CRC 1607

Lecture of Visiting Professor Jingfa Zhang
2025-08-26 16:00 - 17:00 (Europe/Berlin)
The mechanisms and translational research on DR & DME
Lecture of Visiting Professor Jingfa Zhang
Prof. Dr. Dr. Jingfa Zhang is currently serving as the Co-Director of the International Eye Research Institute and is a Professor and Doctoral Supervisor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen). He also holds several key positions, including Director of the Fundus Disease Department and Director of Basic Eye Research at Shenzhen C-MER Dennis Lam Eye Hospital, Co-Director of the C-MER Pharmaceutical and Medical Device R&D Center, and Director of Visual Science Research at C-MER Eye Care (Hong Kong).
As a physician-scientist, Prof. Zhang’s clinical practice and translational research focus on the mechanisms and treatments of diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration. He has published over 100 papers, which have garnered more than 2,700 citations (Google Scholar H-index of 32 as of August 2024). Furthermore, Dr. Zhang has been recognized as one of the World’s Top 2% Scientists in Ophthalmology for 2024, a distinction published by Stanford University in the USA.
Prof. Zhang has been awarded over 5 million RMB in major research grants in China, including funding from the National Key Research and Development Project of the Ministry of Science and Technology, the National Natural Science Foundation of China, and the Shanghai Pujiang Talent Plan. He has also supervised 31 graduate students, contributing significantly to their professional growth and research capabilities.
Where?
Department of Ophthalmology – Building 34 – Lecture Hall
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CRC 1607 Progress Report meeting
2025-08-28 16:00 - 17:30, 2025-09-04 16:00 - 17:30, 2025-09-11 16:00 - 17:30, 2025-10-02 16:00 - 17:30
Join via Zoom here: https://uni-koeln.zoom.us/j/98599291367?pwd=[REDACTED]

IRTG Retina Rotation
2025-09-16 09:00 - 13:30 | CECAD, Joseph-Stelzmann Str. 26, Cologne
Dr. Sitnilska and Dr. Tang are organizing a day at the eye clinic on the topic of the retina, during which they will give the IRTG the opportunity to learn about retinal diagnoses and the experiences of patients. We start the day in the CECAD ground floor seminar room and later switch to the eye clinic.

PI Meeting
2025-09-18 17:00 - 20:00
We welcome all of SFB 1607’s PIs to our second meeting of the year at CECAD and a joint dinner afterwards!
Event Location:
CECAD (building 69), Lecture Hall, ground floor
Joseph-Stelzmann-Str. 26
50931 Cologne

Visit of Guest Lecturer Prof. Stephanie Joachim
2025-09-30 09:00 - 17:00 | Department of Ophthalmology, Kerpener Str. 62/ Building 34, Lecture Hall, Cologne, 50937, Germany
Prof. Dr. med. Stephanie Joachim, head of the Experimental Eye Research Institute at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum, visits the SFB 1607 and gives a lecture on her team’s glaucoma research.

Lecture of Visiting Professor Stephanie Joachim
2025-09-30 16:00 - 17:00
Prof. Joachim’s presentation will be on the topic of glaucoma.
Event Location:
CECAD (building 69), Lecture Hall, ground floor
Joseph-Stelzmann-Str. 26
50931 Cologne

IRTG Meeting in Cologne
2025-10-01 14:00 - 2025-10-02 13:00 | TRIO, Robert-Koch-Straße, Köln, 50931
Dear members of the IRTG,
We are pleased to invite you to the second meeting of the SFB 1607 Integrated Graduate School, which will take place on 1 and 2 October 2025 in Cologne!

Date: October 1-2, Time: 2 pm on the first day to 1 pm on the second day
Location: TRIO building, Seminar Room 3 & 4

Short Agenda for the IRTG Meeting on October 1 and 2, 2025
October 1,2025, 2 pm

Current topics and news in the IRTG
Short stand-up presentation: Where am I now in my doctoral studies? What have I experienced in the last year?
Troubleshooting: challenges in the doctoral process
IRTG brainstorming (15 minutes): What offers/workshops/courses would be useful in the near future to advance your own research/further projects?
Presentation of the IRTG work groups

Preparation for Summer School 2026
Retreat January 2026
Improving communication and cooperation between the SFB PhD candidates
Recruiting doctoral candidates for the SFB’s next phase

Joint Dinner
if you would like: City rally

October 2, 2025, 9 a.m.

New election of PhD and Post Doc Representative (until 9:30 a.m.)
IRTG workshop on “Single Cell Data” presented by Prof. Tresch and his college Nils Reiche
Working session to plan the next steps towards the Summer School September 7-11, 2026
Farewell
Joint Lunch

If you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to contact us at any time.

We look forward to welcoming all of you in Cologne!

IRTG Talk by Prof. Mahabir-Brenner on Advanced Mouse Handeling and Immunology
2025-10-09 08:00 - 11:30
Prof. Dr. Esther Mahabir-Brenner, professor for Laboratory Animal Science and Immunology and former Head of the Cologne University animal facilities, will give a talk on advanced mouse handeling and expand on her research in cytokines in health and diseases.

IRTG Lecture PD Dr. Deniz Hos
2025-10-14 16:00 - 17:00 | Lecture Hall, Eye Clinic, Joseph-Stelzmann Str, 50931 Köln
Dr. Deniz Hos, PI of the B02 project, is going to give a lecture on “Inflammatory eye Diseases”.
Event Location:
Lecture Hall Eye Clinic (building 34), ground floor
Kerpener Str. 62
50937 Cologne
Zoom:

CRC 1607 Progress Report meeting
2025-10-16 16:00 - 17:30, 2025-11-06 16:00 - 17:30, 2025-11-20 16:00 - 17:30, 2025-12-18 16:00 - 17:30
Join via Zoom here: https://uni-koeln.zoom.us/j/98599291367?pwd=[REDACTED]
Event Location:
Lecture Hall Eye Clinic (building 34), ground floor
Kerpener Str. 62
50937 Cologne

IRTG Clinic rotation through the study center
2025-10-20 09:00 - 12:00 | Library, Augenklinik
We are happy to invite you to our IRTG Clinic Rotation of the Eye Clinic Study Center

on October 20 from 9 am to noon
held by Lisa Trindeitmar and the study center team and the resident ophthalmologist on duty as well as under the supervision of PD Dr. Lebriz Altay
starting in the Eye Clinic Library

Clinical studies and trials are an important part of the development of new materials and methods in medical research and patient care. The planning and implementation of clinical trials is a very specific topic that must be understood to fully understand translational research. We therefore highly recommend that you join.

IRTG Klinik Rotation durch das CIRCL-Reading Center
2025-11-03 09:00 - 13:00 | Augenklinik, Kerpener Str. 62/ Building 34, Lecture Hall, Cologne, 50937, Germany
Wir freuen uns, die Klinikrotation durch das Cologne Image Reading Center (CIRCL) Center ankündigen zu können, das von Frau Professor Sandra Liakopoulos geleitet wird.
In der Augenheilkunde spielen moderne bildgebende Verfahren eine immer wichtigere Rolle bei der Diagnose und den Behandlungsentscheidungen in der täglichen Routine sowie in der klinischen Forschung. Insbesondere OCT-Biomarker werden häufig als Endpunkte in klinischen Studien für chorioretinale Erkrankungen eingesetzt. Die Interpretation der Bildgebung ist anspruchsvoll und zeitaufwändig und erfordert ein hohes Maß an Expertise. Professionelle Reading Center bieten eine standardisierte und unabhängige Bildauswertung für klinische Studien an.
Zu den Schwerpunkten des CIRCL gehören die Bildanalyse für klinische Studien zum Nachweis der Sicherheit und Wirksamkeit potenzieller neuer Therapien sowie akademische Forschung, einschließlich der Validierung nicht-invasiver Bildgebungsverfahren, der Bewertung neuer Biomarker und der Phänotypisierung für epidemiologische Studien.

SFB Lecture by Prof. Jonathan Jantsch
2025-11-11 12:00 - 13:00 | Augenklinik, Kerpener Str. 62/ Building 34, Lecture Hall, Cologne, 50937, Germany
As part of the SFB 1607 lecture series, Professor Jonathan Jantsch will speak on “Osmosensation in macrophage activation” at 12:15 p.m. in the lecture hall of the Eye Clinic. Professor Jonathan Jantsch is Director of the Institute for Medical Microbiology, Immunology, and Hygiene at the University of Cologne and subproject leader in the SFB project B02.

Visit by the delegation from Tongji University to the Department of Ophthalmology
2025-11-12 12:00 - 2025-11-14 15:00 | Augenklinik, Kerpener Str. 62/ Building 34, Lecture Hall, Cologne, 50937, Germany
As part of the long-standing cooperation between Tongji University and the Department of Ophthalmology, we will be hosting a delegation from Tongji University’s Eye Hospital from November 12 to November 14, 2025. The visit will include a joint basic science symposium and a Chinese-German cultural experience. I hope you will all join us in welcoming our guests.

Guest Lecture by Visiting Professor Samuel Herberg
2025-11-18 12:00 - 13:00 | Lecture Hall, Eye Clinic, Joseph-Stelzmann Str, 50931 Köln
Prof. Samuel Herberg from SUNY Upstate Medical University in New York will speak on “Unraveling outflow cell mechanobiology using bioengineered 3D ECM hydrogels” as part of his visit to the SFB 1607.

CRC 1607 Progress Report meeting
2025-12-04 16:00 - 17:30
Join via Zoom here: https://uni-koeln.zoom.us/j/98599291367?pwd=[REDACTED]
Event Location:
CECAD (building 69), Lecture Hall, ground floor
Joseph-Stelzmann-Str. 26
50931 Cologne

Cornea Rotation
2025-12-08 08:00 - 12:00 | Department of Ophthalmology, Kerpener Str. 62/ Building 34, Lecture Hall, Cologne, 50937, Germany
Professor Björn Bachmann and his team will lead through a morning at the eye clinic on the topic of cornea, during which they will give the IRTG the opportunity to learn about corneal diagnoses and the experiences of patients. In addition, participants will gain direct insights into corneal surgery in the operating room. On an additional Thursday IRTG students will work at the slit lamp.

Guest Lecture by Prof. Giulio Ferrari
2025-12-11 16:00 - 17:00, 2025-12-12 11:00 - 12:00
Further information will follow soon!

Second Retreat of SFB 1607
2026-01-09 09:00 - 2026-01-10 14:00
We are pleased to announce the second annual retreat of SFB 1607, to be held at the KSI Siegburg from January 9th to 10th, 2026. The main focus for this retreat is set on presentations and discussions about the SFB’s subprojects and the progress made in our mission to research age-related, blinding eye diseases.
This gathering will bring together all members of our interdisciplinary consortium and representatives from industry to share insights, foster collaboration, and advance our research initiatives.
The KSI Siegburg conference hotel is centrally yet quietly located on the Michaelsberg in the heart of Siegburg’s city center. Its unique historical ambiance offers tranquility and calm, providing an ideal setting for focused discussions and collaborative exchange.
Photo info:
©HGESch_klein
Where?
Catholic Social Institute Siegburg
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Intellectual Property Workshop für die PIs des SFB 1607
2026-01-19 09:00 - 2026-01-20 15:30 | Flex Geb. Seminarraum EG, Weyertal 115c
ProVendis
Wissen über IP ermöglicht, den Nachwuchs sicher im Umgang mit Patenten, Publikationsstrategien und Kollaborationen anzuleiten.
Transfer, Ausgründungen und gesellschaftlichen Nutzen. Gute IP-Kenntnisse erleichtern:
• Kooperationen mit Industriepartnern,
• Verhandlungen mit Technologietransferstellen,
• die Verwertung eigener Ergebnisse (Lizenzen, Start-ups).
Wissenschaftler produziert kontinuierlich neue, potenziell patentfähige Erkenntnisse. Ein besseres Verständnis von IP hilft dabei,
• Schutzstrategien frühzeitig zu erkennen,
• Fehlentscheidungen zu vermeiden,
• Veröffentlichungen und Patentanmeldungen gut zu koordinieren.
Das IP-Recht entwickelt sich ständig weiter: neue gesetzliche Vorgaben, internationale Änderungen, institutionelle Policies oder Förderbedingungen. Ein Workshop bietet eine kompakte Möglichkeit, auf dem neuesten Stand zu bleiben.

Statistical Literacy with Scavetta Academy - Course Access
2026-01-26 08:00 - 17:00 | online
Statistical Literacy – Mastering Statistics
This hands-on online course in statistics provides a suite of tools that guide you to meaningful conclusions based on data.
Expert Rick Scavetta is offering this online course as a refresher and introduction for
early-stage researchers and data scientists. It assumes no prior experience in statistics and
aims to provide the foundation to become statistically literate.
Join this comprehensive workshop to gain a proper understanding of statistics and how to
use them as a part of your scientific inquiry!
Here’s what you’ll learn in the course!
Collecting data:
● Defining hypotheses
● Random sampling
● Sampling bias
● Systematic error versus random error
● Understanding the scientific process and the role of statistics
● The process of conducting statistics

IRTG Lecture by Prof. Hamid Kashkar
2026-01-27 12:00 - 13:00 | Lecture Hall, Eye Clinic, Joseph-Stelzmann Str, 50931 Köln
Professor Hamid Kashkar, Director of the Institute for Molecular Immunology and subproject leader in SFB subproject A04, speaks on “Metabolic control of lymphangiogenesis.”

SFB 1607 Progress Report
2026-02-05 16:00 - 17:30 | Lecture Hall, Eye Clinic, Joseph-Stelzmann Str, 50931 Köln
