©BNITM | FHH

Event

125 years of global infection research - in the heart of Hamburg

On 1 October 2025, the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) celebrated its 125th anniversary. In the course of its chequered history, the institute has made a significant contribution to the fight against diseases such as Malaria, Ebola and Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs). In numerous events, we looked back – and forward.

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Spatial transcriptomics of a mouse lymph node with cell-type labels

©Thomas Otto

Data Science Centre

Using AI to combat infectious diseases

Modern infection research generates huge amounts of data – from genome sequences to epidemiological and clinical data. The new Data Science Centre at BNITM creates the structures to bring together this data from all research sections, evaluate it using AI and bioinformatics, and make it accessible. In this way, the diversity of data becomes a driving force that connects research and accelerates the fight against infectious diseases.

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The photo shows a female Mastomys natalensis suckling.

©Adobe Stock| PIXATERRA

Publication

Lassafever more widespread than known

Lassa viruses can cause severe haemorrhagic fever, often with fatal consequences. However, a study shows that in rural Guinea, the population apparently lives not only with the virus's carrier, the multimammate mouse, but also with the virus itself. Over 80 per cent of the population carry antibodies, many of them since childhood. Hardly anyone gets sick. This finding raises questions about immunity, risk and vaccination strategies.

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The image shows an Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) in a laboratory.

©BNITM

Publication

Oropouche virus: Can mosquitoes be carriers?

Until now, it was unclear whether mosquitoes could transmit and spread Oropouche viruses. A new study by the BNITM now shows that they can! Specifically, tiger mosquitoes, which are spreading increasingly in Europe due to climate change. They appear to have what is known as vector competence for this tropical pathogen. This has implications for risk assessment.

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