News & Events
Congratulations to our 2025 Graduates!
On 8 May, 25 Biotechnology and 16 Computational Biology & Bioinformatics graduates attended the D-BSSE graduation ceremony together with their families and friends, in total some 160 guests. We are especiallypleased to have three Willi Studer Prize and an ETH Medal awardee this year.
We warmly congratulate all our graduates and wish them best of success for a bright future!
ETH Medal 2026 for outstanding Master's thesis
- Arthur Theuer, MSc Biotechnology, thesis title: A high-performance platform for neural approximations of stochastic reaction networks
Willi Studer Preis 2026 for best Master’s diploma
- Lara Holenstein & Helen Schmid, MSc Biotechnology
- Dipayan Akhuli, MSc Computational Biology & Bioinformatics
All pictures taken at the event are available for download or printing orders on the external page website of the ETH Alumni Association.
National Future Day at ETH Zürich in both Zurich and Basel
D-BSSE again participates in the National Future Day with five dedicated
scientific programmes which are embedded in the ETH programme. This
year, National Future Day is taking place on 12 November, when 5th and
7th grade pupils will have the opportunity at D-BSSE to delve into the
diverse professional world of science and technology.
From the fractal structure of the lungs to diagnosing pulmonary disease
Researchers from the Computational Biology group led by Dagmar Iber aim to understand how the lungs develop in the foetus so they are fully functional by the time the baby is born. The group’s computer-based method could, in the future, help improve the diagnosis of certain respiratory diseases and reduce animal experiments.
Meet Blandine Clément engineering a human skin model to advance drug discovery
The French bio-engineer joined D-BSSE to develop a sensory human skin model for inflammatory skin diseases – and is already impressed by the department’s unique spirit of collaboration. Off the clock, she hopes to keep playing piano (in the in-house music room) and find a perfect bike for exploring Basel city.
Meet Johann Lieberwirth developing technology for clinicians’ workflows
From clinical clerkships to AI-driven healthcare innovation, the German physician with a Master’s in Digital Health is passionate about translating cutting-edge technology into practical medical applications. In this interview, he discusses his research ambitions, what surprised him most about Basel, and why you might soon spot him at a climbing gym or exploring the city by bike.
How the gut rebuilds order after injury
Researchers around Prisca Liberali, Professor at D-BSSE and the Friedrich Miescher Institute (FMI), and their collaborators have shown how regenerating intestinal tissue turns small initial differences between cells into stable patterns. The findings reveal a general principle for how tissues rebuild order after injury, with possible implications for regenerative medicine.
Congratulation on your promotion to Full Professor!
Today, upon the recommendation of ETH Zurich President Joël Mesot, the ETH Board appointed seven new professors and promoted four existing faculty members. Among those promoted was D-BSSE faculty member Dagmar Iber, Head of the Computational Biology lab, who was appointed Full Professor. Congratulations, Dagmar!
Memo Therapeutics’ clinical potravitug programme acquired by Ipsen
Potravitug, a first-in-class monoclonal antibody designed to prevent BK polyomavirus reactivation in kidney transplant recipients, has demonstrated promising results in Phase II clinical trials. Following its acquisition by the French biopharmaceutical company Ipsen, the therapy is now advancing to Phase III trials – the final stage of clinical testing before potential regulatory approval and market launch.
Women in Science: Stories of inspiration, passion and discovery
The NCCR Molecular Systems Engineering, jointly led by ETH Zurich and the University of Basel, has launched a Women in Science video series featuring scientists from D-BSSE amongst many other female scientists. Through personal stories, the participants reflect on the choices, challenges, and key moments that have influenced their careers, encouraging more women to explore opportunities in science.
24-hours of protein design
Five students and 24 hours of intense teamwork: the Future of Health Hackathon by HerCode in Zurich challenged us to apply our knowledge from the Biotechnology curriculum at D-BSSE, iterate quickly, and computationally design proteins to inhibit the function of Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 2, a cell growth and differentiation receptor that is often misregulated in cancer. The shared goal strengthened our team and enabled inspiring exchanges with participants from across Europe.
Rethinking molecular binding and drug discovery
The partnership between CSCS, the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre, and the Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering (BIIE) has led to a promising new approach to drug discovery: a novel AI model architecture that appears capable to predict antibody-antigen binding with unusually high data efficiency. Should the results be confirmed experimentally, the approach could accelerate not only antibody development, but also the discovery of small-molecule drugs.