Booster vaccination strengthens existing defences
Memory B cells play a key role in adapting to new coronavirus variants
Infection research at the interface between clinical practice and basic research
TWINCORE was founded in 2008 by the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research and the Hannover Medical School. We combine the expertise of medical professionals and scientists from a wide range of disciplines to find answers to the pressing questions in infection research. Our focus: translational research – the bridge between basic science and clinical application.
TWINCORE Symposium 2026
This year's TWINCORE Symposium
Pathways to infection resilience
will take place on 3 - 4 September.
Research
We conduct translational infection research to improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases in humans. We focus on three areas that characterize our research work. Find out here how we proceed and what results we achieve.
Labs at TWINCORE
Under the leadership of our best scientists, various labs are working on different projects within our research topics.
2026Msystems : e0075425
High-resolution taxonomic profiling and metatranscriptomics identify microbial, biochemical, host, and ecological factors in peri-implant disease
Szafrański S, Joshi A, Steglich M, Yang I, Qu T, Behrens W, Muthukumarasamy U, Melidis D, Schaefer-Dreyer P, Grischke J, Hegermann J, Nejdl W, Häussler S, Stiesch M
2026Interdisciplinary Sciences, Computational Life Sciences : 10.1007/s12539-026-00855-2
Integrated Genome-Wide Association Study and Machine Learning Approach for Characterizing the Determinants of Biofilm Formation in Staphylococcus aureus
Sidarous L, Ibrahim M, Elhadidy M, Abouelfetouh A, Saif N, Aboelnaga N, Shehat M, Youssef M, Badr E
2026Nature Communications17 (1) : 7266
JN.1-adapted vaccination is associated with readjustment of ancestral memory B cells toward neutralization within the JN.1 antigenic space
Stankov M, Bruhn M, Hoffmann M, Salam A, Eichmann A, Nehlmeier I, Manthey L, Witte T, Pöhlmann S, Ahrenstorf G, Happle C, Dopfer-Jablonka A, Kalinke U, Behrens G
Pietschmann Lab
Virology
Principles of HCV assembly and entry and their role in virus persistence
We are investigating how the association of HCV with lipoproteins contributes to the persistence of the virus by influencing entry into liver cells and protecting against antibodies. The aim is to gain new insights for the development of an HCV vaccine.
Lauber Lab
Virology
Pandemic preparedness: assessing spill-over risk of RNA viruses
The CoViPa consortium uses computer-assisted high-throughput virus discovery and evolutionary analyses to identify RNA viruses with high spillover risk and potential animal host reservoirs and to investigate new pathogenicity factors.
Galardini Lab
Bacteriology
Testing the impact of genetic backgrounds on antimicrobial resistance
Population genetic studies show that genetic variability between bacterial strains can influence the evolution of antimicrobial resistance. Using automated laboratory evolution (ALE), we are investigating how genetic backgrounds control AMR evolution.
Kalinke Lab
Bartsch Lab
Behrendt Lab
Pietschmann Lab
Immunology
Platform for the rapid development of new pathogen-directed humanized or fully human monoclonal antibody candidates (MEMUMAB)
Monoclonal antibodies are transforming modern medicine. At Helmholtz Infection Medicine at MHH, bringing together TWINCORE and CiiM, advanced technologies and AI drive the development of next-generation human antibodies against major infectious diseases.
Career at TWINCORE
Want to become part of TWINCORE?
Take a look at our job advertisements to see if there is something suitable for you or send us an unsolicited application.
