Home - Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology & Epigenetics

Welcome at the Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics

The Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics in Freiburg is an interdisciplinary research institution that conducts basic research in two key areas of modern biology.

Immunobiology is concerned with the ways multicellular organisms defend themselves against pathogens. Epigenetics is the study of inheritable traits that are not caused by changes in the underlying DNA sequence.

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Research Groups

Our current labs.

Core Facilities

World-class expertise.

Publications

Institute overview

Jobs

Join our team.

News

Davor Solter receives the 2026 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize

September 16, 2025

Max Planck director honoured for the discovery of genomic imprinting

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Two ERC Starting Grants for Max Planck in Freiburg

September 04, 2025

The European Research Council funds projects of Juliane Glaser and Valentin Flury with a total of 3 Million Euro each

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A floating bubble symbolizing a stem cell contains various foods such as broccoli, strawberries, an egg, and oranges, surrounded by a purple background with additional shattered bubbles.

Mapping the metabolism of blood stem cells

July 15, 2025

Scientists mapping how nutrients and lipids shape bone marrow blood stem cells from health to aging and leukemia

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Ibrahim Cissé elected EMBO member

July 01, 2025

Recognition for outstanding achievements in the life sciences for Max Planck Director

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Juliane Glaser is the newest group leader at MPI in Freiburg

June 25, 2025

The French scientist studies epigenetic mechanisms of embryonic development with a focus on “jumping genes”

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Running circles in my head

June 10, 2025

How the ELAV protein shapes the brain’s unique circular RNA landscape

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Asifa Akhtar elected foreign member of the Royal Society

May 20, 2025

The Max Planck Director has been selected for her leadership in German science and her research achievements

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From one to the right

April 07, 2025

Chromatin enzymes play a crucial role in germ layer formation at the onset of zygotic genome activation in Drosophila embryos.

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Seminars & Events

Drone shot of the Novartis Campus in Basel – with event details for the 2025 TriRhena Gene Regulation Club at the FMI

Symposium: TriRhena in Gene Regulation Club

5 November 2025 at the FMI in Basel

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2026 Max Planck Epigenetics Meeting

Sign Up for Event Updates

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Upcoming Seminars

Giocomo Cavalli

Jan 21, 2026 01:00 PM - 02:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

MPI-IE, Room: Lecture Hall

George Wendt

Jan 26, 2026 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

MPI-IE, Room: Lecture Hall

Eugene Kim

Jan 28, 2026 01:00 PM - 02:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

MPI-IE, Room: Lecture Hall

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Career

A laboratory technician's gloved hand raises a petri dish, surrounded by scientific equipment.

Excellent PhD training

We train the next generation of research scientists. Learn more about our PhD program – the International Max Planck Research School for Epigenetics, Biophysics and Metabolism (IMPRS-EBM)

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Welcome Service

We welcome all new arrivals, assist in the onboarding procedure, help you to find a new place and get acquainted with your new colleagues. Learn more about our services.

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Job offers

Career at Max Planck

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Multimedia

Watch: Can we hack our genes?

November 05, 2023

Epigenetics studies how certain parts of our genome can be switched on or off. Can epigenetics help us to become more musical, fitter, smarter, more beautiful? – Epigenetics TV documentary with Thomas Jenuwein on ARTE

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Swarms & swarming immune cells

Podcast July 07, 2022

podcast

Podcast special by detektor.fm on swarms and swarm intelligence, including an interview with Max Planck scientist Tim Lämmermann on immune cell swarms and pathogen hunting in a collective.

How the immune system learns to defend itself

Video February 11, 2021

podcast

Thomas Boehm talks to detektor.fm editor Dominik Lenze about vaccinations. The Max Planck Director explains how an immune reaction actually takes place during vaccination.

Metabolism in hematology

July 29, 2025

Technological advances are reshaping our understanding of metabolism in hematology and cancer research. In this two-part HemaSphere podcast Petya Apostolova and Jörg Büscher discuss the role of metabolism, challenges in metabolomics, and future research directions, particularly regarding acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

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