In the Cluster of Excellence we investigate the dynamic balance of microbial consortia, the underlying factors and responses to disturbances. Our cross-system approach aims to identify commonalities and differences in patterns and regulatory mechanisms in the different Microverses.

It is CECAD's mission to provide fundamental knowledge of the biology af aging and aging-associated diseases.

The Cluster of Excellence on Plant Sciences CEPLAS addresses these grand challenges through world-class fundamental research on complex plant traits of agronomic relevance that impact on yield and adaptation to limited resources. Hence this knowledge is essential for designing and breeding plants that react in a predictable way to future challenges (SMART plants).

Between the cells of complex living organisms, there is a constant exchange of biological signals. This dense network of dynamic signalling processes is a prerequisite for cells to coordinate their tasks, form complex tissues, and, at the same time, adapt to environmental conditions. The aim of CIBSS is to understand this “language of life” and to be able to communicate in it.

CMFI elucidates mechanisms governing competition and fitness of beneficial or harmful bacteria as the basis for developing new multi-level interventions against ARBPs and other pathogens.

At the Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, we aim to create a global hotspot for the integrated study of collective behaviour across a wide range of species and across scales of organization. 

Heart and lung diseases are the leading causes of death worldwide, with still unmet treatment challenges. The molecular biology underlying individual cellular phenotypes and intercellular cooperativity in development and homeostasis of these interconnected organs is still elusive. Similarly, understanding of the failed regulation that leads to disease and that can be exploited for novel therapies is lacking. These challenges will be addressed by the Cluster.

The Cluster of Excellence 2180 "Image-guided and Functionally Instructed Tumor Therapies" (iFIT) is the only oncology cluster of excellence in Germany. Since 2019, internationally renowned scientists and talented young researchers have been working together in this consortium in a globally unique collaboration of three different research areas to develop new, individualized cancer therapies.

ImmunoSensation2 is a Cluster of Excellence at the University of Bonn funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG). We are dedicated to the study of innate immunity beyond the boundaries of classical immunology. We adress the immune system as a sensory organ for health, which we term the immune sensory system.

The goal of the cluster of excellence Multiscale Bioimaging: from Molecular Machines to Networks of Excitable Cells (MBExC) is to decipher disease-relevant nanoscale functional units in cardiac and neural excitable cells.