Mirko Himmel

Dr. Mirko Himmel is a Research Group Leader and Habilitation Candidate at the Institute of Plant Sciences and Microbiology, University of Hamburg, within the Department of Biology under the Faculty of Mathematics, Computer Science and Natural Sciences. His work spans two primary domains: molecular microbiology and scientific-technical peace research.

• Research Focus: Functional characterization of CRISPR/Cas systems in Burkholderia species, molecular infection/defense mechanisms, and development of biosecurity tools for pathogen surveillance.
• Peace Research: Creation of technical confidence-building measures for biological/chemical arms control, with expertise in treaty verification and dual-use technology governance.

Recent Publications highlight his interdisciplinary impact, including frameworks for dengue outbreak risk assessment (2025), SARS-CoV-2 origin investigations (2021), and analyses of arms control treaties (2020–2017). His teaching portfolio includes courses on microbiology, molecular infection mechanisms, and bioethics.

Notable Contributions:

• 2017–present: BMBF Junior Research Group (BIGAUGE) leader at the Center for Scientific-Technical Peace Research.
• 2014–2017: Scientific staff member at the Biological Weapons and Arms Control Research Group.
• 2016: Developed biosecurity education frameworks for life sciences communities.