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MHH celebrates 151 new doctors: record award ceremony delights participants!
The Hannover Medical School awarded 151 doctoral degrees, including awards for outstanding research work.
MHH celebrates 151 new doctors: record award ceremony delights participants!
On Friday, June 10, 2025, the Hannover Medical School (MHH) honored 151 new doctors. The awarding of the doctoral certificates covered all of the university's fields of study and was well attended, including relatives of the graduates. Of the 151 doctoral recipients, 89 were women and 62 men, including 68 women and 48 physicians as well as a colorful mix of dentists, natural scientists and human biologists.
The ceremonial ceremony was led by Prof. Dr. Denise Hilfiker-Kleiner, the new president of the MHH, warmly welcomed the newly minted doctoral students and their families. What is particularly noteworthy is that 28 of the new doctoral students completed their doctorates with distinction. In addition, two promotional prizes from the Society of Friends of the MHH e.V. were presented, each worth 2,500 euros.
Awards for outstanding research
The winners of these prestigious awards are Dr. med. Shen Zhong and Dr. rer. nat. Linda Steinacher. Dr. Zhong, who earned her doctorate at the Institute for Pharmaco- and Toxicogenomics Research at MHH, undertook extensive research into gender-specific differences in tumor development in non-small cell lung cancer in her dissertation. In her work, she identified 38 circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) that could act as potential biomarkers for lung cancer.
Dr. Linda Steinacher, on the other hand, focused her dissertation on research into metabolic, immunological side effects of modern immunotherapies. In collaboration with the MHH, the Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Roche AG, she developed innovative immune organoids that make it possible to realistically recreate the interactions between human organ cells and immune cells. Both works provide valuable approaches in personalized medicine.
Further awards and research results
Another significant contribution came from Dr. Ilona Rosenboom, who was also awarded a doctoral award from the Society of Friends of the MHH. Her dissertation on “Airway Microbial Metagenomics” examines the lung microbiome in healthy individuals and patients with chronic diseases. The metagenome pipeline she developed allows bacteria, viruses and fungi to be precisely analyzed directly from patient samples. Her research also focuses extensively on the respiratory microbiome of premature infants.
Rosenboom noted that harmful pathogens outcompete natural bacterial communities in patients with bronchiectasis and that a healthy lung microbiome may be critical to the prognosis of the disease. This research acquires particular importance for clinical practice and understanding of the microbial communities in the respiratory tract.
Overall, the most recent doctoral award ceremony at the MHH shows the impressive range of research initiatives and the associated successes of doctoral students in various areas of medicine and natural sciences. The university thus actively supports scientific progress and the development of new therapeutic approaches.