New research group on artificial intelligence in the life sciences spans a bridge between Max Planck Institute and University
Constantin Pape heads a new bridge research group at the Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences (MPI-NAT). The AKB Foundation is funding his group for a period of five years through the institute’s Manfred Eigen-Förderstiftung (Manfred Eigen Foundation). The funding will provide resources for IT equipment and three staff positions.
Constantin Pape has been conducting research as a junior professor at the University of Göttingen since 2022, focusing on image processing methods in biology and medicine. He analyzes cells, tissues, organs, and entire organisms with the help of artificial intelligence (AI), using fluorescence and electron microscopy. With his new group at the MPI-NAT, Pape will expand his work to the molecular level and build a bridge between the University of Göttingen and the institute.
“At the MPI, we will investigate ways to make complex signals derived from high-resolution imaging techniques better visible and easier to quantify in order to study proteins and protein complexes in living cells more precisely. To accomplish this, we will use machine learning to identify and analyze weak signals within dynamic processes in the cellular environment,” explains Pape. Proteins control nearly all of the biological processes in our bodies. They move our muscles, transmit signals, transport oxygen, and fend off pathogens. Protein complexes act as molecular machines and play a role in many cellular processes, such as gene transcription, protein synthesis, and transport mechanisms. Using machine learning, Pape and his team aim to make the three-dimensional structure, as well as the motion and interactions of proteins and protein complexes more visible and enable their analysis on a quantitative level.
Specifically, his group will use AI methods to more reliably analyze data from cryo-electron microscopy experiments as well as data from the latest molecular-resolution microscopy techniques, such as MINFLUX and MINSTED. Stefan Hell, director at the Max Planck Institute, was awarded the 2014 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for developing super-resolution fluorescence microscopy.
Pape’s team aims to improve modern protein models, such as AlphaFold which can predict protein structures with high precision and was the basis for the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. However, AlphaFold relies on static data and therefore cannot capture the dynamics of biomolecular processes. Pape hopes that by integrating his AI methods, he can contribute to dynamic protein models, which would enable a more comprehensive analysis of protein complexes and processes.
Strengthening the Göttingen Campus
“We are grateful to have Constantin Pape successfully recruited as a research group leader for our institute, thanks to the extremely generous support of the AKB Foundation,” says Hell. “With the expansion of his group, the expertise in the fields of imaging and artificial intelligence at the Göttingen Campus will grow. At the same time, his appointment opens up new perspectives for basic research and translational applications. In the long term, this will further strengthen the collaboration between our Max Planck Institute and the university.”
“Pape’s work at the intersection of artificial intelligence and biomedical imaging aligns perfectly with the mission of the AKB Foundation,” emphasizes Felix Büchting, a member of the Executive Board. “We are very pleased to support the establishment of his bridge research group. With our funding focused on science and research, particularly in the natural sciences and technology, and our regional focus on southern Lower Saxony, we allocate a significant portion of the foundation’s funds each year to scientific projects in the region. Constantin Pape’s research group will complement the existing expertise in imaging techniques in Göttingen, and thus contribute to the life sciences region.” (cr)
Joint press release from the AKB Foundation and the MPI-NAT
About Constantin Pape
Constantin Pape studied physics at Heidelberg University, where he later earned his PhD. He then conducted research at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg. In 2022, the University of Göttingen appointed him as an assistant professor. He leads the “Computational Cell Analytics” group at the university’s Institute for Computer Science and, more recently, the interdisciplinary research group “Machine Intelligence in the Life Sciences” at the MPI-NAT.
About the AKB Foundation
The AKB Foundation was founded in 1998 by Carl-Ernst Büchting. Its funding portfolio ranges from science and research to art and culture, education and social affairs, the church and ecumenism, as well as environmental, landscape, and nature conservation. Shaped by the values of the Büchting family, the foundation combines a focus on the common good with social responsibility. It primarily operates in southern Lower Saxony and the Magdeburg Börde, addressing issues that were important to the founder.
About the Manfred Eigen-Förderstiftung
The Manfred Eigen Foundation was established ten years ago to support the MPI-NAT in developing new and forward-looking fields of research. It aims to promote scientific excellence in the spirit of Nobel laureate and institute founder Manfred Eigen, to support innovative projects, and to enable flexibility in new scientific developments. Furthermore, the foundation seeks to strengthen cross-institutional collaborations, and thereby foster cooperation between non-university research institutions and the University of Göttingen on the Göttingen Campus.