and the dynamics of chromatin.
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Barbara Saccà Bionanotechnology

Bionanotechnology

Research Overview
Prof. Dr. Barbara Saccá's group uses DNA nanotechnology to construct simplified models of complex biological systems in which individual structural and functional parameters can be predictably manipulated. Her scientific goal is to better understand three fundamental aspects of natural self-organizing systems: hierarchical order, spatial confinement and dynamic response. DNA origami structures allow complex biological processes to be reproduced in vitro and help to better understand cellular mechanisms without having to intervene directly in living systems. DNA nanostructures can serve as scaffold systems for enzymes, antibodies or ligands and are programmable, stabilizable and functional under physiological conditions. They have great potential for biotechnological applications in the fields of medicine, environmental and material sciences.
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Andrea VortkampDevelopmental Biology

Developmental Biology

Research Overview
Prof. Dr. Andrea Vortkamp's group investigates the molecular basis of skeletal diseases in order to enable the development of targeted repair strategies. The focus is on the molecular mechanisms that regulate the differentiation and growth of skeletal elements during embryonic development and in postnatal life. Among other things, the group concentrates on the differentiation of chondrocytes in the growth plate of enchondral bones, the development of bone tumors and the development and maintenance of articular cartilage in the joints. Genetically determined skeletal malformations and degenerative bone diseases such as osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis pose major challenges for modern medicine. They can lead to severe pain, restricted movement and a considerable impairment of quality of life.
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Stefan WestermannMolecular Genetics I

Molecular Genetics I

Research Overview
The research of Prof. Dr. Stefan Westermann's group focuses on the mechanisms of chromosome distribution during cell division, in particular on the role of kinetochores and the microtubule cytoskeleton. The group investigates how duplicated genomes are precisely passed on from one cell generation to the next and explores the molecular defects that can lead to errors in chromosome distribution, which in turn can cause birth defects and cancer. This involves experimental techniques such as in vitro reconstitution and biochemical analysis of proteins and multiprotein complexes, yeast genetics and functional analysis of the chromosome segregation machinery in vivo, advanced imaging techniques such as total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy with single molecule sensitivity and reconstituted assays for dynamic microtubule growth.
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