Exzellence Alliance will provide a total of 2.4 million euros in funding for cross-institutional scientific collaboration in five areas
Starting in 2027, a total of five Alliance Centers will pool research equipment, technologies, and innovative IT infrastructure within Berlin University Alliance, making them accessible to researchers across institutions. In addition to the Alliance Center for Electron Microscopy (ACEM), which was established in 2024, four new projects have been approved. With this, Berlin University Alliance is expanding its successful funding program and sustainably strengthening collaboration within Berlin’s science and innovation ecosystem.
An overview of the five Alliance Centers:
Alliance Center Electron Microscopy (ACEM): The field of electron microscopy is well-established across Berlin’s research landscape and was successfully developed as an Alliance Center during the first funding phase of BUA. The Alliance Center brings together electron microscopy research laboratories from the four BUA partners. It pools top-tier expertise and lays the groundwork for a shared IT infrastructure. In the second funding period, the consortium aims to expand support for early-career researchers and strengthen collaboration with non-university research institutions.
Spokesperson: Prof. Dr. Christoph Koch (HU)
Participating BUA Partner Institutions: FU Berlin, HU Berlin, TU Berlin, Charité
Other participating partners: HZB, IKZ, PDI, BAM, MDC, FMP
Berlin Center for Advanced Spectroscopy (BCAS): The center links spectroscopic research infrastructures and facilitates interdisciplinary consultation as well as coordinated access models for various methods and instruments used to study interactions between electromagnetic radiation (light, heat, X-rays, or radio waves) and matter. A close collaboration with the non-university research institutions of Berlin Research 50 has been successfully established.
Spokesperson: Prof. Dr. Birgit Kanngießer (TU)
Participating BUA Partner Institutions: FU Berlin, HU Berlin, TU Berlin
Other participating partners: Charité, HZB, BAM, PTB, MBI, MPI-CEC, FHI
Primary Tissue & Organoid Models (PTOM): Cell lines are often studied in isolation, separate from their natural physiological context. This Alliance Center supports the development of an infrastructure that enables the study of human tissue in its natural context. The goal is to establish a research service chain ranging from access to human tissue through the development and quality control of models to imaging. PTOM’s pioneering approach also helps limit animal testing to what is absolutely necessary, since the tissue and organoid models are generated from human cells.
Spokesperson: Dr. Harald Stachelscheid (Charité)
Participating BUA Partner Institutions: FU Berlin, TU Berlin, Charité
Other participating partners: Charité 3R @ Si-M, Berlin Center for Rare Diseases, MDC, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, BfR
Open Infrastructure for Digital Prevention and Intervention Research (Open-DPI): The joint research and development infrastructure in the field of mental health combines the technical development of digital health applications with scientific evaluation. A key component is the BUA-wide rollout of the DIRECT software platform, with a focus on psychiatry and psychotherapy.
Spokesperson: Prof. Dr. Christine Knaevelsrud (FU)
Participating BUA Partner Institutions: FU Berlin, HU Berlin, Charité
Other participating partners: Ascléa GmbH, BIFOLD, Co-minded, Cynteract GmbH, DZPG, Einstein Center Digital Future, FUB Innovation GmbH, Hochschulambulanzen FU/HU, Humboldt-Innovation GmbH, Hybrid Heroes GmbH, Intecsoft GmbH, MHPSS Academy, PIA Charité, Schwarz Charité Health Data GmbH
Light Microscopy Alliance Berlin (LIMA): The center brings together light microscopy infrastructures and image analysis expertise within a network of excellence. Advisory services will help researchers identify suitable equipment and methods, which will increasingly be shared. Among others, the two Berlin-based Nobel laureates, Prof. Dr. Emmanuelle Charpentier and Prof. Dr. Peter Hegemann, have confirmed their participation in this Alliance Center through their respective institutions.
Spokesperson: Prof. Dr. Marina Mikhaylova (HU)
Participating BUA Partner Institutions: FU Berlin, HU Berlin, Charité
Other participating partners: MDC, FMP, Si-M Imaging Platform (TU/Charité), Max-Planck-Institut für Molekulare Genetik