Welcome to the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology
We investigate how organisms interact with chemical signals.
We do research in the lab to better understand interactions at a molecular level.
Photo: Anna Schroll
We do research in the glasshouse and in the field to better understand interactions and signals in their natural environment.
Photo: Anna Schroll
We support the Initiative “Weltoffenes Thüringen”.
We are committed to ensuring that people from different backgrounds live and work together in a respectful manner.
Training and international collaborations are key features of our work.
Photo: Anna Schroll
We believe diversity and inclusion leads to the best science.
Photo: Jürgen Scheere
Research News
Current News and Announcements
Maternal symbiont transmission via envenomation in the parasitoid wasp Spalangia cameroni. Current Biology 35, pp. 1 - 13 (2025)
How a salt pan ant Cataglyphis fortis navigates artificially complex environments. Journal of Experimental Biology 228 (4), JEB249369 (2025)
Exploring a role for the Arabidopsis TIR-X gene (TIRP) in defense against pathogenic fungi or insect herbivory attack. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 26 (6), 2764 (2025)
As the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, we are fully committed to the principle of scientific freedom as enshrined in Article 5 of the German Basic Law and recognized worldwide as a fundamental human right.
The award recognizes her outstanding research in the chemistry and biochemistry of plant natural products, with particular emphasis on the detailed elucidation of metabolic pathways and the engineering of novel pathways and compounds for biomedical applications.
The medal recognizes his many years of world-leading scientific work in insect ecology.