Second Early Stage Investigator Retreat 2025

The second ESI retreat for the TRR332 took place from 19–22 October 2025 in Munich. It brought together 18 young scientists from all partner sites to encourage scientific exchange, skill development, and team building.

After a short scientific welcome session, participants explored Munich during a guided city tour, which ended with a joint dinner in a Bavarian restaurant. The scientific programme on Monday and Tuesday included hands-on training sessions in the laboratories of the TRR332 PIs Hans-Joachim Anders, Christoph Klein, Markus Sperandio and Daniela Maier-Begandt. Participants gained practical insights into neutrophil isolation and analysis, iPSC-derived neutrophil characterization, intravital imaging, and flow chamber assays.

Alongside the practical sessions, a roundtable discussion invited all TRR332 early career researchers to openly reflect on the first funding period of the TRR332, during which participants shared their perspectives in honest, constructive, and future-focused exchanges. The output of this session might be used as a basis to set up the TRR332 integrated graduate programme in the second funding period.

Another highlight was the mentoring session, where former graduate students who are now working in various professional fields shared their personal experiences and career paths after completing their doctoral degrees. The informal setting encouraged transparent communication and provided valuable insights into the diverse opportunities available while fostering networking among participants.

The retreat concluded on Wednesday afternoon with an interactive workshop on good scientific practice, led by Dr Elizabeth Schröder-Reiter. The workshop encouraged discussion on integrity, responsibility, and the everyday challenges of research.

Participants then joined the other TRR332 members on site for the consortium’s Flashlight Talk and Seminar Series, which featured a lecture by Prof. Katja Simon.

The ESI Retreat 2025 in Munich was an overall great success, further strengthening the collaborative and supportive atmosphere that defines the TRR332 network.

A special “thank you” to the ESI organization team — Darleen Hüser, Lisa Krafft, and John Ku — whose dedicated preparations made this retreat such a great event.