Volker Haucke honored with the Leibniz Prize 2025 of the German Research Foundation

Prof. Dr. Volker Haucke, Director of the Leibniz-Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP) in Berlin and Professor of Molecular Pharmacology at Freie Universität Berlin, has been awarded the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize 2025 by the German Research Foundation (DFG). He received the award on Wednesday, March 19th together with nine other researchers at a ceremony in Berlin. “Volker Haucke's groundbreaking findings on the dynamics and homeostasis of membranes, particularly in nerve cells, and his research findings on the formation and function of synapses have had a decisive impact on our molecular understanding of how the brain works,” said Katja Becker, President of the DFG, in her laudatory speech.  

The award recognizes Volker Haucke's pioneering research into lipid signaling and synaptic signal transmission in the nervous system. The prize is endowed with 2.5 million euros, which will be used for further research work.  It promises new insights into fundamental biological processes and potential therapeutic applications. Volker Haucke was selected as one of 142 nominees at the end of 2024. The Leibniz Prize is considered one of the most important German research awards.

Volker Haucke's scientific work focuses on the molecular processes that enable nerve cells to function. The focus here is on endocytosis - a cellular mechanism in which membrane areas are specifically invaginated in order to absorb substances from the environment. This process plays a central role in signal transmission at the synapses and helps to regulate the composition of the cell membrane and prevent the degeneration of nerve cells.  

In this area, Haucke has gained important insights into the interaction of neuronal protein complexes, lipid signals and degradation mechanisms of the cell's own components. These research results have led, among other things, to the development of inhibitors for central enzymes of lipid metabolism, which could offer approaches for new therapeutic applications, such as in cancer research.

Volker Haucke studied biochemistry at the Free University of Berlin and completed his doctorate at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel. After a postdoctoral stay at Yale University, USA, he headed a junior research group at the University of Göttingen before returning to the Free University of Berlin as Professor of Biochemistry. Since 2012, he has been Director of the Leibniz Research Institute for Molecular Pharmacology in Berlin.

Over the course of his career, Haucke has received numerous prizes and grants, including an ERC Advanced Grant and the Feldberg Prize 2020. He is a member of renowned scientific organizations such as the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, the Academia Europaea and the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO).