Julia Mahamid (EMBL Heidelberg) was recognized with the Carl Zeiss Lecture Prize at the International Meeting of the German Society for Cell Biology. Julia received this honor for her pioneering contributions in structural biology and the development of new cryo-electron microscopy technologies.

We would also like to share that Julia Mahamid, who was recently recognized with the Carl Zeiss Lecture Prize at the International Meeting of the German Society for Cell Biology, will also be awarded the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize in March. Congratulations! 👏
www.dfg.de/de/service/p...

Exciting news! We would like to congratulate @nataliekrahmer.bsky.social on her professorship 👏.

Prof. Dr. Krahmer will start a new position as Professor of Metabolic Cell Architecture at Technical University of Munich and Helmholtz Munich @tum.de @helmholtzmunich.bsky.social

We look forward to building on the momentum and enthusiasm from this event as we continue our research to understand lipid droplet diversity in health and disease.

Learn more about our consortium, research foci, and principal investigators at for5815.de

Sincere thanks go to all participants and the local organizing team at the University of Heidelberg, and to the DFG for enabling this important initiative.

This retreat exemplified the collaborative spirit of FOR 5815, creating new connections between labs and setting the stage for future exchanges in methods, mentoring, and joint research projects.

PhD students and postdocs played a central role, presenting data, sharing technical insights, and driving the intellectual energy of the meeting. Their contributions sparked vibrant conversations, strengthened community ties, and launched collaborative ideas to be explored across our institutions.

Across three days, the retreat featured a dynamic program, including project updates and presentations, interactive technical presentations on state-of-the-art methodologies, and lively roundtable discussions for peer learning, networking, and planning future collaborative lab rotations.

Our network unites expertise from fields including virology, cell biology, metabolism, advanced imaging, structural biology, and molecular profiling, fostering deep interdisciplinary exchange.

Supported by the DFG, FOR 5815 is an interdisciplinary research consortium dedicated to unveiling how #LipidDroplet (LD) heterogeneity contributes to fundamental cellular processes, health, and disease.

This event brought together principal investigators alongside PhD students and postdoctoral researchers from 8 German institutions: EMBL Heidelberg, DKFZ Heidelberg, Helmholtz Munich, BZH Heidelberg, University of Münster, University of Heidelberg, University of Marburg, and University of Lübeck.

The Lipid Droplets Heterogeneity (FOR 5815) consortium held its first retreat from October 13–15, 2025, at the University of #Heidelberg, a city celebrated for its strong scientific and academic tradition.

FOR 5815 | LinkedIn FOR 5815 | 46 followers on LinkedIn. Research Unit FOR 5815: Structural & functional lipid droplet heterogeneity | FOR5815 is a highly interdisciplinary, DFG-funded research group (https://for5815...

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The central goal of FOR 5815 is to elucidate the functional implications of LD heterogeneity in health and disease. Specifically, we will: 1. Establish novel methods to purify and characterize LD subpopulations 2. Elucidate the contribution of LD heterogeneity to the regulation of lipid metabolism 3. Identify proteins and molecular machineries that are relevant to achieve and maintain LD heterogeneity 4. Determine the functional links of organelle contact sites and subcellular organization to LD heterogeneity

This bidirectional relationship allows cells to respond optimally to different conditions, especially to nutrient fluctuations and prevalent pathophysiological challenges. Thus, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝟱𝟴𝟭𝟱 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝗹𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗟𝗗 𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲.

The overarching hypothesis of FOR 5815 is that 𝗟𝗗 𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝘂𝗸𝗮𝗿𝘆𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝘀. We postulate that 𝗱𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗟𝗗 𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘁𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱, 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿.

Intracellular LD heterogeneity enables not only the sub-compartmentalization and regulation of central LD functions, i.e., efficient lipid storage and lipolysis, but is also tied to the corresponding complex signaling networks that relate to energy homeostasis and substrate channeling. It is becoming increasingly evident that significant progress in LD biology demands a deeper understanding of LD heterogeneity.

This LD heterogeneity occurs at multiple levels, resulting in the formation of specific subpopulations that differ across intracellular space, between neighboring cells of the same or different types, and between healthy and diseased conditions.

Lipid droplets (LDs) are key organelles of cellular lipid homeostasis. They exhibit a remarkable dynamic plasticity in molecular composition, number, localization, and appearance. This LD heterogeneity occurs at multiple levels, resulting in the formation of specific subpopulations that differ across intracellular space, between neighboring cells of the same or different types, and between healthy and diseased conditions. The surface of LDs consists of a phospholipid monolayer with associated enzymes as well as structural and regulatory proteins. The LD surface not only represents the critical interface between the neutral lipid core and the surrounding aqueous cellular environment, but is also a fundamental determinant of LD heterogeneity. This is clearly evident by the selective association of specific proteins to different LD subpopulations. Additional factors determining LD heterogeneity include the formation of contact sites with other organelles, the presence of different neutral lipid classes, LD-LD clustering or dispersion, differences in LD size and number, and the interaction of pathogenic agents with specific LD subpopulations.

#LipidDroplets (LDs) are key organelles of cellular lipid homeostasis. They exhibit a remarkable dynamic plasticity in molecular composition, number, localization, and appearance.

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