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Dr. Stefanie Grosswendt has been a Lise Meitner Research Group Leader at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine in Münster since July 2026. She has now relocated her independent research group 'Cellular Interactions' from Berlin to join the institute. Her group investigates how cells communicate with their neighboring cells, and how these interactions influence cellular decisions.
Multicellular life depends on cells acting in concert. They exchange information with one another and adapt their behavior accordingly. This communication shapes developmental processes, tissue function, and the progression of disease. Grosswendt's team develops novel single-cell and spatial omics approaches to study cellular interactions in embryonic development and tumors at high resolution.
Deciphering the language of cells
"Just as the meaning of a sentence emerges from the combination of words, cells interpret combinations of signals rather than individual signals in isolation. We want to understand the combinatorial logic of this cellular language and how it enables cells to establish their identity and build functional tissues," says Stefanie Grosswendt. "The Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine approaches tissue biology from a systems perspective and therefore provides an ideal environment for our work."
From Berlin to Münster
Stefanie Grosswendt joins the Institute from the Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (BIH) and the Max Delbrück Center (MDC) in the Helmholtz Association, where she led an independent group. She was awarded an ERC Starting Grant for her CELLMATES project, which develops novel approaches to analyze interacting cells with high molecular and spatial resolution. Her research group uses embryonic models in vivo and in vitro, with a focus on the neural crest cells in the embryo and related cancers.
"With Stefanie, our Institute is gaining an outstanding scientist whose research addresses fundamental questions in modern tissue biology," says Prof. Sara Wickström, MD, PhD, Managing Director of the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine. "Her work uniquely integrates single-cell omics approaches and developmental tissue biology. It complements our research strengths exceptionally well and further reinforces the Institute's interdisciplinary profile."
Lise Meitner Research Groups
The Max Planck Society's Lise Meitner Excellence program is designed to attract and specifically promote outstanding female scientists with an established record of independent research and leadership. The multi-stage, competitive selection process is aimed at future leaders within a research field and offers a W2 position with a long-term perspective within the Max Planck Society. The program provides funding for Lise Meitner Research Groups, enabling selected scientists to join a Max Planck Institute with a strong scientific fit for their research.
About the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine
The Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine in Münster conducts basic research into the dynamics and cellular crosstalk of tissues at the systems level. Its scientists investigate how cells build, maintain, and regenerate tissues, and how disruptions of these processes contribute to disease. Through interdisciplinary research, the institute aims to uncover the fundamental principles that govern multicellular life.
https://www.mpi-muenster.mpg.de/pressemitteilung/grosswendt
Dr. Stefanie Grosswendt Appointed Lise Meitner Research Group Leader at the Max Planck Institute for ...
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