Microbiology in a data-driven world (MDDW)

Microbial communities in focus at ICRC 2026

The 15th International CeBiTec Research Conference (ICRC 2026), held by CeBiTec at Bielefeld University from September 28 to 30, brought together researchers from academia and industry under the theme “From metabolic design to biomanufacturing – Bridging scales and data.” The scientific program featured several topics closely connected to the MDDW focus area, highlighting the interplay between data-driven approaches, microbial biotechnology, and sustainable bioproduction.

Several contributions addressed key questions at the heart of the MDDW focus area – from understanding population heterogeneity and microbialinteractions to the rational design and data-driven analysis of defined microbial communities.

Julia Zaraza (Ulm University) presented fluorescent biosensors for monitoring intracellular pH and population heterogeneity at the single-cell level, while Christian Riedel (Ulm University) demonstrated how metabolically specialized Corynebacterium glutamicum strains can be combined in defined microbial consortia in fermentations. In addition, Eszter Toldi (ISAS/Bielefeld University) presented a poster on metaproteomics-informed community metabolic models aimed at predicting and ultimately engineering the behavior of microbial consortia.

A second perspective focused on interactions between bacteria and amoebae. Pierre Stallforth (Leibniz-HKI/Jena University) illustrated how predator–prey interactions drive the evolution and diversification of microbial natural products. Jasmin Schorling (Bielefeld University) demonstrated how this natural interaction can be translated into biotechnology by using recombinant amoebae to valorize bacterial biomass for the production of high-value terpenes.

Together, these contributions highlighted a common challenge central to MDDW: moving from observing microbial communities toward understanding, predicting, and ultimately engineering their interactions and functions.

(Katrin Rosenthal, Johann Kufs, Till Tiso, Volker F. Wendisch)

The 14th International CeBiTec Research Conference (ICRC 2025) on Advances in Industrial Biotechnology was held on September 15-17, 2025, at Bielefeld University and brought together research scientists from academia and industry as well as students under the theme of synthetic and natural consortia, pathways, and enzymes. Chair Prof. Volker F. Wendisch and co-chairs Dr. Petra Peters-Wendisch and Asst. Prof. Fatma Gizem Avci welcomed 55 participants from 6 countries. Sessions covered key areas of biotechnology, including large-scale biomanufacturing, enzyme engineering, metabolic pathway engineering, and microbial consortia.

The opening session discussed the importance of microbial communications in sustainable processes, critical insights in bioprocess development and scale-up, and the power of computational modeling to accelerate strain development. In the following sessions, the presentations underscored the expanding scope of pathway engineering and enzyme modification in creating sustainable, high-value products across the food, chemical, and pharmaceutical sectors.

For the Focus Area MDDW, the session ‘Synthetic and Natural Consortia’ was of particular interest. Researchers detailed the newest insights on selected natural microbiomes as well as on the construction of synthetic microbial consortia for applications in human gut, ecology, and biotechnology. Topics included the emergence of community behaviors in the gut microbiota under drug treatment, the effects of disinfectant residuals on the drinking water microbiome, and new insights into the Brazilian Pampa microbiome revealed through a multi-approach study. Further presentations highlighted gut microbiota shifts in Antarctic fur seals from birth to weaning under contrasting ecological conditions and innovative strategies for the application of synthetic microbial consortia to biorefinery of wastes and sidestreams.

The conference also provided a platform for early-career scientists, with a special lecture series led by female researchers in biotechnology. Poster sessions allowed researchers to discuss their most current findings with the research community. The conference was closed by the Scientific Director of the CeBiTec, Volker Wendisch.

(F.G. Avci, P. Peters-Wendisch, V.F. Wendisch)