Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI)

The Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) is a publicly funded research institute based in Braunschweig, Germany.[1] HZI is a member of the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres, the largest non-university scientific organisation in Germany.[2]

The centre focuses on investigating infectious diseases caused by bacteria and viruses. Further research topics are the immune system and the development of novel anti-infective drugs.

The HZI was founded on 18 July 2006 by renaming the Gesellschaft für Biotechnologische Forschung mbh (GBF, German Research Centre for Biotechnology).[3]

History

The HZI's main campus is located in Braunschweig (Brunswick) in the state of Niedersachsen, Germany. The centre dates back to the year 1965.[4] That year, the forerunner of the HZI, the Institute of Molecular Biology, Biochemistry and Biophysics (IMB), was founded by chemist Hans Herloff Inhoffen (1906-1992), with support from other scientists, including the Nobel Laureate Manfred Eigen.[5][6]

In 1968, the IMB was transformed into the Gesellschaft für Molekularbiologische Forschung mbH (GMBF, Society for Research in Molecular Biology) with support by the Volkswagen Foundation.[7]

In 1976, the centre was renamed the Gesellschaft für Biotechnologische Forschung (GBF), and in 2006 it received its current name. The HZI is organised in the legal form of a GmbH (limited liability company). Shareholders are the Federal Republic of Germany (90%) and the federal states of Lower Saxony (8%), Saarland (1%) and Bavaria (1%).[8]

Research

The focus of the HZI's research is on the investigation of pathogens that are medically relevant or that can be utilised as models for studying infection mechanisms. The HZI employs approximately 800 staff and has an annual budget of about €58 million (institutional funding).[8]

The HZI collaborates closely with universities and other research institutions in Europe and worldwide and is part of the national genome research network.[9] Together with the Hannover Medical School (MHH), it trains young scientists to become qualified infection researchers. In November 2010, the HZI was selected by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research as a partner for the German Centre for Infection, DZIF.[10]

In the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, the HZI has been participating, among other projects, in the development of simulation models for the possible spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, contributing to ideas for containing the outbreak.[11][12][13]

Locations

In addition to its main campus in Braunschweig, the HZI operates several sites and branch institutes in different parts of Germany. Some of these branches are run jointly with university partners.

  • BRICS - Braunschweig Integrated Centre of Systems Biology, Braunschweig
  • Centre for Individualised Infection Medicine (CiiM), Hannover
  • Centre for Structural Systems Biology (CSSB), Hamburg
  • Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS), Saarbrücken
  • Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (HIRI), Würzburg
  • HZI Study Centre Hannover in the Clinical Research Centre (CRC) Hannover
  • TWINCORE - Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research, Hanover

References
  1. "Home". Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung. Retrieved 2020-10-06.
  2. "Our Research Centres: Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI)". Helmholtz Association. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  3. "Der neue Name der GBF: Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung" [The New Name of the GBF: Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research] (pdf). Informationsdienst Wissenschaft (in German). 2006. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  4. "About the HZI > History since 2006". HZI. 30 July 2020. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  5. Quinkert, Gerhard (2004). "Hans Herloff Inhoffen in His Times". doi:10.1002/ejoc.200300813.
  6. Scheele, Irmtraut (2011). Die Geschichte der Gesellschaft für Biotechnologische Forschung (GBF) und ihrer Vorgängerinnen [The history of the Society for Biotechnological Research (GBF) and its predecessors] (in German).
  7. Wenkel, Simone (2013). Die Molekularbiologie in Deutschland von 1945 bis 1975. Ein internationaler Vergleich [Molecular biology in Germany from 1945 to 1975: An international comparison] (PDF) (PhD) (in German). University of Cologne. pp. 101 ff.
  8. "Facts and Figures". Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  9. "National Genome Research Network - Scientific Institutions". The National Genome Research Network. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  10. "Location: Hannover-Braunschweig". German Centre for Infection Research (DZIF).
  11. Press Release. "Karliczek: Mit Antikörpertests und neuen Wirkstoffen gegen SARS-CoV-2" [Antibody tests and new active compounds to fight SARS-CoV-2]. German Ministry for Research and Education (in German). Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  12. Gillman, Barbara (15 October 2020). "Immunologe Meyer-Hermann erklärte den Politikern den Ernst der Corona-Lage" [Immunologist Meyer-Hermann explains the gravity of the Corona situation to politicians]. Handelsblatt (in German). Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  13. "Epidemiologe fordert klare Konzepte zum Schutz von Risikogruppen" [Epidemiologist Gérard Krause on protecting high-risk groups]. Der Spiegel (in German). 29 October 2020. Retrieved 13 November 2020.

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