Conference

For the 38^th time, the Molecular Biology of Plants conference (MBP2025) brought together around 190 scientists in North Rhine-Westphalia, from 10^th to 13^th February 2025. Under the patronage of the Section Plant Physiology and Molecular Biology (SPPMB) of the German Society for Plant Sciences (DBG), the meeting once again provided a platform for PhD students, postdocs, and group leaders to present their latest research findings and engage in fruitful scientific discussions. Organised by Christopher Grefen (Ruhr University Bochum, RUB) together with Ute Höcker (Cologne) and Henning Kunz (Munich), this year's meeting provided a great cross-section of modern molecular plant sciences, with slightly more submissions on topics related to biotic interactions, molecular physiology, as well as cell and developmental biology. Conference Chair Grefen provides the details.

Die 37. Tagung Molekularbiologie der Pflanzen (MBP2024) fand vom 4. bis 7. März 2024 in der Sportschule Hennef (bei Bonn) statt. Tagungspräsidentin Ute Höcker (Universität zu Köln) berichtet über wissenschaftliche und nicht-wissenschaftliche Höhepunkte der Tagung. Dazu zählten die beiden Keynotes über männlich-weibliche Interaktionen während der Endospermentwicklung und wie Kartoffelpflanzen die oberirdische Knollenbildung verhindern. Sie nennt auch die Gewinnerinnen und Gewinner der Preise für die besten Vorträge, die besten Poster und für Wissenschaftskommunikation sowie zur Karriere-Tipp-Session und den Ausgang des Fußballspiels zwischen einem PI-Team und einem Team aus Doktorand*innen und PostDocs. Die Sportschule Hennef hat sich als neuer Tagungsort einmal mehr als erstklassiger Ersatz für unseren bisherigen in Dabringhausen erwiesen.

-> ganzen Bericht in English nachzulesen bei der Deutschen Botanischen Gesellschaft (DBG)

39^th Conference (MBP2026)

The next Molecular Biology of Plants Conference is scheduled to take place at the same location from 16^th to 19^th March 2026 and will be organised by Prof. Dr. Andrea Bräutigam, Prof. Dr. Hans-Henning Kunz (LMU, Munich), Prof. Dr. Christopher Grefen (Bochum).

Confirmed keynote speakers are: 

• Prof. Kris Niyogi (UC Berkeley, USA): photosynthetic energy conversion and its regulation in algae and plants
• Prof. Karin Schumacher (Heidelberg University, DE): ATPase function and relevance for vacuoles and plant cells under abiotic stress.

Important dates: 

27 October 2025: start of registration and abstract submission
23 November 2025: end of registration and abstract submission
19 December 2025: end to apply for one of the limited travel grants
Mid of January 2026: People will be informed about acceptance

Invitation 

Dear colleagues and friends,

For the 39^th time, the Molecular Biology of Plants conference (MBP2026) held from 16^th to 19^th March 2026 will bring together around 190 scientists at Hennef Sports School, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Under the patronage of the Section Plant Physiology and Molecular Biology (SPPMB) of the German Society for Plant Sciences (DBG), the meeting will provide a platform for PhD students, postdocs, and group leaders to present their latest research findings and engage in fruitful scientific discussions. MBP2026 is grateful for the support of participating industry partners.
Organized by Hans-Henning Kunz (Munich) together with Christopher Grefen (Ruhr University Bochum, RUB) and Andrea Bräutigam (Bielefeld), MBP2026 invites applications from a wide field of molecular-focused plant sciences e.g., molecular physiology, developmental biology, cell and stress biology, and structural biochemistry. 

Conference Chair Hans-Henning Kunz and his team are looking forward to seeing you in Hennef and to provide more details at MBP-2026 [at] bio.lmu.de.