Janina Sprenger

Dr. Janina Sprenger is a Research Fellow at the Center for Free-Electron Laser Science (CFEL), which operates as a joint venture between DESY, the Max Planck Society, and the University of Hamburg. Based at DESY in Hamburg, Germany, she works in Building 99, Room O3.053 as part of the Coherent Imaging Team, focusing on advanced X-ray crystallography techniques and structural biology research.

Her research spans multiple disciplines including structural biology, physics, and computational science, with particular expertise in X-ray free-electron laser (XFEL) applications, serial crystallography, and structural studies of viral proteins. Dr. Sprenger has made significant methodological contributions to convergent-beam X-ray crystallography, real-time data processing for crystallography experiments, and statistical approaches to understanding protein dynamics. Her work bridges fundamental physics with critical biological applications, particularly in the context of SARS-CoV-2 research and drug discovery.

Dr. Sprenger's publication record demonstrates both methodological innovation and biological insight, with recent work published in high-impact journals including Science, eLife, Structural Dynamics, and IUCrJ. Her research has evolved from fundamental protein structure studies toward increasingly sophisticated time-resolved and ultrafast imaging techniques that capture molecular dynamics at unprecedented temporal resolution.

She maintains extensive collaborations across multiple institutions including EMBL, European XFEL, and various German research centers, reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of modern structural biology research. Her work represents a critical intersection of advanced physical methods and pressing biological questions, particularly in understanding viral mechanisms and developing potential therapeutics.