Fraunhofer Institute for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology ITMP SLAS Europe 2025: Hamburg impresses as host – Fraunhofer ITMP significantly shapes the conference
The SLAS Europe Conference and Exhibition, one of the most important events in the field of laboratory automation and screening, took place in Hamburg for the first time from May 20 to 22, 2025 – with great success. The Fraunhofer Institute for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology ITMP was represented with a varied program and set technical highlights.
Hamburg – On Wednesday, May 21, 2025, Dr. Philip Gribbon, head of Fraunhofer ITMP Hamburg location, opened SLAS Europe 2025 in his role as president of the Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS). He had played a key role in bringing the European edition of the renowned American conference and exhibition to Hamburg. With over 1,700 participants and 132 exhibitors, the event achieved record numbers and impressed with a high-caliber scientific program, to which Fraunhofer ITMP contributed significantly.
On the day before the conference, Fraunhofer ITMP opened its laboratories for two Technology Showcase offsite events in cooperation with Revvity Cellular Technologies. The workshops, which attracted great interest, focused on targeted protein degradation (TPD) – an innovative method for the selective degradation of proteins associated with human diseases. Researchers from Fraunhofer and Revvity demonstrated how molecular glues can be used to exploit the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS).
This topic was explored in greater depth in a presentation by Dr. Johanna Huchting entitled “Screening Assays and Workflows for Molecular Degrader Discovery.”
In the second contribution from Fraunhofer ITMP, Dr. Maria Kuzikov highlighted how the combination of machine learning and experimental screening can influence drug repurposing in her presentation entitled “Interdisciplinary study on drug-induced phospholipidosis using machine learning models and experimental analysis of repurposing libraries.”
In addition, Fraunhofer ITMP presented four scientific posters on topics including drug repurposing, organoids, molecular degraders, and blood-brain barrier models from
hiPSCs.
Our colleague Annika Wittich was awarded the “Student Poster Award” for her poster “High-throughput screen identifies repurposable candidates for multiple sulfatase deficiency (MSD)” – congratulations!
As co-chair of the “Advances in Laboratory Automation” track, Dr. Johanna Huchting curated an exciting program with four sessions together with Mike Gray (GSK). It brought together experts and innovators working at the interface of AI and IT in laboratory automation.
Dr. Huchting also contributed to the panel discussion "Navigating the Life Sciences: Career Paths and Insights from the Experts,“ Dr. Huchting joined other experts in reflecting on their different career paths and personal experiences in the life sciences sector.
In closing, Dr. Philip Gribbon emphasized, ”I am grateful that we at Fraunhofer ITMP had the opportunity to contribute in so many different ways. Hamburg has proven to be the ideal venue for SLAS EUROPE – we are already looking forward to 2027, when SLAS Europe returns to our city."
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