Exciting experiments with yeast and high-tech
That was Future Day 2025 at the Leibniz-HKI!
| by Friederike Gawlik
The annual “Forsche-Schüler”-Day (Future Day) once again attracted many students to the Beutenberg Campus in Jena this year to experience science up close. In seven small groups, the participants were also able to conduct experiments at the Leibniz-HKI itself and immerse themselves in the fascinating world of microbiology.
They explored interesting questions: Is it actually possible to generate energy from mud? Based on an experiment, it became clear that microorganisms are indeed able to generate renewable electrical energy. Equally impressive was the synthesis of fluorescent dyes, which glowed brightly under UV light. This effect is used in research to make biological processes visible.
Under the microscope, the students were able to observe how fungi come into contact with lung epithelial cells – an important aspect for understanding infections. The diversity of nature was finally demonstrated during the extraction of leaf dyes, which revealed which pigments are responsible for the green color of leaves.
Another highlight was the “Yeast in Action” station, where the amazing abilities of yeast fungi were demonstrated. Yeasts are not only essential for the production of bread and beer, but also important helpers in biotechnology. The students “built” their own yeast volcano and watched how yeast cells work actively and produce gases – a fascinating insight into microscopic processes.
At the “Candida Clash: Attack of the Hyphae” station, it was like an exciting criminal case about tiny fungi that suddenly get out of control and can be very dangerous for our body. The students learned under which circumstances and with which mechanisms Candida fungi, which live on and in us, can turn from friend to foe and cause severe infections.
At the “Quantifying Life” station, another intriguing question was explored: How do you count something that is invisible to the naked eye? The researchers showed how to collect and catalog many thousands of species of microbes in a meaningful way and also how special computer programs can help to make infection processes visible to our eyes – so that we can learn to understand them better.
Future Day 2025 showed how much fun science can be and what surprising insights often lie hidden in the smallest things. We are already looking forward to next time!
