Institute of Molecular Biotechnology

27/05/2026

Deadline extension! Register for the DevSTEM 2026 symposium by May 30. It’s free.

Join us on June 18 at https://www.linkedin.com/school/istaustria for a day dedicated to developmental and stem cell biology, with talks, poster sessions, flash talks, and opportunities to connect across the Vienna life science community.

We are also pleased to share that IMBA group leader Kristina Stapornwongkul will be one of this year’s keynote speakers, alongside Martin Leeb from Max Perutz Labs. Her lab investigates how cellular metabolism contributes to patterning, morphogenesis, and cell fate decisions during embryonic development.

Register for DevSTEM by May 30: https://devstem.pages.ist.ac.at


Participating institutes and universities:
www,ekoandia.net.pl.linkedin.com/company/maxperutzlabsvienna
https://www.linkedin.com/school/univienna/
https://www.linkedin.com/school/medizinische-universitat-wien/
https://www.linkedin.com/school/istaustria
https://www.linkedin.com/company/vienna-biocenter
https://www.linkedin.com/company/imba-vienna
https://www.linkedin.com/company/impvienna

27/05/2026

IMBA Scientific Director Elly Tanaka has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, joining the world's oldest scientific academy. Founded in 1660, the Royal Society has counted Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Dorothy Hodgkin, Albert Einstein, Lise Meitner, and Stephen Hawking among its fellows.

Elly is a pioneer in regeneration biology whose groundbreaking work has transformed our understanding of how complex tissues and organs regenerate. Her research on animals such as the axolotl salamander has revealed fundamental molecular and cellular mechanisms that enable the regrowth of limbs, spinal cord tissue, and parts of the brain, providing insights with far-reaching implications for regenerative medicine.

As Sir Paul Nurse, President of the Royal Society, noted, "This incoming cohort highlights the truly international character of contemporary science and underscores the vital role that plays in achieving breakthroughs that benefit us all.”

Full story: https://www.oeaw.ac.at/imba/research-highlights/news/elly-tanaka-elected-fellow-of-the-royal-society

27/05/2026

An international research team led by the IMBA lab of ://www.linkedin.com/in/josef-penninger-60734b8/ has uncovered a mechanism that allows breast tumors to escape immune attack, helping to explain resistance to immunotherapy in breast cancer. The study was now published in the journal Nature Communications.

More: https://www.oeaw.ac.at/imba/research-highlights/news/breast-cancer-new-insights-could-improve-immunotherapy-response
Paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-73401-9


://www.linkedin.com/school/medizinische-universitat-wien/?originalSubdomain=at

20/05/2026

IMBA Group Leader Joanna Jachowicz was awarded a Principal Investigator Project grant from the Austrian Science Fund (FWF).

Together with her team, she will study how RNA molecules produced by LINE-1 elements — repetitive DNA sequences once considered “junk DNA” — help shape genome organization and control gene activity during the earliest stages of mammalian development.

➡️ Read more: https://bit.ly/49b992j

20/05/2026

We are hiring! Join the Grade lab as a postdoctoral researcher to explore a development-inspired approach to cortical repair. Link below.👇

Apply to the postdoctoral researcher position at IMBA: https://www.oeaw.ac.at/imba/career-education/open-positions/pos2612-postdoctoral-researcher

13/05/2026

IMBA will train postdoctoral fellows at the interface of artificial intelligence and experimental biology.

Through the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) “Choose Europe for Science” initiative, IMBA has secured funding to launch the “da Vinci” Postdoctoral Fellowship Network. The program will support six postdoctoral fellows working at the intersection of AI and experimental biology, strengthening Europe’s capacity for data-driven discovery.

➡️ Read more: https://bit.ly/4eJLU2O

13/05/2026

📣 RNA biology enthusiasts — registration is now open for the 20th Microsymposium on RNA Biology!

Join researchers from around the world at the Vienna BioCenter for three days of exciting science, networking, and discussion on the latest discoveries in RNA biology.

The Microsymposium brings together young scientists, junior and senior group leaders, and company representatives to share cutting-edge research and foster new connections across the field.

📅 17-19 June 2026
📍 Vienna BioCenter

🧬 Interested in presenting your work?
Abstracts for poster presentations can be submitted until 19 May.

➡️ Register and find more information here:
https://www.oeaw.ac.at/imba/seminars-events/microsymposium

11/05/2026

A full day of curiosity, questions, and first insights into science marked this year’s Daughter’s Day at IMBA, where 25 students joined us at the Vienna BioCenter to explore what a future in research can look like. In a joint program with the Vienna BioCenter Core Facilities (VBCF) and the Gregor Mendel Institute (GMI), participants were invited to experience science not just as a subject, but as a potential career path shaped by curiosity, persistence, and a range of trajectories.
The day began with a breakfast career panel, bringing together researchers and staff across different career stages — from Master’s students to group leaders and technical experts. Speakers shared their individual paths into science, illustrating that careers in research are often non-linear. Participants asked questions and gained insights into day-to-day work in scientific environments.
We extend special thanks to Elly Tanaka, Noelia Urban, Kristina Stapornwongkul, Helena Okulski, and Lilith Kleiber for participating in the breakfast panel.
Following the panel, students stepped into the lab environment at IMBA, gaining first-hand insight into how biomedical research is conducted. During lab tours, participants visited the groups of Noelia Urban and Kristina Stapornwongkul, where they explored how fundamental research contributes to understanding development, stem cells, and human health. Topics included neural stem cells in the brain and the role of metabolism in early embryonic development, presented through direct interaction with scientists and practical demonstrations.
We also thank Tatiana Firfa, Tamara Civetta, and Daniel Brush from the Stapornwongkul Lab, as well as Lidija Milojkovic, Alejandro Alarcon Del Carmen, and Justus Kleifeld from the Urban Lab for organizing and leading the lab tours and hands-on activities.
Daughter’s Day was made possible through the collaboration between IMBA, the Vienna BioCenter Core Facilities (VBCF), and the Gregor Mendel Institute (GMI), as well as the contributions of numerous researchers and staff. The engagement of participants was reflected in their questions during the panel and their discussions throughout the lab visits. By the end of the day, participants had gained a broader understanding of possible pathways in science.
If you want to learn more about outreach opportunities and future programs, visit our website:

This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn

30/04/2026

Researchers including several IMBA labs welcomed members of the public to the Long Night of Research at the Austrian Academy of Sciences’ central office.
Younger visitors explored regeneration through Elly Tanaka’s axolotl research and the neugierige.köpfe outreach initiative. Using the same hands-on format as in schools, researchers showed live axolotl eggs and early larval stages under microscopes and explained the stepwise process of regeneration. The display also introduced the upcoming “Team Gehirn” of the lab of Sofia Grade, which explores how complex brain functions can be studied and communicated. Visitors could view sections of brain tissue and explore how different kinds of neurons are organized and how brain circuits can rewire after injury.
Participants could also explore stem cell-based models used to study human development and disease. The lab of Jürgen Knoblich presented brain organoids, models of early brain development. The lab of Sasha Mendjan showed beating cardioids, models for early hearts. The lab of Nicholas Rivron presented blastoids that allow the study of early stages of human development.
In total, IMBA’s research showcase at the headquarters of the Austrian Academy of Sciences was made possible by more than 40 members of the Tanaka lab, Grade lab, Mendjan lab, Knoblich lab, and Rivron lab!
The Long Night of Research is Austria’s largest nationwide science outreach event and one of Europe’s major national science engagement formats. This year, more than 3,000 activities at over 300 locations across the country drew 192,000 people.
If you want to learn more about IMBA’s outreach activities and future events, visit our website:

23/04/2026

IMBA Senior Scientist Sasha Mendjan was awarded the second place of the Houska Prize 2026 in the “university” category, Austria’s leading private research prize, presented annually by the B&C Private Foundation.
In his award-winning project, Mendjan and his team developed “cardioids”—self-organizing, three-dimensional structures derived from human stem cells that mimic key aspects of early human heart formation. Unlike previous models, cardioids recapitulate the spatial organization, tissue complexity, and emerging chamber-like structures of the developing heart, enabling researchers to investigate processes such as tissue patterning, morphogenesis, and disease mechanisms with unprecedented precision.
Read more: https://imba.science/4mGENtO