Cologne Graduate School of Ageing Research

The picture shows our 5 new Master fellows, who started their Master studies in October at the University of Cologne.

A warm welcome to our five new CGA Master Fellows who joined us this October! 🍁🍂
We’re happy to have you as part of our lively ageing community and we wish you a great start, enjoyable experiences, and wonderful times here in Cologne! 💫

We’re excited to welcome the Class of 2025 to the CGA!
Our 9 new students come from all over the world 🌎, working in groups at the CECAD and the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing.
We’re so happy to have you here in Cologne and look forward to seeing your ideas and discoveries develop! 💡🧬

🎉What a wonderful way to wrap up the CGA Welcome Days! Today's party was a lot of fun! There was delicious "homemade" food, an exciting pub quiz, and just the nicest group of people.
A big thank you to our PhD reps, Moritz and Anna, for putting everything together! We all really enjoyed ourselves.

🚨 Just 3 weeks left to apply for our 12 PhD positions in ageing research! 🚨
🏃‍♀️ Don't wait- hurry up and submit your application now! ✉️

It's the first day of our CGA Welcome Days for our new PhD students and Master Fellows. After a lively morning with talks and a chance to meet others over lunch, our new students took a tour around the city. Have a great time today and enjoy the week ahead! Welcome to Cologne, everyone! 🤗

We're happy to announce that Verónica Martínez Osorio from the CGA Class of 2020 successfully defended her PhD thesis yesterday! 👏

🎓 Congratulations Verónica! 🎊 We are so proud of you and wish you all the best for your next steps!

📹 Here's a small glimpse into daily lab life at CGA! 🧪 This is just one of the many methods our PhD students use at our institutes. Curious? Watch our full video for even more insights about your possibilities at our graduate programme.

Link to full video: www.ageing-grad-school.de/about-us/cal...

📹 Interested in a PhD position in aging research starting in 2026? Then watch our new short video for some tips from our wonderful PhD students and faculty.
Don't miss the deadline: November 3, 2025.
Apply now and start your journey with us!

We're very happy to announce that Katharina Witt from the CGA Class of 2021 successfully defended her PhD thesis yesterday! 👏

🎓 Congratulations Katharina!🥂🎊 We are so proud of you and wish you all the best for your next steps!

Apply now for a fully funded #PhD position at the Cologne Graduate School of Ageing Research and become part of our vibrant #AgingResearch commmuny.
🗓️ Deadline: November 3, 2025.
ℹ️ More info: www.ageing-grad-school.de
📣 Spread the news!

👩‍🎓We are thrilled to share that Franziska Hommen from the CGA Class of 2020 and the @cecad.bsky.social successfully defended her PhD thesis yesterday! 👏

Franziska, once again congratulations!! 🥂🎊 We are really proud of you and wish you all the best for your next steps!

YouTube video by Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing Live longer - Combination therapy with Rapamycin and Trametinib prolongs the life of mice

New Video: "Combining Cancer Drugs to Extend Lifespan" 📹

Watch our new video to learn how researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing discovered that combining Rapamycin and Trametinib significantly extends the lifespan of mice.

youtu.be/5L-k4v1TRd0

Stephanie A. Fernandes selected for the Minerva Fast Track Programme Opportunity for exceptional female scientists to plan their long-term careers and start their own research group

🎉 Congrats to our CGA alumna Stephanie A. Fernandes on being selected for the Minerva Fast Track Programme! 🎉 We wish you great success in this new role!

@stephalcantara.bsky.social

#WomenInScience

www.ageing-grad-school.de/about-us/cal...

Stephanie A. Fernandes selected for the Minerva Fast Track Programme

Stephanie A. Fernandes selected for Minerva Fast Track Programme! 🎉 Congrats on this amazing achievement!
@stephalcantara.bsky.social @cga-age.bsky.social
www.age.mpg.de/428071/25071...

🎉 Celebrating our Amazing Women in Ageing Research! 🎉
Meet Maja, master’s student in the Antebi Lab. She studies the regulation of cancer dormancy using cultured human cells. 💡
#WomenInScience #AgeingResearch
@antebilab.bsky.social

We have a new research group at MPI for Metabolism Research!👩‍🔬

A warm welcome to @svaltcheva.bsky.social !👋
For a first impression find her introduction below⬇️
and further informations under sf.mpg.de/2112068/Silvan

Serine ADPr on histones and PARP1 is a cellular target of ester-linked ubiquitylation - Nature Chemical Biology RNF114 is an E3 ligase that can recognize ADP-ribose (ADPr) and ubiquitin with separate domains. Using these domains, Kolvenbach and Palumbieri et al. developed a proteomics approach to map ADP-ribosy...

Our latest study on ADP-ribosyl-linked serine ubiquitylation in the context of PARP1 signaling and the DNA damage response is out today in Nature Chemical Biology www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Image shows diverse students with different backgrounds interested in getting informed about their career opportunities. Writing says "Rock your Career".

🚨 Your PhD journey starts NOW! Join our #webinar on Sept 4, 1-3 PM (CEST) & explore #PhD opportunities at Max Planck's IMPRS in NRW, Germany! 🇩🇪
👀 Gain insights into groundbreaking research & register here: events.gwdg.de/e/PhDatMaxPl... #MaxPlanck #Research #Germany #Science

🧬 Do you have a BSc degree in Life Sciences and would like to continue your MSc studies in Biology or Biochemistry in Cologne? Then hurry and apply for the CGA Master Fellowship programme until July 15! More info below👇

Anne Schaefer elected as EMBO Member Anne Schaefer becomes a new member of EMBO, recognised for her outstanding achievements in the life sciences.

🌟Exciting News
Anne Schaefer has been elected elected as a new EMBO member for outstanding achievements in life sciences! 🎉 Congratulations, Anne, on this well-deserved recognition! @embo.org @cecad.bsky.social @unicologne.bsky.social @cga-age.bsky.social
#EMBOMember
www.age.mpg.de/425627/25070...

🏆 Very happy to announce that our CGA alumni member Edoardo Longarini has received the Peter Hans Hofschneider Prize this week for his groundbreaking discoveries during his PhD thesis!

🎉 Huge congratulations, Edo, well deserved!

📰 Read more here: www.ageing-grad-school.de/about-us/cal...

🎓We had such an amazing graduate symposium yesterday! Congratulations again to all students of the CGA class of 2021, and a huge thank you to the incredible class of 2022 that put everything together. It truly was a fantastic day!🎉🍾

Photo shows the CGA PhD students of the graduating class of 2021.

🎊Today, we're excited to celebrate the graduation of our amazing 13 students from the CGA Class of 2021! We’re so proud of all their accomplishments.
🎓Come join us now as they present their PhD projects at the 13th CGA Graduate Symposium.
And, of course, we can’t wait for the dinner party tonight!🍾

👩‍🎓We are proud to share that Chahat Mehra from the CGA Class of 2019 and the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing successfully defended her PhD thesis last Friday!

Chahat, once again, congratulations!! 🥂🎊 We are so proud of you and wish you all the best for your next steps!

📹 Curious about the CGA partner institutes and facilities? Discover the vibrant community at the Cologne Ageing Campus in our latest short video!
Find out why working with us opens doors to exciting opportunities and unique benefits.

Functional characterisation of rare variants in genes encoding the MAPK/ERK signalling pathway identified in long-lived Leiden Longevity Study participants - GeroScience Human longevity, which is coupled to compression of age-related disease, is a heritable trait. However, only few common genetic variants have been linked to longevity, suggesting that rare, family-spe...

I am very proud to present you the first paper from the main research line of my group at the @mpiage.bsky.social in collaboration with my current group @molepi.bsky.social @bds-lumc.bsky.social at the LUMC, which is now published in @geroscience.bsky.social!

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

🧵Celebrate #DiversityWeek with us at our #DIVERSITYCAFÉ🪡! A space for open conversation, interactive posters, and homemade cakes from around the world, plus coffee on us!🍰☕ Come by, share your voice, and feel welcome!

ℹ️ uni.koeln/F657S
Details in the photo.

#YouAreWelcomeHere #InclusiveScience

🎉Celebrating five Clusters of Excellence!
Congratulations to our Clusters: @cecad.bsky.social for aging research🧬, @ceplas.bsky.social for plant sciences🌱, @econtribute.bsky.social for economics, ML4Q for quantum research⚛️ and 🆕DYNAVERSE for astrophysics🌌

Read more ➡️https://uni.koeln/2AKU3

🎊 A heartfelt congratulations to our incredible CGA partner, the CECAD Excellence Cluster @cecad.bsky.social, for earning yet another prestigious funding period!👏👏👏👏👏

Aleksandra Trifunovic receives Max Delbrück Research Prize 2025 CECAD congratulates Professor Aleksandra Trifunovic on receiving the University of Cologne’s Max Delbrück Prize for her pioneering contributions to mitochondrial biology.

👏 Congratulations to Professor Aleksandra Trifunovic on receiving the Max Delbrück Research Prize 2025 from the University of Cologne for her groundbreaking work on #mitochondria, #aging, and cellular stress responses. A proud moment for #CECAD!

➡️ uni.koeln/Y6WSC

@unicologne.bsky.social