Lichtgedanken 03

Rubrik 3 03 | LICHT GEDANKEN PUBLISHER: Central Communications/Press Office on be- half of the President of the Friedrich Schiller University Jena EDITORIAL AND DESIGN: Dr Ute Schönfelder, Juliane Dölitzsch, Stephan Laudien, Axel Burchardt (responsible under German press legislation), Liana Franke, Kai Friedrich, Monika Paschwitz (editorial assistant) and Kerstin Apel (secretariat) GRAPHIC DESIGN: Timespin—Digital Communication GmbH, Sophienstraße 1, D-07743 Jena ADDRESS: Friedrich Schiller University Jena Fürstengraben 1, D-07743 Jena Phone: ++49 3641/9-31040, Fax: ++49 3641/9-31032, Email: presse@uni-jena.de OVERALL PRODUCTION: Druckhaus Gera GmbH, Ja- cob-A.-Morand-Straße 16, D-07552 Gera TRANSLATION: Michelle Wilbraham, Jernej Biščak INTERNET: www.uni-jena.de/en/lichtgedanken ISSN: 2510-3849 PUBLICATION DATE: March 2018 PHOTOS: Kasper (1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11—14, 16, 19, 25—29, 33, 35, 40, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 48, 51, 56—61, 63, 64, 66), Günther (5, 18, 23, 55, 63, 35, 68), Frenzel (5, 71, 73), Beutel (5, 52), Lehmann (5, 36, 37, 38), Fischer (10), Döring (5, 20, 24), Beemelmanns (30, 32), Rischer (31), Mittag (34), Gutmann (39), Kirtzel (43), Archiv (47), Schroll (48), Yan (50), Stein (53, 54), Hoffmeister (64), Alivernini (70, 72), Biehl (72, 73), privat (74). Reproduction only permitted with approval. No liability is assumed for spontaneously submitted manuscripts, photos or similar material. Articles carrying the name of the author do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher or the editorial team. The signatories are responsible for the content. In some places we have only used the male form in articles to improve their readability. The formulations chosen denote men and women in equal measure. For science in Germany, 2018 will be a year of important decisions in the Excellence Strategy programme of the German federal government and feder- al states. A total of 195 draft proposals for Clusters of Excellence have been submitted in this national competition. Of the 88 drafts that will be developed into full proposals by February, two are from Friedrich Schiller University, Jena (FSU). From 2019, between 45 and 50 Clusters of Excellence will be fund- ed with 385 million euros per year. The Cluster proposal »Enlightening the Receptome« is a joint application of FSU and the University of Würz- burg. Its key objective is systemati- cally to unravel the »receptome«—the sum of all receptor molecules of an organism—and make use of it in treat- ing disease s (see p. 49). The Cluster proposal »Balance of the Microverse« focuses on microorganisms and their interactions with other microorgan- isms, and with their environment—the »Microverse«. The diversity of these »microworlds« is the focus (s ee p. 8—46) o f the present issue of LICHT GEDANKEN . Current FSU research topics in microbiology concern vital issues for the future, such as fighting infectious diseases, sustainably securing our basic needs, as well as ensuring a stable climate. With these topics, the University is continuing the long tradition of micro- biology in Jena, initiated by Hans Knöll in the 1940s when he first started the industrial production of penicillin here. The Central Institute for Micro- Tradition and innovation— microbiology in Jena biology and Experimental Therapy (ZIMET), led by Hans Knöll, gave rise to today’s Leibniz Institute for Natu- ral Product Research and Infection Biology–Hans Knöll Institute (HKI). The University benefits greatly from its close cooperation with the HKI and other non-university research institu- tes of the Leibniz Association, the Max Planck Society, the Fraunhofer Society, and the Helmholtz Association, in par- ticular in preparing the »Microverse« Cluster proposal. The Cluster combines the expertise of the FSU’s profile lines LIGHT and LIFE, and builds on the very success- ful Excellence Graduate School »Jena School for Microbial Communica- tion« (JSMC), which was set up in 2007. Based on strategic cooperation bet- ween participating institutes, several large third-party funded projects such as Collaborative Research Centres have been successfully established. Obtaining funding for the Microverse and the Receptome Clusters would re- present a continuation of this positive development and enhance the interna- tional visibility of the FSU. I hope that you enjoy reading this issue of LICHT GEDANKEN . Prof. Dr Thorsten Heinzel Vice-President for Research at Friedrich Schiller University Jena Editorial Jena, January 2018