January 12, 2026
A Signature of Life: Time Irreversibility and Amplified Fluctuations in Living Matter
A new publication in PRX by the Fischer-Friedrich group at PoL challenges a long-held belief about what characterizes activity in living systems.
News
© Byung Ho Lee et al. / MPI-CBG / Nature 2025
Publications RA6
January 9, 2026
Engineering the development of the pancreas
Researchers found that the shape of the fluid-filled cavities in the developing pancreas is controlled by pressure and the rate cells divide.
© Alison Kickuth, Brugués Lab
Publications Brugués Group
January 7, 2026
The Mechanical Ratchet: A New Mechanism of Cell Division Uncovered
Scientists from the Brugués group at PoL have discovered a new mechanism for how early embryos with large yolks undergo cell division, altering our view of the process.
© Lei Yuan, Sagarika Dawka, Yohan Kim, Anke Liebert et al. / Nature (2025) / MPI-CBG
Publications RA6
December 18, 2025
Patient-specific human liver model to understand disease mechanisms
A Dresden research team has developed a human modular “LEGO-like” model that lays foundation for a new era in liver research.
© PoL
Society Events
December 1, 2025
The Return of PoL Day: Celebrating Achievements in our Community
The PoL community gathered in the CRTD in November to celebrate PoL Day 2025 after a two-year hiatus.
© Friedrich and Sandoval-Guzmán labs
Publications Friedrich Group
November 24, 2025
Morphogen Math: A Model of Axolotl Limb Growth during Regeneration
In a new publication led by the Friedrich group at PoL and the Sandoval-Guzmán group at CRTD, scientists propose a model of morphogen scaling during limb regeneration in axolotls.
© DGZ
Awards Elias Barriga Group
November 7, 2025
Elias Barriga wins the DGZ Innovation Prize 2025
PoL group leader Elias Barriga has been recognised by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Zellbiologie (DGZ) for introducing new conceptual frameworks in the field.
© Leonie Ringrose and Thomas Chemnitz
Education Society
October 14, 2025
Improvisation and Storytelling for Scientists: PoL Workshop Helps Researchers Combine Spontaneity and Precision
A unique science communication workshop brought together improvisation theater and scientists to enhance researchers' skill in communicating across disciplines.
© Stephan Spangenberg
Society
October 9, 2025
The Scientific Community in Dresden Mourns the Loss of Professor Jochen Guck
Mourning the loss of PoL alumni group leader Jochen Guck (1973-2025), a globally recognized pioneer in the field of cell mechanics.
© Katrin Boes / MPI-CBG
Science Awards
October 1, 2025
New Perspectives on the Hidden World of Proteins
Agnes Toth-Petroczy is awarded the Schering Young Investigator Award 2025
© Patrick McCall
Publications RA2 Associates and Affiliates Brugués Group
September 3, 2025
Life’s Tiny Droplets: A Novel Method Revealing Biological Condensate Composition
Groundbreaking findings published in Nature Chemistry by researchers at PoL, IPF, and MPI-CBG highlight how the makeup of multi-component condensates can be measured.
© PoL
Society Science
August 29, 2025
A new partnership with MBI Singapore
PoL and the Mechanobiology Institute at the National University of Singapore will enter a strategic partnership.
© Anaïs Bailles / MPI-CBG
Publications Associates and Affiliates
August 5, 2025
Stretching the immortal Hydra
PoL Associate and Affiliate researchers from MPI-CBG show how cells can create a new organism from scratch by coordinating their mechanical properties.
© Friedrich group / PoL
Publications Friedrich Group
July 9, 2025
Sarcomere Division: A New Mechanism of Muscle Growth Under Tension
Researchers from the Friedrich group at PoL have identified a novel sarcomere division mechanism, explaining how muscles add new contractile units under high mechanical stress.
© Katrin Boes / MPI-CBG
Science Awards Campàs Group
July 1, 2025
HFSP Postdoctoral Fellowship for Augusto Ortega Granillo
Augusto Ortega Granillo, a joint postdoc at Physics of Life and the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, has received a Long-Term Postdoctoral Fellowship from the Human Frontier Science Program.
© TUD / Magdalena Gonciarz
Education Society
June 23, 2025
PoL at the Long Night of Science 2025
With over 50 PoL volunteers taking part in the event, the Dresden Science Night at the CMCB was a resounding success.
© Anna M. Dowbaj, Aleksandra Sljukic et al. Nature (2025) / MPI-CBG
Publications RA6 Associates and Affiliates
June 3, 2025
All-in-one Model Reconstructs Complex Liver Architecture
The research group of Meritxell Huch, a PoL PI and director at the MPI-CBG, has developed next-generation organoid models to better understand liver disease.
© PoL
Education Society Science
May 26, 2025
PoL is Renewed as a Cluster of Excellence by the DFG!
The Cluster of Excellence Physics of Life (PoL) has been officially renewed for a second funding phase, from 2026–2032.
© COSMO Wissenschaftsforum
Education Society
May 12, 2025
The Physics of Life Exhibition at COSMO Wissenschaftsforum!
With over 800 visitors, the Physics of Life exhibition at COSMO Wissenschaftsforum offered plenty of new things to discover!
© Alba Villaronga-Luque, Ryan G Savill et. al / MPI-CBG
Publications RA6 Associates and Affiliates Ebisuya Group
April 17, 2025
Metabolism Shapes Life: How Glycolysis Drives Early Embryonic Cell Decisions
Researchers from PoL (Ebisuya group), MPI-CBG (Veenvliet group), and EMBL Barcelona have uncovered the instructive potential of glycolysis in two novel publications.
© Katrin Boes / MPI-CBG
Science Awards Mateus Group
April 3, 2025
Rita Mateus Receives Funding to Uncover Crystal Formation Inside Cells
PoL PI Rita Mateus and collaborators have received a prestigious HFSP Early Career Grant Award
© Veikko F. Geyer and Martin Striegler
Publications Associates and Affiliates Friedrich Group
March 4, 2025
The Hidden Twist: Scientists Capture Cilia’s Secret Motion
For the very first time, researchers from PoL and B CUBE have captured cilia twisting motions during their beating that may play a key role in coordinating the movement of tiny molecular motors inside cilia.
© Brian Long, University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB)
Publications Campàs Group
February 21, 2025
Turning Robotic Ensembles into Smart Materials that Mimic Life
Through a collaboration between the Campàs group at PoL and researchers at UCSB, scientists have developed robotic materials that can support heavy loads but also reshape, manipulate objects, and even self-heal.
© PoL
Society Science
February 3, 2025
PoL Pushes for Excellence: Reapplying to the DFG for a Second Funding Period
After submitting a renewal proposal to the DFG, PoL scientists travelled to Bonn to defend the renewal of the Cluster of Excellence.