Kiel Metaorganism Center: Advancing metaorganism research in Kiel
Under its new name, the KMC is continuing research into host-microorganism interactions at Kiel University and committed to strengthening collaboration with leading European partner institutions in this field of science.
Kiel University is one of Germany’s leading locations for research into the interaction between microbial symbionts and multicellular host organisms – known as metaorganism research. The interactions that take place between the microbial colonization of the body – known as the microbiome – and the cells of the host organism are of central importance for the healthy functioning of the organism as a whole. Disruptions to the microbiome, on the other hand, are likely linked to the development of various diseases, such as chronic inflammation.
Research into this key topic in the life sciences has a long tradition in Kiel, and has been successfully pursued for around two decades within various externally funded research consortia. In particular, the Collaborative Research Centre (CRC) 1182 „Origin and Function of Metaorganisms”, funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) at Kiel University, has been conducting research in this field since 2016 as a project unique in Germany, addressing the entire spectrum of host-microorganism interactions.
KMC becomes the “Kiel Metaorganism Center”
The Kiel Life Science (KLS) priority research area at Kiel University is now sending a strong signal by renaming its microbiome research centre, established in 2024, the “Kiel Metaorganism Center” (KMC). KLS oversees a total of five such centres, including those dedicated to evolutionary biology and plant research, all of which are designed to focus on a specific topic within the life sciences and to pave the way for new collaborative research networks.
The KMC is headed by Professor Mathilde Poyet of the Institute of Experimental Medicine (IEM) and Professor Mathieu Groussin of the Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology (IKMB), both at the Faculty of Medicine of Kiel University and the University Medical Hospital Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH), Campus Kiel. Until now, it had been known as the “Kiel Microbiome Center”. Under its new name, it is now continuing Kiel’s tradition of metaorganism research – particularly beyond the successful completion of the CRC 1182, which is due to come to an end at the end of next year. “We are particularly grateful to be able to build on a highly established and successful field of research here in Kiel. This will give us the momentum we need to pursue our goal of advancing our shared field of research in close collaboration with Europe’s most renowned research institutions, whilst continuing to raise the profile of Kiel University as a key player in the future,” says Poyet.
European collaboration in metaorganism research
The Kiel Metaorganism Center is currently a leading member of the Europe-wide EuroMicrobiome Initiative. It aims at establishing a pan-European network to coordinate microbiome research and to pool and link the expertise of leading European microbiome research centres, national initiatives and interdisciplinary research programs. In doing so, the KMC can draw on a resource that is unique in Europe: the Global Microbiome Conservancy (GMbC) in Kiel, which was founded 10 years ago. This initiative, also led by Poyet and Groussin, is dedicated to the conservation and study of global microbial diversity. In collaboration with international partners, GMbC members are working to collect microbiome samples from under-represented and non-industrialized population groups in various low- and middle-income countries, thereby contributing to the preservation of the full diversity of the human microbiome.
“We would like to make our unique collection available to our partners in the planned European research network, so that we can jointly advance research into the metaorganism – in particular, to shed light on the links between geography, lifestyle and microbiome composition, and their impact on health,” says Groussin. “I am particularly pleased that, with this new university-run centre, we will now be able to carry forward the concept of metaorganism research – a term coined in Kiel – into the future. It represents more than a decade of successful and unique research at Kiel University and will continue to bolster our international profile. I would also like to express my sincere thanks to Mathilde Poyet and Mathieu Groussin, two exceptionally successful researchers with excellent international networks, who, through the Kiel Metaorganism Center, will represent our field of research with great vigor on the international stage,” emphasizes KLS spokesperson Professor Thomas Bosch, who had led the CRC 1182 as its founding spokesperson for eight years.
Contact:
Prof. Mathilde Poyet
Intestinal Microbiology (Head)
Institute for Experimental Medicine,
Medical Faculty, Kiel University/UKSH
Phone: +49 431-500 -15140
Email: m.poyet@iem.uni-kiel.de / Website: mmmicrobiomelab.org
Prof. Mathieu Groussin
Genomics and Functions of Host Microbiome Systems (Head)
Institute for Clinical Molecular Biology,
Medical Faculty, Kiel University/UKSH
Phone: +49 431-500 -15198
Email: m.groussin@ikmb.uni-kiel.de / Website: mmmicrobiomelab.org
Prof. Thomas Bosch
Spokesperson priority research area
Kiel Life Science (KLS), Kiel University
Phone: +49 431-880-4170
Email: tbosch@zoologie.uni-kiel.de
More information:
Kiel Metaorganism Center (KMC),
Kiel University:
www.uni-kiel.de/de/zentren/kmc
Priority research area Kiel Life Science (KLS),
Kiel University:
www.kls.uni-kiel.de
Global Microbiome Conservancy (GMbC):
microbiomeconservancy.org
