GRK 3120:  Biomolecular Condensates: From Physics to Biological Functions

• Subject Area: Basic Research in Biology and Medicine ; Polymer Research ; Statistical Physics, Nonlinear Dynamics, Complex Systems, Soft and Fluid Matter, Biological Physics
• Term: since 2026
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 542285965

Biomolecular condensates have emerged as a new paradigm to understand biological function in living cells. Condensate assembly requires cooperative mechanisms, in particular those known from the physics of phase separation in polymeric liquids and has been observed across the tree of life. Condensates organize cellular space via the condensation of proteins and other macromolecules to control biological functions, which often involves the recruitment and regulation of essential cellular enzymes. A key challenge is to understand how biological functions such as enzymatic activities are controlled by the composition, material properties, geometry and specific microenvironments of condensates. Importantly, mutations in condensate-forming proteins have been closely linked to many human diseases, promising a better disease understanding and therapies in the future. The principal challenge of the project is to find the deeper and fundamental relation between Condensates, physiological functions, and disease. We aim to establish an interdisciplinary educational framework that focuses on Condensates and brings together fundamental research in polymer physics and biophysics with biochemistry, cell biology and medical research. The research will be structured into two project areas: Project area A will focus on the physics of Condensates and project area B will focus on the biology and biomedicine of Condensates. All projects within the RTG are connected by strong collaborations across disciplines, combining theory and experiment, thus forming a network that links biological functionality to physics and polymer science. The topic of Condensates is ideally suited for establishing an interdisciplinary training program. This is because there is an urgent need to understand biological function through the physical chemistry and physics of biological polymers, which requires us to teach a new generation of doctoral students across disciplines. The topic of Condensates was pioneered in Dresden and has been carried forward by a vibrant research scene. This is an ideal environment for a focused graduate programme that would offer the doctoral students a high level of interdisciplinary training. The RTG will further strengthen the links between the TU Dresden, the MPI-CBG, the HZDR, and the IPF in this emerging topic. The RTG has ambitious plans concerning research data management in an interdisciplinary field in close collaboration with the ZIH at the TUD.

• DFG Programme: Research Training Groups
• Applicant Institution: Technische Universität Dresden
• Participating Institution: Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR); Leibniz-Institut für Polymerforschung Dresden e.V. (IPF); Max-Planck-Institut für molekulare Zellbiologie und Genetik (MPI-CBG)
• Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Jens-Uwe Sommer
• Participating Researchers: Dr. Ellen Adams; Professor Dr. Simon Alberti; Professor Jan Brugués, Ph.D.; Professorin Dr. Miki Ebisuya, Ph.D.; Professor Dr. Stephan Wolfgang Grill; Dr. Tyler Harmon; Professor Dr. Alf Honigmann; Professor Dr. Anthony A. Hyman; Dr. Marcus Jahnel, until 2/2026; Professor Dr. Frank Jülicher, since 4/2026; Professor Dr. Helmut Schiessel; Professor Dr. Michael Schlierf; Professor Dr. Jared Sterneckert; Agnes Toth-Petroczy, Ph.D.