Scientific Core Facilities and Services
Scientists at DKFZ and its partner sites have access to a broad portfolio of research infrastructures, including Core Facilities, as well as data management and IT-services. Core Facilities provide access to cutting-edge instrumentation, user support, and technology development. Data management and IT-services address IT infrastructure needs and offer tools for organizing and managing research data properly.
News from our Core Facilities
On Tuesday, 16 June 2026, at 11:00, Dr. Kristina Giorda from Watchmaker Genomics will present the TAPS+ method at DKFZ Heidelberg. TAPS+ enables non-destructive methylation sequencing while preserving DNA complexity. This makes it possible to study genetic and epigenetic changes together, even in challenging clinical samples such as FFPE and cfDNA. The seminar will cover recent advances, assay performance, and new opportunities for integrated mutation and methylation profiling in a single workflow.
Location: German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Technologiepark 3, 2nd floor, B2.300
Date: Tuesday, 16 June 2026
Time: 11:00
Speaker: Dr. Kristina Giorda, Watchmaker Genomics
We are pleased to announce the merger of the Chemical Biology Core Facility and the Microarray Core Facility. The integration of these two facilities creates the new Molecular Profiling and Screening Core Facility (MoPS), which will offer an expanded range of analytical services and expertise from a single source.
By combining expertise and infrastructure, the facility broadens its service portfolio and establishes a strong foundation for the further development of analytical services.
As part of this integration, the existing portfolio of the Microarray Core Facility will be expanded as of 01 August 2026 to include Biacore surface plasmon resonance (SPR) analyses, High Throughput Screening (HTS), and the High Throughput Pseudovirion-Based Neutralization Assay (PBNA). The merger also brings the two staff members of the former Chemical Biology Core Facility into the Molecular Profiling and Screening Core Facility, further strengthening the team’s expertise and service capabilities.
The renaming of the Microarray Core Facility to the Molecular Profiling and Screening Core Facility reflects the continuous expansion of the analytical portfolio and the associated growth of service offerings. At the same time, the new name provides a framework for future developments and additional services.
With the Molecular Profiling and Screening Core Facility, the research community will have access to an even broader range of analytical and scientific services in support of cutting-edge research.
For further information or inquiries, please contact mops(at)lists.dkfz.de
Our Microarray Core Facility has installed the new QX700™ Droplet Digital PCR System from Bio-Rad. This next-generation platform replaces the former QX200 and significantly expands our capabilities: instead of two color channels, the QX700 provides up to seven channels for multiplexing, enabling the parallel and highly precise quantification of multiple targets within a single sample.
Droplet Digital PCR (ddPCR) works by partitioning a sample into thousands of droplets, each functioning as an individual PCR reaction, allowing highly sensitive and absolute quantification of nucleic acids.
The QX700 is ideally suited for:
- Absolute quantification of DNA and RNA
- Detection of rare mutations
- Copy number variation (CNV) analysis
- Identification of genomic alterations
- Liquid biopsy applications and minimal residual disease monitoring
- Validation of NGS results
With its enhanced multiplexing capacity and high sensitivity, the system is particularly powerful for translational and clinically oriented research projects, especially when sample material is limited.
Learn more:
https://www.dkfz.de/en/microarray
We are happy to discuss potential applications and experimental strategies for your project.
Did you know? The DKFZ Core Facilities are now on LinkedIn! We share exciting insights into our technologies, updates, and news from the Core Facilities.
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Enabling Technology Department
The Enabling Technology Department is headed by the Chief Enabling Technology Officer Prof. Elisa May. She oversees the following Core Facilities: Antibodies, Cellular Tools, Chemical Biology (with EMBL), Dieter Morszeck Biorepository, Electron Microscopy, Flow Cytometry, Light Microscopy, Microarray, Next Generation Sequencing, Preclinical and Translational Pathology, Proteomics, Single-cell OpenLab, Small Animal Imaging, and the Scullery. The Department is also involved in two projects on biomage data management: the DFG project "Information Infrastructure for BioImage Data Management – I3D:bio", and the consortium "NFDI4BioImage" in the National Research Data Infrastructure NFDI, where Prof. May serves as a Co-Speaker.
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Dr. Christian Schmidt
Scientific Project Manager and Research Data Management Microscopy
+49 6221 42 2657 -
