The LIMES Institute at the University of Bonn
The Life & Medical Sciences (LIMES) Institute was founded in 2006 as a new scientific institution of the Mathematics and Natural Sciences Faculty of the University of Bonn (Molecular Biomedicine Division). Currently, the staff comprises over 240 scientists, postdoctoral fellows, PhD students and support staff from 19 different countries. This number is further increased by up to 150 Bachelor's and Master's students at any one time.
Sites and Organizational Structure
Twenty Departments/Professors, one senior professor and the institute's central infrastructure are spatially distributed across six sites in Bonn: The LIMES Research Building in Bonn-Poppelsdorf (main site of the Institute since 2010), the Kekulé Institute of the Department of Chemistry at Bonn-Endenich, the Bonn-Aachen International Center for information Technology (BIT) center, the Hausdorff Center for Mathematics (HCM), the Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative Erkrankungen (DZNE) and the center of advanced european studies and research (caesar).
Our Research Focus
The scientific focus of the LIMES working groups are: exploring the interaction of the immune system with metabolism in health and disease, and the study of cellular membrane processes using methods of lipid biochemistry, chemical biology and biophysics. The working groups of the Institute are organized in four Research Units according to their scientific expertise:
- Genetics, Developmental Biology and Molecular Physiology,
- Molecular Immune- and Cell- Biology,
- Membrane Biology and Biochemistry, and
- Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry.
Collaboration is integral to the LIMES Institutes innovative research. Our research activities are further integrated into national and international cooperation networks.
At the LIMES Institute: Study, work, inspire
The Life & Medical Sciences Institute is committed to the development of young researchers. The interdisciplinary structure of the Institute provides a great environment for training. We currently offer internationally recognized Bachelor’s study program, "Molekulare Biomedicine" (German language); Master’s, "Immunobiology" and "Biochemistry" (English language); and Doctoral study programs. In addition, the institute hosts and trains students through internships, and is regularly involved in public outreach programs; working with schools and the local community to stage "science rally's", lab visits and student/parent information days.
