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.

Registration started on 22^nd October and will be open until 15^th November 2024.

The 38^th Conference Molecular Biology of Plants (#MBP2025) of the Section Plant Physiology and Molecular Biology within the German Society for Plant Sciences (DBG) is planned to take place in Hennef from 10^th to 13^th February 2025.

A limited number of travel grants for partial cover of expenses are available.

The 37^th Molecular Biology of Plants conference (MBP2024) took place at the Sportschule Hennef (close to Bonn, Germany) from 4^th until 7^th March 2024. Conference chair Ute Höcker (University of Cologne) shares both scientific and non-scientific highlights of this annual meeting. This includes the two keynotes on male-female interactions during endosperm development and how potato plants prevent above-ground tuber formation. She also reports the winners of the awards for best talks, best posters and for science communication, as well as about the career session and the outcome of the traditional soccer game between PIs against PhD students and PostDocs. The new venue, Sportschule Hennef, has once again proven to be a first-rate replacement for our previous long-term venue in Dabringhausen.

-> Read more at DBG's website

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 (Bielefeld), 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.