Research cooperations

Microbes-for-Climate (M4C) Cluster of Excellence

Microbiological research in Marburg is inter- and transdisciplinary and highly collaborative and focuses on the molecular interaction of microbes with their environment. In the Microbes-for-Climate cluster, biologists, chemists, physicists and engineers come together to study the essential role of microorganisms in climate change and develop an integrated, microbe-centered view on the history, the presence, and potential futures of the carbon cycle. The mission of Microbes-for-Climate Initiative is to gain a fundamental, molecular-mechanistic understanding of CO₂- and CH₄-converting microorganisms in climate change. This knowledge will be generated in a scale-bridging approach (from the atomic structure of enzymes to the systems level of the cell) through highly interdisciplinary and integrative studies.
Period of funding: 2026/01/01 - 2032/12/31
Speakers: Anke Becker, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Tobias Erb (co-speaker)
Participants from MPI-TM: Ilka Bischofs-Pfeifer, Helge Bode, Tobias Erb, Martina Preiner, Johannes Rebelein, Victor Sourjik more

Globe with blue and white patterns, "Microcosm Earth Center" text.

Microcosm Earth Center (MEC) / Zukunftszentrum "Mikrokosmos Erde"

The "Microcosm Earth Center" builds on the long-standing, successful cooperation between the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology and the Philipps-Universität Marburg. It sets the stage for an early identification and development of new research topics and aims for the training and promotion of outstanding young talents in the field of microbiology. In a highly collaborative environment equipped with state-of-the-art research technology, the members of the center are working on finding solutions for the major challenges of our time.
Steering Committee: Tobias Erb, Victor Sourjik, Olalla Vazquez, Martin Thanbichler
Participants from MPI-TM: Martina Preiner

EU Horizon 2020 EIC Project "Crop4Clima"

Crop4Clima is developing crops that can better tolerate arid conditions and assimilate more carbon dioxide to help mitigate climate change while improving yield and maintaining crop quality. The consortium is funded through the Horizon European Innovation Council’s Transition Open call, which supports the transition of innovation activities from lab to market, focusing on both the technological maturation and validation in relevant application environments and developing a business case and model for future commercialization.
Period of funding: 2023/05/01 – 2025/12/31
Coordinator: Evogene Ltd.
Involved from MPI-TM: Tobias Erb more

EU FET OPEN Project "Gain4Crops"

The EC-funded project GAIN4CROPS is developing novel disruptive technologies to overcome one of the main constraints on photosynthetic efficiency: photorespiration, a process that reduces CO2 assimilation efficiency, and thus biomass yield and agricultural productivity. The project aims to improve the efficiency of the C3 metabolism in plants, in a stepwise approach: (1) Enhancing C3 photosynthetic efficiency using a naturally occurring variation of photorespiratory metabolism, in particular C3-C4 intermediate photosynthesis; (2) Further optimization of the process by engineering new-to-nature metabolic pathways by innovative plant breeding techniques.
Period of funding: 2020/05/01 - 2026/01/31
Speaker: Andreas Weber, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf
Participant from MPI-TM: Tobias Erb more

EU Horizon RIA Project "SUN-PERFORM"

Current solar fuel technologies, essential for a sustainable energy future, face significant challenges: low efficiency, slow production, and high costs. These hurdles are particularly problematic for sectors like aviation and maritime, where electrification is difficult. The EU-funded SUN-PERFORM project seeks to overcome these barriers with a bio-hybrid approach, combining nanotechnology and synthetic biology. By developing advanced nanocrystal light-harvesting systems and engineered microalgal solar cells, SUN-PERFORM aims to quadruple current solar-to-fuel conversion efficiencies. The project will pilot these innovations in Europe and Africa, ensuring they are sustainable, economically viable, and socially acceptable. SUN-PERFORM’s success could position Europe as a global leader in solar fuel technology, benefiting diverse stakeholders worldwide.
Period of funding: 2024/11/01 - 2028/10/31
Speaker: Sarah D'Adamo, Wageningen University
Participant from MPI-TM: Tobias Erb more

Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network (DN) METAMIC 3: Metaproteome-based leveraged microbiome management in the context of One Health

The METAMIC 3 project will embed Doctoral Candidates (DCs) within a unique, network-wide training environment focused on advancing the frontiers of microbiome science through metaproteomics. This innovative program will address the One Health challenge by integrating research across i) foundational studies on microbial effectors and their mechanisms, ii) functional analyses of microbiome dynamics in diverse ecosystems, and iii) translational applications in clinical and biotechnological contexts. METAMIC 3 DCs will gain access to an unparalleled spectrum of expertise spanning molecular biology, bioinformatics, clinical research, and environmental science, facilitated by synergistic collaborations among leading academic institutions, industry partners, and public sector stakeholders. A solution-driven and impact-oriented ethos will be woven throughout the consortium, strengthened by the active participation of pioneering biotech companies, regulatory bodies, and end-users. This truly interdisciplinary and intersectoral framework will foster an environment ripe for innovation, enabling the development of next-generation metaproteomics workflows and strategies for targeted microbiome modulation. By transcending traditional disciplinary boundaries, METAMIC 3 will empower researchers to overcome current technological limitations and drive transformative progress in microbiome engineering and restoration. METAMIC 3 is poised to deliver urgently needed breakthroughs in microbiome-based interventions for health, agriculture, and environmental sustainability. By building on cutting-edge metaproteomic approaches and fundamental insights into microbial community function, the project has the potential to revolutionize our ability to manipulate and restore microbiomes, with far-reaching benefits for people, animals, and ecosystems.
Period of funding: 2025/10/01 - 2029/09/30
Speaker: Robert Heyer, Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften (ISAS)
Participant from MPI-TM: Helge Bode more

DFG-ANR grant “Biosynthesis at the Intersection of Primary and Specialized Metabolism: the α-Ketoacid Dehydrogenase Example (BiosynKADH)”

Multiple bacterial natural products including the pepteridine virulence factors and the therapeutically-relevant antibiotic virginiamycin M, are biosynthesized at the intersection between primary and specialized metabolism. In these cases, primary metabolic alpha-ketoacid dehydrogenase complexes (KADHs) provide essential acyl building blocks to multienzyme complexes of specialized metabolism, including modular polyketide synthases (PKSs) and non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs). More remarkably, in certain pathways, the KADH components are fully integrated into the PKS/NRPS mega-enzymes. At present, nothing is known about the sequence, mechanistic and architectural adaptations that were required relative to the ancestral KADHs to afford such chimaeras - information which is necessary for creating novel types of hybrids in the laboratory by genetic engineering. In this context, the present German-French collaborative project aims to investigate this type of system in detail. Specifically, we will: (i) generate an exhaustive catalog of specialized metabolic pathways that incorporate KADH machinery using genome mining; (ii) structurally characterize the products of newly-identified systems by heterologous expression; (iii) use ancestral protein reconstruction to propose a reasonable evolutionary trajectory to present day KADH enzymes; (iv) deploy an integrative structural biology approach to elucidate key architectural features of multienzyme-integrated KADHs (i.e. oligomerization state, stoichiometry of KADH component binding, and interactions with partner domains within the multienzymes); and (v) exploit the obtained fundamental insights to genetically engineer biosynthetic systems, towards the goal of generating bespoke natural product analogs bearing KADH-derived moieties. This project follows on from previous successful collaboration between three of the partner laboratories, and is fully anchored in all groups’ strong, highly-complementary expertise.
Period of funding: 2025/04/01 - 2028/08/31
Participant from MPI-TM: Helge Bode more

Priority Programme (SPP 2389) "Emergent Functions of Bacterial Multicellularity"

The Priority Program SPP2389 aims at establishing the concept of bacteria as multicellular microorganisms that live at least transiently stable and highly organized in tissue-like populations that exhibit properties and physiological features that go beyond the single cell. This concept rests on two pillars: (i) The FORM, that is, the spatiotemporal positioning of phenotypically specialized cells in stable filaments or tissue-like aggregates. This form then provides a cellular framework for (ii) the emergence of unique and altogether multicellular FUNCTIONS that only occur and/or exclusively make sense in the multicellular context.
Period of funding: 10/01/2022 - 09/30/2025
Speaker: Thorsten Mascher, Technische Universität Dresden
Participant from MPI-TM: Ilka Bischofs-Pfeifer

BMFTR eCO₂Dis - Simulation-guided development of an electricity or H2-driven in-vitro acetyl-CoA production module as platform chemical from CO₂ for diversity oriented synthesis

Period of funding: 2024/01/01 – 2026/12/31
Speaker: Steffen Roth, Fraunhofer IGB
Participant from MPI-TM: Tobias Erb more

BMFTR Bioeconomy international 2023: BioLignoPlast - A tandem chemo-biocatalytic approach for lignin valorisation into plastic monomers

Period of funding: 2024/05/01 – 2027/04/30
Speaker: Steffen Lindner-Mehlich, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Participant from MPI-TM: Tobias Erb more

BMFTR IBÖ-11: SynTulip - Etablierung einer Zellfabrik für die Produktion einer neuen Generation von Acrylaten

Period of funding: 2025/12/01 – 2028/11/30
Speaker: Tobias Erb
Participant from MPI-TM: Tobias Erb more

BMFTR Bioökonomie International 2024: TABASCO – Synthetische Genomik zur Etablierung und Anwendung von Vibrio natriegens synSC1.0 als Zellfabrik

Period of funding: 2025/05/01 – 2028/04/30
Speaker: Daniel Schindler (Universität Heidelberg)
Participant from MPI-TM: Helge Bode more

Dutch Research Council (NWO) KIC call “Antimicrobials for the preclinical pipeline”: Iterative design of novel antimicrobial peptides with deep active learning and biosynthetic engineering”

Microbial peptide antibiotics comprise a major proportion of currently available antimicrobial drugs. Many of these are produced by modular enzymes, which in principle are amenable to engineering to make better drugs. In this project, the researchers will employ novel biosynthetic engineering technologies in combination with deep active learning to develop new and improved peptide antibiotics with favorable pharmacological properties, and thus provide new weapons for the battle against antimicrobial resistance.
Period of funding: 2025/09/12 – 2028/12/31
Speaker: Marnix Medema, Wageningen University & Research
Participant from MPI-TM: Helge Bode more

LOEWE Priority Program „Tree-M: Mechanisms of resilience and environmental impact of the tree leaf microbiome“

Forests fulfill essential climate functions and are economically important. They harbor an immense variety of microorganisms, exhibiting enormous biochemical and physiological diversity. The Tree-M research cluster funded by the LOEWE excellence program of the State of Hesse investigates the complex network of microbial interactions with the biotic and abiotic environment in the tree phyllosphere. This interdisciplinary research cluster joins forces of academic groups from the fields of microbiology, biochemistry, ecology, geography, and bioinformatics. Research activities bridge scales from individual bacterial cells (molecular mechanisms of bacterial enzymes, metabolic activities, and their regulation) to microbial communities (interactions within the leaf microbiome and with the abiotic environment) and cross-kingdom organismic interaction networks (microbiota-leaf-herbivore interactions) in cultivation systems in the laboratory and in tree canopies in the forest.
Period of funding: 2023/01/01 – 2026/12/31
Speakers: Anke Becker, Philipps-Universität Marburg; Nina Farwig, Philipps-Universität Marburg; Tobias Erb, MPI-TM
Participants from MPI-TM: Tobias Erb, Helge Bode, Nicole Paczia, Johannes Rebelein more

LOEWE Priority Program „RobuCop: Robust chloroplasts for natural and synthetic carbon fixation”

The aim of RobuCop (Robuste Chloroplasten für die natürliche und synthetische Kohlenstoff-Fixierung - robust chloroplasts for natural and synthetic carbon dioxide fixation) is to fundamentally investigate the natural mechanisms of CO2 fixation, stress response and resilience mechanisms in chloroplasts. The knowledge gained will serve as a basis for synthetic-biological solutions to enable robust, efficient photosynthesis in an environment that is constantly changing due to climate change.
RobuCop draws on an established collaboration between the University of Marburg and the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology and the highest level of expertise in the fields of (synthetic) microbiology and environmental/climate sciences.
Speaker: Felix Willmund, Philipps-Universität Marburg; Judith Klatt, Philipps-Universität Marburg; Tobias Erb, MPI-TM
Period of funding: 2025/01/01 - 2028/12/31
Participants from MPI-TM: Tobias Erb more

Human Frontiers Science Grant "Building mineral pore networks and primitive peptides to assemble biomolecules"

Period of funding: 2025/06/01 – 2028/05/31
Participant from MPI-TM: Martina Preiner (Speaker) more

Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO)

The LOEWE program is an excellence initiative of the state of Hesse to promote excellent research at Hessian universities and other research institutions. SYNMIKRO, the LOEWE Center for Synthetic Microbiology, was founded in 2010 as a cooperation center between Philipps University Marburg and the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology. To this end, more than 50 million euros in funding was received from 2010 to 2018. Since then, the center has grown steadily and has become a center of attraction for young and more experienced scientists from all over the world. In SYNMIKRO, Biologists, biochemists, physicists, mathematicians, bioinformaticians and bioethicists work together in - the research collaboration that is unique for Germany offers completely new opportunities to expand our understanding of the molecular basis and potential uses of microorganisms and to open up new applications. The Marburg researchers aim to design synthetic cells with tailored properties from standardized building blocks. These cells could be used, for example, to produce new drugs, chemicals, biofuels and food additives efficiently, cost-effectively and in an environmentally compatible manner.

International Max Planck Research School "Principles of Microbial Life: From molecules to cells, from cells to interactions" (IMPRS-µLife)

Since 2003 the IMPRS in Marburg offers an international PhD programme with excellent research opportunities for young scientists from all over the world. The programme provides interdisciplinary training in modern microbiology, state-of-the-art research facilities, and mentoring by world class scientists. The school is a close collaboration between the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology and the Philipps-Universität Marburg.