Group photo: two older gentlemen on the outside, the two young female scientists inside with certificates in their hands

©BNITM

Doctoral awards

Support association honours outstanding dissertations

The Association of Friends of the Hamburg Tropical Institute (VdF) has awarded its 2025 doctoral prizes to two outstanding young scientists: Dr Barbara Honecker investigated the role of extracellular vesicles in amoebiasis, while Dr Valeria Füsslin developed a method for rapidly determining resistance in cholera pathogens. The prizes recognise excellent research in tropical medicine.

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©ViMOP

New pipeline for virus genome data

ViMOP strengthens outbreak surveillance in West Africa

How can virus outbreaks be detected more quickly? The ViMOP pipeline developed by BNITM analyses untargeted nanopore sequencing – simply, flexibly and robustly. It has now been introduced in Guinea and Nigeria in collaboration with partner laboratories. The aim is to strengthen regional surveillance, present results in an understandable way and enable faster response times.

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Photo of the Elbphilharmonie concert hall against a blue sky

©Adobe Stock | mstein

anniversary concert

Jazz meets tropical medicine – celebrate with us!

125 years of global infection research in the heart of Hamburg – we are celebrating with a special concert in the Small Hall of the Elbphilharmonie. Experience the Beatrice Asare Quintet with newly arranged jazz classics and their own songs full of soul and excitement. Advance tickets are now on sale – secure your ticket for the BNITM Jazz Night!

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Yellow graphic with the writing "The European Virus Archive becomes EVA AISBL"

©EVAg

Pandemic prevention

Expansion of the international virus archive

The BNITM is participating in the expansion of the European Virus Archive, which now operates as an international organisation called EVA AISBL. With virus samples from 19 countries – including Ebola, Lassa and Crimean-Congo viruses – the institute provides reference material for research and diagnostics. The goal is global pandemic preparedness through open access to dangerous pathogens under safe conditions.

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©Dániel Cadar

New working group

Detect zoonoses early, prevent outbreaks

How do new viral diseases develop - and how can the risk of zoonotic spillover be recognised at an early stage? The new working group ‘Virus Metagenomics and Evolution’ at the BNITM uses modern genetic methods to analyse the virome in humans, animals and the environment. In doing so, it links molecular data with ecological factors - in an interdisciplinary, globally networked manner and in line with the One Health approach.

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©ECTMIH2025

Specialist event

Science Congress

In October 2025, the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) will celebrate its 125th anniversary. And how do researchers celebrate? With a scientific conference! After thirty years, the ‘European Congress on Tropical Medicine and International Health’ (ECTMIH) is returning to Hamburg. The organisers are expecting more than 1,000 participants at the Congress Center Hamburg (CCH). Take part and send in your session proposals!

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