Division Computers in Chemistry (CIC) of the German Chemical Society (GDCh)

Last week, I had a great time at the 𝟱𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗛𝗮𝗺𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗴. It was inspiring to hear from experts in computational drug design – both from industry and academia – and then connect with them over lunch or coffee. Many of them joined just for a single day to share their knowledge and experience with us. Thank you all for this generosity and motivation! I especially enjoyed the 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻, where I could share my fascination with allosteric GPCR pockets and how, together with my supervisor, Peter Kolb (whose support made this work possible), we are trying to tackle their challenges using virtual screening. I had many engaging discussions, as the participants from diverse backgrounds brought fresh perspectives to a topic I've been exploring for quite some time. I feel honored that my contribution was recognized with the poster prize, especially considering the inspiring research shared by others! I would like to take this opportunity to thank the German Chemical Society (GDCh) and Schrödinger for their generous gifts. I’m already looking forward to taking one of the online courses to further advance my molecular modeling skills. Last but not least, many thanks to Emanuel Ehmki and Jonathan Pletzer-Zelgert, who did a fantastic job ensuring everything ran smoothly. I would definitely recommend future editions of the Summer School to early-career computational drug designers, as they will benefit the most from this opportunity. Looking forward to meeting many of you again at upcoming conferences!

This week, I had the incredible opportunity to attend the Cheminformatics Summer School organized by Division Computers in Chemistry (CIC) of the German Chemical Society (GDCh). In all honesty, I would love to document day by day, hour by hour for this post, but unfortunately, my brain has proven to have limited functionality after a week full of learning, new information, and fun. These seven days in Hamburg, learning with The University of Hamburg has not only enriched my knowledge in cheminformatics and computational chemistry but also helped me gain clarity on what I would like to do with my time in academia, and which direction i would like to grow and contribute in. A huge and heartfelt thanks to - Emanuel Ehmki, and Jonathan Pletzer-Zelgert, for organizing such a wonderful series of lectures and hands-on learning, and being the warm encouragement i needed as a first-timer in an “academic gathering” setting, and making conversation whenever I stood alone in the corner with my coffee. Lina Humbeck (Boehringer Ingelheim), Christianne Ehrt, Lukas Eberlein, Anneke Dittmer, Bernd Kuhn, Kenneth Atz (Roche), Mila Krämer, Andrea Volkamer- all PhDs- their inspirational passion towards the work that they do, and incredible patience when guiding us through workshops (individually), truly made the summer school experience more than worth the exhaustion of travel all the way to Hamburg. From in silico chemistry, studying ligand structures and binding pockets to learning how AI, Machine Learning and Deep learning are finding their way to the drug discovery realm was quite the learning curve. They have also very generously shared their resources so that we, the summer school students can go through them and study at our own pace to understand anything we missed. They also made time besides their incredibly busy schedule and shared their e-mails so we could reach out with burning questions. This kind of dedication towards knowledge sharing is quite rare these days, and it was impressive to see them go to such great lengths to motivate, encourage and educate us. The next summer school of its kind is going to take place again in two years time, and honestly, if you are someone with an interest in bioinformatics-cheminformatics, and you can make it to Deutschland then, I would recommend that you 100% do so! Hamburg was the most charming city with the best kind of people and summer school was a one-of-a-kind experience. Lastly, a huge shout out and a generous and humble thanks to Schrödinger, FACCTs, OpenEye, Cadence Molecular Sciences, and deNBI for their sponsorship which made the event possible in the first place, and by extension, my incredible experience. #summerschool #cheminformatics #universityofhamburg #zentrumfurbioinformatik #computationalchemistry #drugdiscovery #internationalstudent #mastersabroad #chemistryingermany #deutschland

⏳ 10 DAYS. That’s all that’s standing between you and five days of pure cheminformatics immersion in Hamburg. The CIC Summer School on Cheminformatics (Aug 25–29, 2025) still has a few spots left—yes, this is your sign to pack your laptop and jump in. What’s happening? Hands-on sessions in pharmacophores, docking, QSAR, homology modeling, MD, quantum chemistry, ML drug design Real-world tools: OpenEye, Schrödinger, Proteins Plus, TeachOpenCADD, FACCTS, and more 30 brilliant minds in one room—plus your chance to present a poster (poster submissions get priority!) Who’s it for? PhD students, Master students, and researchers in chemistry, computational chemistry, structural biology, drug discovery, or anyone who’s been “meaning to get into” cheminformatics. 📍 Where: Universität Hamburg – Zentrum für Bioinformatik 🗓 When: Aug 25–29, 2025 🔗 Details: cicsummerschool.de No long applications. No waiting until next year. Just you, your curiosity, and 10 days to decide. Hamburg’s calling. Are you in? German Chemical Society (GDCh) JungesChemieForum (JCF) der Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker e.V. (GDCh) gdch.events