Field of Focus 1: Molecular and Cellular Basis of Life
The molecular life sciences in Heidelberg represent a research focus of the university and its non-university partners that enjoys particularly high national and international visibility. The close collaboration between medicine and basic research in molecular and cell biology constitutes one of the greatest strengths of Heidelberg University. The main scientific objective of this Field of Focus is to understand the molecular mechanisms of physiological and pathological functions within the organismal context.
Research conducted at the Faculty of Biosciences focuses on molecular and cell biology, while the Medical Faculties in Heidelberg and Mannheim investigate infectious and cardiovascular diseases, translational cancer research, transplantation therapy and immunotherapy, and the neurosciences. The university's ties to the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), and the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research have created a unique centre of its kind in continental Europe.
Institutions established within the Excellence Initiative
Heidelberg Molecular Life Sciences (HMLS)
Cluster of Excellence CellNetworks
Hartmut Hoffmann-Berling International Graduate School of Molecular and Cellular Biology (HBIGS)
Molecular Medicine Partnership Unit (MMPU)
Faculties, institutes and centres
Faculty of Chemistry and Earth Sciences (Ger)
Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science (Ger)
Faculty of Physics and Astronomy
Centre for Molecular Biology (ZMBH)
Heidelberg University Biochemistry Center (BZH)
Centre for Organismal Studies (COS)
BioQuant (Center for Quantitative Analysis of Molecular and Cellular Biosystems)
