Prestigious early-career award for LMU molecular biologist Jonathan Bohlen

This award is in recognition of his research into the molecular basis of rare inherited immune disorders. Each year, the independent nonprofit Aventis Foundation presents the award to up to three outstanding early-career researchers in the life sciences. Each award is endowed with 100,000 euros to help support the researchers as they continue to embark on their scientific careers.

Bohlen leads a research group at LMU’s Gene Center that is also part of the Comprehensive Childhood Research Center at Dr. von Hauner Children’s Hospital. Together with his team, his work spans the interface between molecular biology and the human genetics of immune disorders. He was the first person to observe human ribosomes searching messenger RNA (mRNA) for the starting point of protein synthesis. His research has revealed, among other findings, that the translation factor MCTS-1 is crucial for producing certain proteins. Bohlen was thus able to identify a previously unknown molecular mechanism underlying the rare inherited immune disorder Mendelian Susceptibility to Mycobacterial Disease (MSMD). “If we can specifically influence which proteins immune cells produce, this could provide a starting point for developing new drugs,” Bohlen explains.

Bohlen completed his doctorate at the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg, where he laid the foundations for his research into the regulation of protein synthesis. He then moved to the Imagine Institute and the affiliated Hôpital Necker-Enfants malades in Paris as a postdoctoral researcher, working in the group led by human geneticist Jean-Laurent Casanova. This is where he combined his research into the translation of mRNA into proteins with the human genetics of rare inherited immune disorders. Since 2024, Bohlen has led the “mRNA Translation in Human Immunity” research group at LMU. From 2026, his work has also been supported with six years of funding through the German Research Foundation’s Emmy Noether Programme.

Based in Frankfurt am Main, the Aventis Foundation supports art and culture as well as science, research, and teaching. Each year, it presents the Life Sciences Bridge Award to up to three early-career researchers at German universities. This year’s award ceremony will take place in Frankfurt on 25 September.