Explore every episode of the podcast ImmunoChat
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The gut microbiome and autoimmunity: How our gut bacteria influence the immune system 🔬 | 28 Apr 2026 | 00:43:59 | |
Keywords: Gut Microbiome, Autoimmunity, Lupus, Microbiome Research, Enterococcus gallinarum, Immunological Tolerance, Microbiome Therapies Summary: In this episode of the Young Immunologist Podcast ImmunoChat, Pia Madeleine Leipe talks with Carina Brune about the role of the gut microbiome in the immune system and its connection to autoimmune diseases. They discuss the importance of gut microbes, the challenges in researching autoimmune diseases, and the potential therapeutic approaches emerging from microbiome research. Takeaways:
Please find here links to publications referred to in this Episode: General Info:
SLE and microbiome:
Phage therapy YouTube Video Hinter den Kulissen des Tierlaboratoriums der Medizinischen Hochschule Hannover Contact details Carina Brune – University of Münster | LinkedIn Immune-Microbiota Interactions Lab (@agkriegel.bsky.social) — Bluesky The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| 🦠 Hunting HIV: How Cytotoxic CD4+ T Cells Could Crack the Viral Hideout 🦠 | 23 Feb 2026 | 00:58:32 | |
Keywords HIV, immunology, virology, immunological niches, Cytotoxic CD4 T cells, , CD137, HIV reservoirs
Summary In this episode of the Young Immunologist Podcast ImmunoChat, Pia Leipe engages with Dr. Anna Malyshkina to explore the complexities of HIV, its interaction with the immune system, and the innovative research being conducted to combat this virus. They discuss the roles of various immune cells, the challenges of antiretroviral therapy, and the significance of immunological niches where HIV can hide. Dr. Malyshkina shares insights into her research on cytotoxic CD4 T follicular helper cells and the potential of CD137 as a target for immunotherapy.
Takeaways
Please find here links to publications referred to in this Episode: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37965314/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37883584/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30635687/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30782653/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28798348/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26608920/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37910505/
Contact details · Dr. Anna Malyshkina · LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-malyshkina-776324178/ · Institute of Physiology Essen: https://www.uni-due.de/physiologie/ · Institute for Virology Essen: https://www.uni-due.de/virologie/ · ELAN Proposal UDE: https://www.unidue.de/med/promotionskolleg/evaluierte_projekte.php The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| Mental Health in Academic Research - Who takes care of the immunologist´s soul? | 06 May 2024 | 00:55:21 | |
Summary This episode of the Young Immunologist podcast discusses mental health during a PhD journey. The guest, Julian, shares his personal experience with mental health issues during his PhD and the challenges he faced. He emphasizes the importance of having empathetic people around and finding support from others who have similar experiences. The episode also highlights the impact of academic pressure on mental health and the need for institutional support. The conversation concludes with three tips for dealing with stress and maintaining mental wellbeing. The conversation explores the topics of negative thinking, anxiety, overcoming mental health challenges, personal growth, self-acceptance, and seeking help and support. Takeaways
Chapters 00:00 02:18 03:55 07:14 10:15 17:14 19:00 23:19 29:00 36:15 39:04 44:27 48:47 50:59 51:26 The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| Episode 6.: Do scientists need soft-skills? | 02 Feb 2024 | 00:47:42 | |
In this episode, Nora interviews Robert and Dimitra from TwentyOne Skills (https://lms.twentyoneskills.de/), a company that focuses on teaching scientists soft skills. https://www.linkedin.com/company/twentyoneskills/ Takeaways
The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| Episode 5.: Homeopathy & Immunology; frenemies of a young immunologist | 13 Aug 2023 | 00:30:36 | |
Listen to our episode with the fabulous Dr. Natalie Grams, who talks about all aspects of homeopathy. We discuss the basic idea behind traditional German medicine, it's role in our model society, and it's potential harms as well. Listen to our podcast and take advantage of an international community of young immunologists. yEFIS website registration: https://www.yefis.org/join-now/register/yefis-network-register-and-login.html yEFIS twitter: y_efis yEFIS LinkedIn: y-efis Twitter handle: @EurJImmunol Apply to the DGFI travel award: https://dgfi.org/reisekostenbeihilfen/
The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| Episode 4.: The power of a community - Young European Federation of Immunological Societies (yEFIS) | 21 Jun 2023 | 00:29:47 | |
Listen to our special episode with our European partner society, the yEFIS. https://www.yefis.org/ yEFIS website registration: https://www.yefis.org/join-now/register/yefis-network-register-and-login.html yEFIS twitter: y_efis yEFIS LinkedIn: y-efis Twitter handle: @EurJImmunol Apply to the DGFI travel award: https://dgfi.org/reisekostenbeihilfen/
The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| Episode 3.: Parenting in science; work-life romance master course | 07 Jun 2023 | 00:33:58 | |
In this episode, 3 immunologists discuss about the beauty and the challenges of parenting in science. Katarzyna Placek became mother as a junior group leader at the LIMES Institute https://www.limes-institut-bonn.de/forschung/arbeitsgruppen/unit-2/abteilung-netea/mitarbeiter/ Listen her podcast about Women in Science: https://www.limes-institut-bonn.de/ueber-uns/gleichstellung/wis-podcast/ Sabrina B. Bennstein, spokesperson of the DGfI - YI Board shares her thoughts on becoming a parent as a postdoctoral researcher. https://dgfi.org/young-immunologists/board/?sfw=pass1685907944 The Podcast is hosted by Nóra Balzer, who became a mother way before becoming a scientist. https://www.linkedin.com/in/n%C3%B3ra-balzer-253a767b/?originalSubdomain=de https://twitter.com/norabalzer1 The podcast is supported by the German Association of Immunology (DGfI) - Young Immunologists (YI) https://dgfi.org/ https://dgfi.org/young-immunologists/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/dgfi-yi/ https://twitter.com/YI_dgfi Become a member today! --> https://dgfi.org/dgfi-en/dgfi-membership/?noredirect=en_US https://www.yefis.org/ The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| Episode 2.: Research animals in immunology | 29 Apr 2023 | 00:51:53 | |
Listen our special episode on animal research on the word week of lab animals and day of immunology. We compare the general ethic and regulations in animal research between two European countries. We will compare the German and the Swiss system. It is a pleasure to exchange with Dr. Roman Stilling from the initiative “Tierversuce verstehen” - understand animal research who will give us great insight into the principles and animal experiment ethics in Germany. The Swiss side is represented by Dr. Lena Siewert from the University of Basel. The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| Episode 1.: Aimed Analytics, a start up to shape future medicine | 15 Apr 2023 | 00:35:13 | |
Aimed Analytics (https://www.aimed-analytics.com/) was founded by The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| Episode 0 - The Young Immunologist Board | 03 Mar 2023 | 00:17:44 | |
In Episode 0 we talk about the DGfI (German Association of Immunology) - Young Immunologist board members. Become a member today! The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| 🫁 Breathing Life Into Research: Lung Explants, Organoids & Nasal ALIs 🫁 | 19 Nov 2025 | 00:31:47 | |
Keywords Lung research, Respiratory tract, Human lung explants, Organoids, Air-liquid interface cultures, Infections, Drug testing, Disease mechanisms, Virology Summary In this episode of the Young Immunologist Podcast ImmunoChat, host Pia Leipe interviews Dr. Saskia Hinse, a postdoc at the University clinic Münster at the Institute of molecular Virology, to discuss models of the respiratory tract. They explore the use of human lung explants, organoids, and air-liquid interface cultures in lung research, focusing on their applications in studying infections, drug testing, and understanding disease mechanisms. The conversation highlights the advantages and challenges of these models, emphasizing their role in complementing traditional in vitro and in vivo experiments. Takeaways
Please find here links to publications using the models discussed today - Lung explants, Organoids and ALIs: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39248230/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36423831/ Contact details
The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| 🤰🔬Exploring pregnancy’s power to suppress autoimmune disease: Insights from multiple sclerosis research | 29 Mar 2025 | 00:39:40 | |
Keywords Multiple Sclerosis, Pregnancy, Autoimmune Diseases, Immune Tolerance, GDF15, Neuroimmune Crosstalk, Reproductive Immunology, Maternal Health, Research Challenges, MS Treatment Summary In this episode of the Young Immunologist podcast, Nóra Balzer interviews Jana Sonner, a postdoc at the University Medical Center in Hamburg, discussing the intersection of multiple sclerosis (MS) and pregnancy. They explore how autoimmune diseases typically affect women during their reproductive years, the unique immunological changes that occur during pregnancy, and the implications for maternal and fetal health. The conversation delves into the mechanisms of maternal immune tolerance, the role of GDF15, and the latest research findings on MS and pregnancy. Jana emphasizes the need for more research in reproductive immunology and the importance of including pregnant women in clinical trials to improve treatment outcomes. Takeaways
Please find some links to work both on MS in general and pregnancy and MS
Contact details
The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| 🧪⚖️Inventing Knowledge: Intellectual Property in Academic Research 🧠🔏 | 07 Mar 2025 | 00:12:44 | |
keywords academic integrity, plagiarism, intellectual property, research ethics, PhD students, collaborations, scientific publications, open access, patents, copyrights summary In this podcast episode, Nora Balzer (Dr rer Nat) discusses the complexities of intellectual property in academia, particularly in the context of a case involving a PhD student accused of plagiarism. The conversation explores the balance between sharing research for public good and protecting intellectual achievements, the challenges of collaborations, and practical advice for PhD students navigating these issues. takeaways
The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| 🫀 The Future of Heart Repair: 3D Cell Models and Organoids 🫀 | 03 Feb 2025 | 00:43:27 | |
keywords Summary In this episode of the Young Immunologist podcast - ImmunoChat, Nóra Balzer interviews Fabienne Becker, a PhD candidate at the University Clinic of Düsseldorf, about her work on the HEAL project (101056712 – HLA-homozygous iPSC-cardiomyocytE Aggregate manufacturing technoLogies for allogenic cell therapy to the heart; https://www.heal-horizon.com/), which focuses on using induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) for cardiac repair. Fabienne discusses her background in chemistry and biochemistry, the process of manufacturing cardiac 3D cell models, and the differences between spheroids and organoids. She highlights the advantages of 3D models over traditional 2D cultures and animal models, the potential of iPSC-derived therapies in personalized medicine, and the ethical concerns surrounding the use of human cells. The conversation also touches on the cost and time implications of producing cardiac organoids, recent advancements in organoid technology, and the future of transplantable heart tissue. Fabienne shares her surprising discoveries in cardiac research and offers advice for aspiring researchers in the field. Takeaways
The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| 🎄 Holiday Special: Top 10 Advice from the Young Immunologist Board - How to Rock 2025 🎄 | 23 Dec 2024 | 00:11:05 | |
Welcome to a festive and inspiring episode of the ImmunoChat podcast! In this special holiday edition, the Young Immunologist Board of the German Association of Immunology has shared their top advice to help YOU level up your scientific career in 2025. Whether you're just starting out in your PhD or gearing up for your next big career move, this episode is packed with tips you don’t want to miss.
✨ Special Announcement: Goal-Setting Master Class for 2025 ✨ Want to start the year strong and actually achieve your goals? Join Dr. Nora Balzer and mental health coach Hanna Sänger for an exclusive Goal-Setting Master Class on January 4th. This online session will cover powerful goal-setting techniques such as IKIGAI, Vision Boards, SMART Goals, and more. Plus, if you're in Bonn, join us for an in-person workshop on January 5th to set your intentions for 2025 in a supportive, community-driven environment. Sign up now and get ready to crush your goals in 2025! The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| Publish or Perish; Impact factor and its impact on you | 02 Dec 2024 | 00:49:43 | |
In this episode we chat with Dr. rer. Nat. Angeliki Stamtsis-Datsi the origins of the "publish or perish" culture, how it became so ingrained, and its impact on academic life today. The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| The Artificial Lung for Your Cell Culture - BioThrust Success Story with Patrick Bongartz | 26 Aug 2024 | 00:33:02 | |
In this episode, we discuss the founding of BioThrust and the development of their stress-free bioreactor technology. Patrick Bongrartz (CEO of BioThrust) explains the importance of biotechnology in everyday life and how their bionic bioreactor system differs from other bioreactors. He shares the challenges and frustrations they faced in the lab and the support they received from the RTWH Aachen University and its startup center. He highlights the value of BioThrust in the community, particularly in the field of stem cell therapies. We talk about the life of a startup founder, fundraising and investors, and the future development of the biotech field. The gender gap in science startups and the mindset change in science towards entrepreneurship are debated as well. Website BioThrust: www.biothrust.com Linkedin Investor Freigeist (https://www.linkedin.com/company/freigeistcap/) Further inspiring entrepreneurs in health&medicine to follow: Dr. Friederike Kogelheide https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-ing-friederike-kogelheide/ Dr. Katharina Koch https://www.linkedin.com/in/katharina-koch-014174112/ Dr. Nele Stadtbäumer https://www.linkedin.com/in/nelestadtbaeumer/ Silke Beaucamp https://www.linkedin.com/in/silke-beaucamp-b644a093/ The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||
| Navigating Toxic Work Environments in the PhD Journey | 22 May 2024 | 00:42:55 | |
Summary In this episode, Nóra interviews Hanna Sänger, an entrepreneur and former scientist, about her startup that aims to improve the well-being of PhD students. They discuss the challenges and struggles faced by PhD students, including toxic work environments, mental health issues, and the pressure to perform. Hanna shares her own experience of leaving her PhD due to a toxic environment and finding a new career path in mental health counseling. They also discuss the importance of multidisciplinary teams, networking, and seeking help. The episode highlights the need for support and resources to improve the mental health of PhD students. The conversation explores the mental health challenges faced by PhD students and offers strategies for support and self-care. Topics discussed include the impact of COVID-19 on PhD students, the difficulties of fitting into a new culture, gender-specific mental challenges, the work-life balance, and the overlap of childbearing age and PhD studies. The conversation concludes with suggestions for PhD students to invest in self-discovery, set healthy boundaries, communicate expectations with supervisors, find peer support, and ask for help when needed. Nature PhD Survey 2019: Their results summarized: https://figshare.com/s/74a5ea79d76ad66a8af8?file=18543281 Keywords PhD students, well-being, toxic work environment, mental health, startup, challenges, struggles, multidisciplinary teams, networking, seeking help, PhD students, mental health, COVID-19, fitting into a new culture, gender-specific challenges, work-life balance, childbearing age, self-discovery, healthy boundaries, communication, peer support, asking for help Takeaways
The Podcast is hosted by Pia Madeleine Leipe - | |||