Epigenetics @HelmholtzMunich

Dozens of researchers @Helmholtz Munich join forces to reveal the myriad of secrets of Epigenetics.

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Dozens of researchers at Helmholtz Munich joined forces

to reveal the myriad of secrets of Epigenetics.

The Epigenetics@HelmholtzMunich Community Research consists of almost 30 labs from 17 Helmholtz Munich institutes, committed to performing ground-breaking research in the field of epigenetics. These groups are pioneers in their respective disciplines, utilizing cutting edge techniques to answer the complex questions of today.

The topics studied by the community include: stem cells, cellular plasticity, metabolism, diabetes, computational biology, epidemiology, immunology, development, and systems biology. 

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Beads on a string
chromatin visualized using 3D-printed nucleosomes (by Igor Kukhtevich) and crochet yarn

Epigenetics in Numbers

28
Research Groups
16
Institutes
6
Departments

Key Activities

News & Highlights

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Artist in Residence Programme_Cellular Reprogramming Necklace by Anna Dumitriu photo credit Audrey Rose Mizzi large_QUER

Events, Public Engagement, Stem Cells, IES,

“In Formation”: Helmholtz Munich Brings Science as Art to Muffatwerk

From 5 to 8 July 2026, Munich’s Muffatwerk will become a unique space where the worlds of scientific research and artistic creation converge. The exhibition “In Formation” brings together four international artists – Anna Dumitriu, Solveig Lill,…

A new study clarifies the role of the RNA methyltransferase METTL5, showing that it does not modify mRNA in living cells but is instead restricted to rRNA.

IFE,

Defining the Role of METTL5 in m6A Deposition: No Evidence for mRNA Methylation In Vivo

A new study clarifies the role of the RNA methyltransferase METTL5, showing that it does not modify mRNA in living cells but is instead restricted to rRNA.

12.07.2023, Neuherberg: Helmholtz Pioneer Campus Opening. Foto: Matthias Balk/Helmholtz Zentrum München

Stem Cells, IES, Computational Health, ICB, Bioengineering, IBMI, Pioneer Campus,

Three Helmholtz Munich Researchers Elected to Bavarian Academy

At its most recent plenary session, the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BAdW) elected 13 distinguished scholars as new members. Among them are three researchers from Helmholtz Munich: Prof. Maria-Elena Torres-Padilla, Prof. Fabian Theis,…

photosynthesis green pattern

Environmental Health, EPI, Molecular Targets and Therapeutics, IFE,

More Than Waste: Photorespiration Shapes the Plant Epigenome

Photorespiration has long been regarded as an energetically costly side reaction of photosynthesis, reducing plants’ net carbon gain. Now, researchers at Helmholtz Munich, in collaboration with Heidelberg University and the Technical University of…

When Metabolism Meets Chromatin: Histone Acylations Tune Gene Expression

IFE,

When Metabolism Meets Chromatin: Histone Acylations Tune Gene Expression

Metabolic dysfunction is a hallmark of numerous diseases, including diabetes and other metabolic disorders. But how do changes in our metabolism affect our cells and the way they function? How do they influence our genes?

The DNA is packaged into chromatin

IES, IFE,

Empowering Young Scientists: Applications Open for 2026 Chromatin Summer School

Talented PhD students are encouraged to apply for the upcoming Chromatin Summer School taking place from 17 - 29 August 2026

Businessmen shaking hands to seal a deal with his partner. Business and entrepreneurship award ceremony theme.

Recent Publications

Curr. Protoc. 6:e70386 (2026)

Selloum, M. ; da Silva Buttkus, P. ; Riet, F. ; Dragano, N.R.V. ; Garrett, L. ; Jacobs, H. ; Hölter, S.M. ; Torquet, N. ; Rathkolb, B. ; Lindner, L. ; Gailus-Durner, V. ; Pavlovic, G. ; Chan, L. ; Beckers, J. ; Demoulière, B.P. ; Fuchs, H. ; Ey, E. ; Sorg, T. ; Hrabě de Angelis, M. ; Herault, Y.

Standardized pipeline for metabolism and cognition in GO-DS21 mouse model: Investigating down syndrome comorbidities.
BioSpektrum 32, 391 (2026)

Theis, F.J. ; Wang, W.

Von Einzelzellatlanten zu Zellsimulationen.
iScience 29:116357 (2026)

Moukham, H. ; Caligaris, M. ; Six, P. ; Padovani, F. ; Schmoller, K.M. ; Virgilio, C.D. ; Nicastro, R. ; Tripodi, F. ; Coccetti, P.

SNF1/AMPK controls its own localization by phosphorylating its activating kinase Sak1.
Plant Physiol., DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiag405 (2026)

Wunder, T. ; Eulitz, L. ; Kramer, L. ; Ali, Z.M. ; Ostermeier, M. ; Leu, C. ; Szulc, B. ; Holzner, L.J. ; Fechter, J. ; Padovani, F. ; Brandt, B. ; Girr, P. ; Teh, J.T. ; Mühlbauer, S. ; Sotos, C. ; Angstenberger, M. ; Mackinder, L.C.M. ; Schmoller, K.M. ; Rädler, J.O. ; Nickelsen, J. ; de Vries, J. ; Kunz, H.H.

Conserved and lineage-specific roles of KEA-mediated Ion homeostasis in chlamydomonas.
NPJ Digit. Med. 9:480 (2026)

Koch, V. ; Bauer, S. ; Mahajan, S. ; Lupperger, V. ; Joner, M. ; Schunkert, H. ; Schnabel, J.A. ; von Scheidt, M. ; Marr, C.

UNICORN: A deep learning model for integrating multi-stain data in histopathology.
Cell Biomater., DOI: 10.1016/j.celbio.2026.100493 (2026)

Distler, T. ; Daga, K.K. ; Bürkle, M. ; Vásquez-Sepúlveda, S. ; Franze, K. ; Götz, M. ; Masserdotti, G.

Fibrin hydrogels regulate human astrocyte state and neuronal reprogramming.
Cell, DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2026.05.019 (2026)

Merino, F.L. ; Miranda, L. ; Kumar, A. ; Li, Y. ; Kumar Sundaramoorthy, D. ; Merl-Pham, J. ; Schentarra, E.M. ; Steinek, C. ; Pravata, V. ; Kittock, C. ; Bürkle, M. ; Hersbach, B.A. ; Ferri Beneito, J. ; Giesert, F. ; Jungmann, R. ; Pilaz, L.J. ; Hauck, S.M. ; Cappello, S. ; Götz, M.

Nuclear proteome reveals microtubule-associated protein regulating fate and disease.
Cell 189, 3773-3800.e44 (2026)

Wang, W. ; Hu, Z. ; Weiler, P. ; Mayes, S. ; Lange, M. ; Fountain, D.M. ; Haug, J.O. ; Wang, J. ; Xue, Z. ; Sauka-Spengler, T. ; Theis, F.J.

RegVelo: Gene-regulatory-informed dynamics of single cells.
Nutrients 18:1727 (2026)

Cahill, T. ; Nalesso, V. ; Clarke, P. ; Lagrán, M.M.d. ; Strydom, A. ; Li, C. ; Potier, M. ; Beckers, J. ; Langohr, K. ; Lió, P. ; Torre, R.d.L. ; Forcano, L. ; Hiance-Delahaye, A. ; Hérault, Y. ; Dierssen, M.

Understanding obesity in individuals with down syndrome: Caregiver perceptions, awareness, and motivation.
Environ. Sci. Technol. 60, 16029-16043 (2026)

Offer, S. ; Czech, H. ; Di Bucchianico, S. ; Hartikainen, A. ; Ihalainen, M. ; Hakkarainen, H. ; Happo, M.S. ; Huttunen, K. ; Ihantola, T. ; Suhonen, H. ; Uski, O. ; Martikainen, M. ; Dilger, M. ; Schlager, C. ; Candeias, J. ; Irmler, M. ; Beckers, J. ; Jakobi, G. ; Kanashova, T. ; Kortelainen, M. ; Kuuspalo, K. ; Lamberg, H. ; Leskinen, A. ; Michalke, B. ; Oeder, S. ; Orasche, J. ; Passig, J. ; Yli-Pirilä, P. ; Rönkkö, T. ; Schnelle-Kreis, J. ; Sklorz, M. ; Streibel, T. ; Tissari, J. ; Buters, J. ; Mülhopt, S. ; Weiß, C. ; Dittmar, G. ; Jokiniemi, J. ; Hirvonen, M. ; Jalava, P. ; Sippula, O. ; Zimmermann, R.

Atmospheric aging alters the toxicity mechanisms of residential wood combustion aerosol: A parallel In Vivo and In Vitro study.
2026 in
In: (9th International Conference on Medical Imaging with Deep Learning, MIDL 2026, 8-10 July 2026, Chientan). 2026. 2757-2779 ( ; 315)

Ozlugedik, F. ; Dasdelen, M.F. ; Umer, R.M. ; Marr, C.

MoA: Mixture of Aggregators Improves Slide-Level Diagnosis in Computational Pathology.
ACS Omega 11, 32946–32954 (2026)

Walter, D. ; Helbig, M. ; Weydanz, B. ; Voltmer, D. ; Bonfiglio, J.J. ; Marr, C. ; Großkopf, T.

Learning to see peaks: Attention-based feature extraction for automated chromatographic peak detection.
Nutrients 18:1692 (2026)

Cahill, T. ; Nalesso, V. ; Clarke, P. ; Lagrán, M.M.d. ; Strydom, A. ; Li, C. ; Potier, M. ; Beckers, J. ; Langohr, K. ; Lió, P. ; Torre, R.d.L. ; Forcano, L. ; Hiance-Delahaye, A. ; Hérault, Y. ; Dierssen, M.

Caregiver-associated physical activity patterns, dietary behaviors and interventional beliefs in individuals with down syndrome: Insights from a large European survey.
Nucleic Acids Res. 54:gkag485 (2026)

Grover, A. ; Zhang, L. ; Muser, T. ; Häfliger, S. ; Wang, M. ; Yates, J. ; Indilewitsch, M.C. ; Wang, Y. ; Van Allen, E.M. ; Theis, F.J. ; Ibarra Del Rio, I.A. ; Krymova, E. ; Boeva, V.

UniversalEPI: Robust prediction of cell type-specific and differential chromatin interactions from DNA sequence and chromatin accessibility.
Expert Syst. Appl. 327:132710 (2026)

Chossegros, M. ; Wagner, S. ; Matek, C. ; Stockholm, D. ; Tannier, X. ; Marr, C.

Hierarchical supervision in DINOv2 training improves generalizability on white blood cell images.
Neuron, DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2026.04.031 (2026)

Bressan, C. ; Gengatharan, A. ; Rodriguez-Aller, R. ; Richter, M. ; Snapyan, M. ; Fischer-Sternjak, J. ; Roukerd, M.R. ; Rosin, N. ; Cherinet, A. ; Biernaskie, J. ; Habibi, E. ; Götz, M. ; Saghatelyan, A.

Cilia beating of ependymal cells regulates adult neural stem cell quiescence via mechanical forces mediated by PKD1/2-TRPM3.
EMBO Rep., DOI: 10.1038/s44319-026-00800-w (2026)

Uruci, S. ; Lalonde, M. ; Luijsterburg, M.S. ; Hamperl, S.

Polymerase face-off: Emerging concepts in transcription-replication coordination.

Contact Office

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Epigenetics Coordination Office
Panorama München mit Frauenkirche im Zentrum und den Alpen im Hintergrund.

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International Helmholtz-Edinburgh Research School for Epigenetics

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