The partnership between QBI and Freie Universität Berlin (FUB) has grown steadily, fueled by a shared commitment to advancing biomedical research. Since their first joint symposium in 2019, researchers from both institutions have collaborated across fields such as quantitative biosciences, biochemistry, biophysics, and structural biology. This complementary expertise has enabled joint projects, funding opportunities, and knowledge exchange, laying the groundwork for long-term scientific cooperation.
Building on this strong foundation, QBI Director Nevan Krogan has been awarded the prestigious Einstein Visiting Fellowship, marking a major milestone in the ongoing QBI–FUB collaboration.
In January 2025, the Einstein Foundation awarded Nevan Krogan the Einstein Visiting Fellowship at Freie Universität Berlin, in collaboration with Christian Freund, Professor of Biochemistry at FUB. The foundation supports the establishment of a working group within Christian Freund’s lab, funding two postdoctoral researchers and providing a travel budget. Together, Krogan and Freund’s groups will establish a technological pipeline incorporating mass spectrometry, cryo-EM, and computational approaches. This pipeline will be applied to studying epilepsy and investigating how the influenza A virus restructures the proteome of infected host cells.
The insights gained from this research could have far-reaching implications, as understanding these molecular interactions will not only shed light on fundamental mechanisms but also contribute to the development of novel drug targets.
The impact of this project will extend beyond the initial funding, serving as a cornerstone for strengthening scientific collaboration between Berlin and the Bay Area. By fostering exchanges and exploring joint funding opportunities, QBI and FUB aim to build a sustainable partnership driven by shared scientific interests.
In March 2025, Krogan and his team traveled to Berlin to meet with Günter Ziegler, President of Freie Universität Berlin, along with Freund and other collaborators. Their discussions focused on outlining the next steps for establishing the scientific framework of the Einstein Fellowship and more broadly the creation of a Berlin-San Francisco scientific axis.
The collaboration between QBI and FUB has flourished over the past five years, and with the support of the Einstein Fellowship, it is now evolving into a more structured and enduring partnership.
“This Einstein visiting fellowship is a beautiful funding format of the Einstein foundation in Berlin, where a scientist from abroad, Nevan, is invited to come over and have his own group here,” said Ziegler, “It's a wonderful way to really drive the science forward, and I'm so happy we can do that. And of course, money always is good, and the funding of the Einstein foundation is the best we can get there.”
As research funding in the U.S. becomes increasingly constrained, international collaborations like this one play a vital role in advancing scientific discovery. By fostering cross-border cooperation, such initiatives contribute to a more interdependent and resilient global research network.
“I'm very happy to have been appointed an Einstein Fellow. And I think in the current climate, it's even more important to be engaged in these international relationships. I take great pride in the fact that we, at QBI, have been focused on these international relationships. The Einstein Fellow acknowledges that, and provides a stronger framework to augment our collaborative relationships, not just in Berlin, not Just in Germany, but around Europe,” said Krogan
“I think the great thing about the collaborations with Nevan’s lab is that we use complementary approaches and have a similar way of thinking about biology, and I think we both are aware that we need mechanistic insights as well as more systems biology approaches to nail down the key questions in the field,” said Freund. “I think the Einstein fellowship is an ideal starting point now to capitalize on these complementary approaches that we both have.”
The strengthened partnership between QBI and FUB underscores the power of global scientific cooperation in addressing some of the most pressing biomedical challenges of our time.
“We've been working with scientists in Berlin for many years now, and it's really exciting to me to see the momentum here continue and lead to this Einstein Fellow award, and I think we're perfectly situated to take this collaborative relationship to the next level. And establishing a strong foothold in Europe here in Berlin is even more important, considering the current climate in the United States,” said Krogan.
Overall, the many overlapping interests between researchers at QBI UCSF and FUB provide a strong foundation for developing a long-term strategic program, building on the efforts and research that have grown over the past five years.