Discover Research
Developing sustainable solutions to social problems, working on comprehensive and precise medicine for all, researching and supporting positive development in children and adolescents, assessing the consequences of climate change and biodiversity loss, and collecting objects with care and respect: UZH researchers are working together in an interdisciplinary way to tackle current challenges and develop innovative ideas for the future.
University Research Priority Programs (URPPs) are the flagships of interdisciplinary research at UZH. “Our URPPs are a commitment to solving socially relevant problems in strategically selected areas,” said Vice President Research Elisabeth Stark in June 2024 at the closing event for the second series of URPPs. The University Research Priority Programs bring together the full force of UZH researchers’ expertise and allow them to play to their strengths in their respective fields. The aim is to foster long-term visibility, an interdisciplinary approach and sustainable solutions on all levels.
The first series of URPPs started in 2005 at the initiative of then Vice President Alexander Borbély. The second series, which came to an end last year, began in 2013 and comprised eight programs tackling social and scientific topics: Social Networks, Global Change and Biodiversity, Financial Market Regulation, Translational Cancer Research, Artificial Photosynthesis, Evolution in Action, Language and Space, and Dynamics of Healthy Aging. A third series featuring five programs started in 2021.
The 12-year research priorities of the second series generated an impressive amount of additional external funds, publications, symposiums and new networks, both in Switzerland and abroad. At the closing event in June 2024, particular importance was attached to highlighting the long-term and future-oriented impact of the research programs. For example, following the 2013 crisis, researchers from the URPP Financial Market Regulation investigated how to better get financial turbulence under control. As program director Rolf Sethe explained, setting up the Center for Financial Market Regulation will allow the research work to continue on a long-term basis. Another example is the URPP Dynamics of Healthy Aging and the Healthy Longevity Center, the launch of which was helped in no small part by foundation funds, as program director Mike Martin explained.
Leading the Way in Research on Aging
People are living ever longer. How can they maintain their health and quality of life in old age? This is what the URPP Dynamics of Healthy Aging has been studying for the last 12 years in 22 sub-projects. Director Mike Martin takes a look back.
Setting New Standards through Interdisciplinary Research
How does the way we talk relate to the spaces we move in? That was the overarching question that the URPP Language and Space, which reached its conclusion in 2024, has been exploring for the past 12 years.
“UZH is a leader in evolutionary biology research”
How do organisms and pathogens evolve and adapt to the environment? This was the question that the URPP Evolution in Action sought to address. The program allowed UZH to put its considerable research competence in evolutionary biology to excellent use, says the initiator and former co-director Beat Keller.
“Making the catalysts work for us”
Harnessing sustainable energy: the URPP LightChEC’s broad approach has enabled it to position itself as a flagship project within the highly competitive international research landscape.
“The next crisis can’t be prevented through regulation alone”
From the rescue of UBS and the overhaul of Swiss financial market law to digitalization, sustainability and the downfall of Credit Suisse, calls for better regulation of Switzerland’s financial market have been growing ever louder over the 12-year term of the URPP Financial Market Regulation. The legal scholars and economists contributing to the URPP brought their impartial and independent expertise to bear in the reform process.
“Biodiversity is our life insurance”
Ecosystems are more stable and productive when they contain more species. This has been demonstrated impressively by researchers from the URPP Global Change and Biodiversity.
“The tumor microenvironment enormously affects cancer cells”
Researchers working on the URPP Translational Cancer Research will continue to collaborate to understand tumor behavior down to the last detail, which will ultimately contribute to improving cancer therapies, sums up URPP co-director Maries van den Broek.
Values and Sustainability
What prompts people in social networks to change their values and behavior in a sustainable way? Researchers from the URPP Social Networks have developed new theories and methods to analyze the complex links between individuals and a network.
Time to Take Stock and Think Ahead
UZH’s University Research Priority Programs enable researchers to apply their expertise in selected research fields and help them develop long-term solutions. UZH celebrated the conclusion of the second series in June 2024.
UZH plays a pioneering role in medicine across Switzerland and specifically promotes new, holistically oriented research – whether in One Health or in gender medicine. Cardiologist Carolin Lerchenmüller, who took up her new role at the beginning of May 2024, is the first professor of gender medicine at the University of Zurich and in Switzerland. Gender medicine deals with the different manifestations of diseases in women and men. It has been shown, for example, that heart problems can manifest differently depending on gender and must be treated accordingly. “We need to learn to consider gender-specific symptoms as typical rather than labeling them as atypical,” says Carolin Lerchenmüller.
In addition to heart disease, there are many other illnesses in which gender plays an important role. These include stroke, depression and cancer. These differences are not only rooted in biology, but also in social factors. The coronavirus pandemic serves as a good example of this, with men more likely to catch Covid and die from it than women. One possible reason for this difference is the female immune system, which reacts faster and more strongly to pathogens than the male, meaning women are better protected. Meanwhile, women were at greater risk of becoming infected because they were more exposed to the coronavirus at work, for example in nursing or in schools.
“Gender medicine is an important part of precision medicine; this is a specialization of University Medicine Zurich (UMZH),” says Beatrice Beck Schimmer, Vice President Medicine and professor at UZH. She believes appointing the first chair of gender medicine is just the beginning. In the long term, a nationwide network for gender medicine will be established in Switzerland, together with other partner institutions. Current topics and the latest findings in precision medicine were presented and discussed at the end of 2024 at the annual event organized by The LOOP Zurich, the joint medical research center of UZH, ETHZ and the University’s four hospitals.
Two stem cell researchers at the Institute for Regenerative Medicine (IREM) at UZH, Simon Hoerstrup and Melanie Generali, are developing promising medical therapies of the future. More specifically, they are working on induced pluripotent stem cells. These can be differentiated into different cell types such as heart muscle or nerve cells.
An important research topic at the IREM is replacing heart and nerve tissue. Weakened hearts are among the most common chronic conditions. If someone suffers a mild heart attack as the result of a circulatory disorder in the coronary arteries, most of the affected muscle tissue dies. Unlike other tissue such as the liver, this does not regenerate; instead, it becomes scarred. This leads to a permanent restriction of function and in the worst case to death. This is an area where reprogrammed heart muscle cells, like those researched at the IREM, could come into play in the future. The goal would be for the patient’s own stem cells to replace the tissue around the scar and permanently improve the weak heart.
UHZ is cooperating with Kyoto University in Japan to hasten stem cell research. As part of this collaboration, a high-level conference took place in 2024 at UZH with researchers from both countries, where they exchanged the latest research findings. The event was organized by stem cell researcher Melanie Generali and her team.
Closer cooperation in research has also been possible at the University Children’s Hospital Zurich since 2024. Since last summer, the hospital’s research groups have been working at a new building in Zurich-Lengg. “With this move, we’ve created synergies and managed to achieve the feeling of being an institute,” says Matthias Baumgartner, director of research and teaching. Following the move to Zurich-Lengg, the long-standing close connection between pediatric research and the hospital is now also reflected in physical proximity; the hospital building is just a few minutes’ walk away, which is a great benefit for patients and researchers alike.
Ancient Ailments
One Health: paleogeneticist Verena Schünemann explores the evolution of pathogens and the question of why they have been able to survive for so long.
The Right Medicine for Women and Men
Many illnesses have sex- and gender-specific causes and symptoms, many of which have received little research attention thus far. That, however, is about to change. UZH has established the first professorial chair in gender medicine in Switzerland to advance research in this field.
Strong Hearts
The heart is our most vital organ. But the heart muscle cells are sluggish. The cardiologist Carolin Lerchenmüller is exploring how these cells are regenerated and how the heart can be strengthened and protected.
Learn to Cry
Male sufferers of depression seek much less psychological counseling than depressed women do. That has to do with the gender roles that we learn as children, Andreas Walther says. The psychologist is developing a therapy for depression specifically tailored to men.
“A turning point in medicine”
What are the latest findings in precision medicine? This year’s annual event organized by The LOOP Zurich provided an overview of the current state of research and discussed the acceptance of precision medicine in society.
Complement System Causes Cell Damage in Long Covid
Researchers at the University of Zurich and University Hospital Zurich have discovered a pattern in blood proteins that will improve the diagnosis and perhaps also the targeted treatment of Long Covid.
Strengthening Ties with Japan
UZH and Kyoto University work together closely in the field of stem cell research. As part of this collaboration, a high-level conference took place in Zurich with researchers from both countries. The event was organized by stem cell researcher Melanie Generali.
Tailor-Made Cells
In a few years, we’re likely to see personalized stem cells being used in the first clinical trials for heart patients. But there are still a few hurdles to overcome on the way from the lab to the clinic.
“The new building is a game changer”
Research and clinics at the University Children’s Hospital Zurich are in close proximity at the new Zurich-Lengg site – a great benefit for patients and researchers alike, say director of research and teaching, Matthias Baumgartner, and research manager, Nicole Meili.
The foundations of a good life are laid in childhood. Ideally, children and adolescents should be given space to explore the world and discover themselves. At the same time, however, they may face high expectations and pressures. At the Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, the Children’s Research Center, the University Children’s Hospital and the Institute of Education, UZH scholars and researchers from various disciplines are investigating the development of children and adolescents, as well as the environment that shapes them.
This includes both parents and schools. As current research shows, there are some key requirements for a positive childhood. Trusting relationships with parents and other close caregivers are fundamental. These relationships provide children with a sense of self-confidence and security. Parents serve as role models, and interactions between parent and child are crucial for the development of children’s brains and personalities.
The challenge for parents and educators lies in striking a balance between offering freedom and providing guidance. Children need both to grow. Parents should be trustworthy, dependable, available, understanding and loving. According to developmental pediatrician Oskar Jenni, these are the essential factors required to meet the emotional and social needs of children and give them self-confidence. Jenni collaborated with an interdisciplinary team of authors last year to publish the book Kindheit. Eine Beruhigung (Childhood: A Reassurance). It is aimed at a broad audience and made it onto the bestseller list of German magazine Der Spiegel in 2024.
Schools play a decisive role in the development of children and adolescents. Katharina Maag Merki, an educational scientist at UZH, focuses on researching developments in the field of education. She is critical of the early selection process in Swiss schools, which results in children with comparable skills and motivation being systematically assigned to schools with different performance levels based on their family background. According to the researcher, schools not only reproduce existing inequalities, but also sometimes exacerbate them.
One of the current challenges in raising children is navigating the world of social media. As media research conducted by Sandra Cortesi and Daniel Süss reveals, children and young people can reap the benefits of social media by using it as a playground where they can experiment with ideas. “This can be fun and surprisingly inspiring,” says Sandra Cortesi. However, it’s important for parents to engage in open dialogue with their children about their social media use.
Equipping Children for Life
Parents only have a limited influence on their children’s development. In order to thrive, children above all need to feel safe and secure. Much of the rest happens on its own.
Social Media Can Make You Happy
Young people spend a lot of their time on TikTok and other platforms. Yet this is no reason for parents to start panicking, according to the media researchers Sandra Cortesi and Daniel Süss. Social media support the journey that young people go on as they become adults – and often contribute to their happiness.
“Schools reproduce inequality”
A lot is expected of schools. What do they need to do to ensure successful learning and positive development for pupils? A conversation with educational scientists Katharina Maag Merki and Roland Reichenbach.
Understanding Youth Violence
From family problems to a lack of self-control and social disadvantage – the causes of youth violence are complex. We look at the reasons behind it and the question of what really helps people get back on track.
Scholars from various fields of research at UZH are investigating climate change, variations in biodiversity and current evolutionary questions to develop scenarios and ideas for a sustainable future. “If we want to maintain climatic conditions that humans can physiologically endure and in which they can enjoy a certain degree of wellbeing, we have to respect the limits of our planet,” says Maria J. Santos. The Earth system scientist researches tropical ecosystems, which have an above-average impact on global biodiversity and are significantly impacted by climate change, economic development and population growth.
Her colleague Gabriela Schaepman-Strub examines how climate change and other global drivers affect Arctic biodiversity, and their feedback effect on the thawing of permafrost, the climate and the people of the Arctic. “If we want to stop global warming, we must also address biodiversity and changes in land use,” says the Earth system scientist.
Evolutionary biologist Andreas Wagner’s research reveals how diversity emerges, and how nature tirelessly works to come up with new solutions. Many of these innovations are written into a species’ genetics, and yet they remain untapped. However, when environmental conditions shift, these dormant talents awake and begin to unfold. This resourcefulness makes organisms more resilient and adaptable.
This also applies to epigenetic changes, which are more common than mutations. These traits can be inherited, and they allow plants to adapt to changing environmental conditions. Research in epigenetics is introducing new possibilities for breeding more resilient crops, says plant geneticist Ueli Grossniklaus, whose work is opening up new horizons for the future of agriculture.
“Climate change and biodiversity are closely connected”
UZH Earth system scientists Maria J. Santos and Gabriela Schaepman-Strub explain how biodiversity and climate change influence each other, and what needs to be done to overcome the climate and biodiversity crisis.
Nature’s Sleeping Beauties
According to evolutionary biologist Andreas Wagner, nature tirelessly produces new variations, many of which are not utilized. But when environmental conditions change, these dormant new talents spring into action.
Coffee in the Shade
Farming coffee can be both ecological and profitable at the same time, according to the research of Earth system scientist Maria J. Santos. The key is to combine the crops with trees.
Inheriting the Ability to Adapt
Genetic diversity enables plants to adapt. Research conducted by plant geneticist Ueli Grossniklaus on the epigenetic inheritance of traits is opening up new opportunities for breeding crops.
Scientific collections not only have great documentary value, but are also important and valuable for current research. UZH has 13 large collections in various fields – from anthropology to zoology, ethnology to botany. Handling the objects from the collections respectfully and responsibly and establishing their origin are key principles. For example, various UZH collections deal with the subject of restitution, in other words, the return of sensitive objects. Human remains are considered sensitive, as are sacred, ritual and ceremonial objects and grave goods, as well as other objects that may have been acquired illegally, for example items that were stolen.
The Benin Dues exhibition, which opened at UZH’s Ethnographic Museum in August 2024 and will run until September 2025, explores this topic. Together with seven other Swiss museums, the Ethnographic Museum is participating in the Benin Initiative Switzerland. Over the past three years, it has worked closely with partners from Nigeria to investigate the provenance of around one hundred objects held in Swiss collections from the Kingdom of Benin in southern Nigeria.
“We should have a uniform approach to questions of decolonization, provenance research and restitution across the entire university,” says Michael Krützen, professor of anthropology at UZH. As part of the Conference of Institutes with Collections (KIMS) at UZH, which he heads together with Mareile Flitsch, Director of the Ethnographic Museum, corresponding guidelines are currently being compiled. “It’s important that the university collections are linked with one another,” says Wibke Kolbmann. “Not only at UZH, but also between universities in Switzerland and abroad.” In order to initiate this networking, UZH and ETH jointly organized this year’s Annual Conference for University Collections, which was held in Switzerland for the first time. Not only did this event offer the opportunity to exchange views on questions of restitution, digitization and outreach, it also allowed colleagues from abroad to become familiar with the collections at UZH.
Ten of UZH’s 13 large collections are housed in the Collection Center in Buchs, in the Furttal region in Zurich. In an unassuming location between a plumbing company, a logistics center and former tennis courts, treasures of national significance can be found. These include the zoological, archaeological, anthropological, ethnographic and medical collections, which are archived across five floors. Over a million objects are stored here, ranging from tiny snail shells to a fin whale skull.
“The UZH collections are part of the Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property,” says Wibke Kolbmann, Director of Museums & Collections at UZH. Their preservation and protection are considered to be of utmost importance – not only for UZH, but for Switzerland as a whole. As part of the planned renovation of the Botanical Garden, approximately four million plant, fungus and algae specimens belonging to the United Herbaria of UZH and ETH Zurich will also move to Buchs in the coming years.
UZH’s museums provide a wide audience with insights into their collections. Last year, the Zoological, Anthropological, Paleontological and Botanical Museums merged to create the Natural History Museum. The newly designed area allows visitors to experience a media projection that shows how the ice ages shaped our planet’s landscape and animal life. The exhibition explores why certain species became extinct while others, such as the musk ox and arctic fox, survived.
Museum Rietberg in Zurich has a comprehensive collection of traditional and contemporary art from Asia, Africa, America and Oceania. Thanks to a cooperation agreement signed by the museum and UZH at the end of 2024, UZH students and researchers will be able to make better use of these collections in the future. The aim is to strengthen and deepen cooperation between the two institutions. “Museums are like laboratories for various disciplines: art, history, social and cultural anthropology, materials science and engineering, literature, and digital art and society,” explains Vice President Christian Schwarzenegger. In the natural sciences, the laboratories are usually part of UZH. When it comes to museums, however, UZH’s own collections only cover certain specialist areas. “We want to close these gaps by working with other museums in the Zurich area,” says Schwarzenegger. The agreement with Museum Rietberg is the first of its kind.
Of Skulls and Polar Bears
From primate skulls and botanical specimens to burial artifacts, the University of Zurich houses wide-ranging collections that serve as a valuable resource for scientific research. Establishing the origins of the objects and handling them with respect are key principles.
UZH Opens New Natural History Museum with Four Dinosaurs
The new Natural History Museum of the University of Zurich brings together zoology, paleontology, anthropology and botany under the same roof. The museum opens with four new dinosaur skeletons and various other additions that shine a light on how evolution and biodiversity have shaped life on our planet.
Walk This Way: How Neanderthals and Bipedalism Define Our Past
The Natural History Museum of the University of Zurich is getting a dose of anthropology. Exhibits on the ice age and Neanderthals as well as on different ways of walking on two legs have been added to its permanent collection.
Better access to world cultures
With its extensive collections of non-European art, the city of Zurich’s Museum Rietberg is unique in Switzerland. In future, students and researchers from UZH will have even more opportunities to use these collections and engage in dialogue with a wider audience.
