Prof. Dr Pitter Huesgen took over the professorship for Biochemistry and Functional Proteomics at the University of Freiburg on 1 October 2023. Since mid-October, he also is a Principal Investigator in the Cluster of Excellence CIBSS. In CIBSS, he contributes his expertise in mass spectrometry and proteome research and develops new methodological approaches for signalling research.

When Pitter Huesgen talks about mass spectrometry, the enthusiasm in his voice is contagious. The biochemist has been using this analytical method for over ten years to characterise protein molecules in cells. He constantly comes up with new research questions for which the method provides answers. „With mass spectrometry, we can look at thousands of different proteins at once,“ explains Huesgen. „These insights tell us a lot about how the building blocks of cells function, how they work together and how this changes under different conditions. This enables us to understand very fundamental biological processes.“

Huesgen first came into contact with mass spectrometry during in the course of his PhD. At that time, he was analysing proteases: These are proteins that cleave or degrade other proteins. Both topics - the breakdown of proteins as well as mass spectrometry - are a recurring theme in his projects to this day. They now interest him in the context of the arms race between plants and their pathogens, diseases of the kidneys and the function of the human immune system.

„I get passionate about many things very quickly. At first glance, this may seem to get out of hand, but then it reveals unexpected similarities between different research topics,“ says Huesgen. This makes him laugh, because he knows that his collaborative projects in medicine and plant sciences are an unusual combination. Ultimately, however, he is always concerned with the same questions, he explains: „How do cells and their building blocks work? How do they manage to process different signals simultaneously? And how do protein degradation and modification enable cells to adapt to altered conditions?“

Interdisciplinary signalling research

The molecular processes that Huesgen investigates using mass spectrometry have a common function in the cell: they are important signalling mechanisms. Working in the Cluster of Excellence CIBSS, which is dedicated to interdisciplinary research into biological signals, was a logical and important step for him: “Basically, I've always been a signalling researcher,” says Huesgen. He is particularly excited about the possibilities offered by the methods of synthetic biology and biochemistry developed in CIBSS. “They can be used to generate very localised changes and intervene precisely in signalling processes. By combining this with mass spectrometry, I hope to find answers to questions that have been bothering me for a while,” says Huesgen.

The new colleagues are certain that CIBSS will benefit from Huesgen's expertise: “We are delighted that the University of Freiburg has won such an outstanding and methodologically experienced scientist in Pitter Huesgen,” says Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Driever, member of the CIBSS spokesperson team. “His interdisciplinary research on protein modification and degradation helps us to better understand the dynamic changes in cellular proteins. He is thus contributing to the goal of CIBSS to gain fundamental insights into the mechanisms of signalling integration.”

Before moving to Freiburg, Huesgen headed a mass spectrometry working group at the Jülich Research Centre and taught and researched at the University of Cologne. He is now continuing his work at the University of Freiburg, where he has taken over from Prof. Dr Bettina Warscheid, a former CIBSS member who moved to the University of Würzburg. Huesgen was already familiar with Freiburg before his move through several cooperation projects, which he is now extending and strengthening: “I am happy to now be here permanently,” he says. “Life in a university city has a dynamic that I really like. And it gives me the opportunity to work together with many students in the laboratory who contribute creative ideas and question established practices.”