Networks
The Leibniz Association
The Bernhard Nocht Institute is member of the Leibniz Association. The Leibniz Association brings together 93 independent research institutions. Their focus ranges from the natural, engineering and environmental sciences to economics, spatial and social sciences and the humanities. Leibniz institutes are dedicated to socially, economically and ecologically relevant issues. They conduct knowledge- and application-oriented research, also in the overarching Leibniz Research Associations, are or maintain scientific infrastructures and offer research-based services. The Leibniz Association focuses on knowledge transfer, especially with the Leibniz Research Museums. It advises and informs politics, science, industry and the public. Leibniz institutions maintain close cooperation with universities - including in the form of the Leibniz Science Campuses, with industry and other partners at home and abroad. They are subject to a transparent and independent review process. Due to their national importance, the Federal Government and the Länder jointly fund the institutes of the Leibniz Association. The Leibniz Institutes employ around 18,700 people, including 9,500 scientists. The total budget of the institutes is more than 1.8 billion euros.
https://www.leibniz-gemeinschaft.de/en/
German Centre for Infection Research
The BNITM coordinates the work of the Hamburg-Lübeck-Borstel-Riems site in the German Centre for Infection Research (DZIF). The overarching goal of the DZIF is translation, i.e. to transfer results from basic research as purposefully as possible into clinical application. In addition to the BNITM, the University of Hamburg, the University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, the University of Lübeck, the Friedrich Loeffler Institute, the Heinrich Pette Institute and the Research Centre Borstel are involved at the site. These seven university and non-university institutions conduct research particularly in the field of global and emerging infections.
The scientific work in the DZIF is thematically focused: Scientists who specialise in researching a pathogen or a methodology work together in their areas of expertise. The Hamburg-Lübeck-Borstel-Riems site is structurally represented in the topics "Emerging Infectious Diseases", "Malaria", "HIV", "Tuberculosis", "New Antibiotics" and "African Partner Institutions". In addition, projects are carried out on these topics as well as on "Infections in the immunocompromised host", "Hepatitis", "Hospital germs and antibiotic-resistant bacteria" and "New antiviral substances".
Leibniz Center Infection (LCI)
BNITM's natural partners for intensive cooperation in infection research are the two other Leibniz Institutes in the Hamburg area that focus on infection biology, the Leibniz Institute for Virology (LIV) and the Research Center Borstel, Leibniz Lung Center (FZB). The three institutes complement each other thematically in an outstanding way in the research of the most important infectious diseases worldwide and have joined forces to form the Leibniz Center Infection (LCI). A collegium consisting of the leading scientists of the institutes steers the LCI.
In addition to regular consultations, the LCI jointly organises international symposia and promotes inter-institute research collaborations, which have already led to a number of joint publications. The BNITM has also initiated a Leibniz Graduate School "Infections", which is jointly designed by the three Leibniz Institutes. Six LCI fellows and other doctoral students from the three institutes are taking part in the three-year doctoral programme. In addition, all three LCI institutes are represented in the Leibniz research network "INFECTIONS in an Urbanizing World - Humans, Animals, Environments". Together with other Leibniz institutes and other partners, this network aims to establish an interdisciplinary research agenda and opens up new avenues of communication across disciplines. New strategies and methods for early warning and outbreak management systems will be developed to control spread of pathogens.
Centre for Structural Systems Biology (CSSB)
The CSSB is dedicated to infection biology and medicine using structural and molecular biology methods and imaging techniques together with systems biology approaches. Our goal is to unravel the underlying mechanisms of important pathogenic processes in order to find better treatments against bacterial and viral pathogens. For this purpose, we use the worldwide unique research infrastructures on the DESY campus. The CSSB is a joint initiative of nine North German research partners, namely three universities and six research institutions. Our ambition is to establish a leading international research centre in the metropolis of Hamburg.
