It is the annual mega-event for synthetic biology: for the 20th time, thousands of young researchers, start-ups, investors, politicians and journalists from all over the world will come together from 2 to 5 November for the Grand Jamboree of the iGEM 2023 competition. This year, around 400 university teams will be competing in Paris for gold, silver and bronze medals as well as numerous other awards, including 19 German teams (see below).

As part of its bioeconomy research funding programme, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) aims to combine biotechnology with other promising future fields. These include artificial intelligence, robotics, nanotechnology, computer science and engineering. This is because innovations and disruptive developments are increasingly emerging at the boundaries between disciplines.

Whether dowels, egg spoons or armature boards: plastics are omnipresent. Because the mostly petroleum-based materials are light, durable and versatile in industry. At the same time, their production from fossil raw materials often releases large quantities of the climate-damaging greenhouse gas CO₂. Experts therefore see great potential in the use of bio-based plastics in lightweight construction to reduce CO₂ emissions in industry.

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is investing around 50 million euros in innovative plant breeding research that is open to technology and methods as part of a new funding measure. The aim is to be able to guarantee a reliable, climate-resistant supply of high-quality, healthy and safe food.

For numerous species of living organisms, the climate crisis will lead to environmental conditions that they will not be able to survive. Microalgae could fare differently, as a study by GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, the University of Würzburg and the University of East Anglia (UEA) has now shown. According to the study, the unicellular organisms can adapt to nutrient deficiencies, such as those to be expected in warming seas, with the help of a light-driven proton pump.

The Potsdam Science Park in the Golm district is increasingly developing from a science campus into a dynamic innovation ecosystem. This became clear once again at this year's Potsdam Science Park Conference (PSP Conference 2023). The two-day event attracted around 160 guests from science, business and administration to the Fraunhofer Conference Center on 9 and 10 October.

Bacteria and fungi have long been important tools for the chemical company BASF to make the chemical industry more sustainable. With their help, renewable raw materials such as glucose can be converted into bio-based and environmentally friendly products through fermentation. The new fermentation plant at the BASF site in Ludwigshafen is therefore a further step for the listed company in the planned conversion of its production processes towards sustainability.

Not releasing carbon dioxide from industrial processes into the atmosphere, but upgrading it chemically, this approach is intended to make a small contribution to the climate neutrality of the economy. Compared to possible eternal storage facilities for CO₂, this is also economically interesting because no disposal costs are incurred and a profit can even be made. Accordingly, intensive research is being conducted on appropriate CO₂ utilisation processes.

Biogas is one of the components that are to replace fossil raw materials in the energy transition. It is produced by microbial communities fermenting biomass. In principle, the processes involved are well understood, but how the microbial communities are composed has only been partially researched so far. An international research team with the participation of the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus - Senftenberg (BTU) has taken on this task – and made an important discovery.