This anniversary event marked a decade of outstanding scientific achievements by the Mass Spectrometry Core Facility of the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and set important impulses for future developments.
A decade of excellent research at BayBioMS
Since its founding in 2015, the BayBioMS in Freising-Weihenstephan has become an indispensable part of TUM’s research infrastructure. Its three core competences - proteomics, metabolomics, and bioinformatics - support projects across many disciplines, including biology, chemistry, medicine, nutritional sciences, food chemistry and physics. More than 700 research projects and over 300 scientific publications in the past ten years highlight the pivotal role of the center in advancing molecular research at TUM and beyond.
International program with leading experts
To mark this milestone, the BayBioMS presented a distinguished scientific program featuring internationally renowned keynote speakers representing each of the three core competences. In addition, outstanding researchers from the Munich scientific community shared insights into current developments in mass spectrometry.
Following the official welcome by BayBioMS director Prof. Bernhard Küster, deputy director Prof. Corinna Dawid and the center leaders Dr. Karin Kleigrewe and Dr. Christina Ludwig, Dr. Hamish Stewart (Thermo Fisher Scientific) opened the symposium with an overview of the latest technological advances in mass spectrometry.
In focus: bioinformatics, metabolomics, and proteomics
The morning session was dedicated to bioinformatics. Prof. Olga Vitek (Northeastern University, USA) opened the program with a keynote lecture on statistical methods that enhance the accuracy and interpretability of quantitative proteomics. Building on this foundation, researchers from TUM presented current advances in the field: Wassim Gabriel (TUM) discussed modern machine learning applications in mass spectrometry, Prof. Melanie Schirmer (TUM) offered multiomics perspectives on the human microbiome, and Prof. Markus List (TUM) highlighted strategies to identify and prevent data leakage in biomedical machine learning.
In the afternoon, the symposium shifted its focus to metabolomics. The session began with a keynote lecture by Prof. Ron Heeren (Maastricht University, Netherlands), who introduced innovative approaches in imaging mass spectrometry. Subsequent contributions showcased the breadth of metabolomics research, including insights into lipid metabolism in colorectal cancer (Prof. Dirk Haller, TUM), methods for assessing the safety of plant-based food alternatives (Prof. Michael Rychlik, TUM), and analyses of nutritional metabolomics (Dr. Michael Gigl, TUM).
The final session centered on proteomics and opened with a keynote by Prof. Albert Heck (Utrecht University, Netherlands), who elaborated on developments ranging from bottom-up to top-down strategies in antibody research. Additional presentations rounded up the program with topics such as virus–host interaction profiling (Prof. Andreas Pichlmair, TUM), the mapping of the human brain proteome (Dr. Johanna Tüshaus, TUM), and new findings in chromatin proteomics (Prof. Axel Imhof, LMU).
Strengthening the Scientific Hub in Freising-Weihenstephan
More than 150 participants contributed to a lively scientific exchange at the thematically multifaceted symposium. It was supported by the “Fonds der Chemischen Industrie” and the industry partners Thermo Fisher Scientific, Sciex, Bruker, and Waters. The event sent a strong signal regarding TUM’s leading position in the field of mass spectrometry and enhanced the visibility of the Freising-Weihenstephan research location far beyond the region.
