To cope with the increasing threat of infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance in particular, pharmaceutical research must take new ways by using the growing knowledge about the human microbiome as well as novel bioinformatic tools. Developing novel therapeutic modalities with the capacity to overcome the problems of existing antibiotics, such as e.g. resistance development, neglected microbial metabolism, or unintended microbiota alterations, requires close collaboration with clinical scientists. Especially the exploitation of microbiota holds untapped potential for prophylactic or therapeutic interventions against chronic inflammatory and infective diseases. To be prepared for such modern research and development of novel anti-infectives, a new generation of trained scientists with the capacity to work across established disciplines is required. Heart of the TALENTS project is a graduate school that brings together the fields of pharmaceutical research, chemistry, medicine, and bioinformatics in an interdisciplinary training network aiming to investigate and exploit human microbiota for finding new drugs to fight infectious diseases. The TALENTS Graduate School established at Saarland University creates an important bridge between the Faculty of Sciences and the Helmholtz-Institute of Pharmaceutical Research Saarland, located at the main campus Saarbrücken, with the Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Saarland located on the campus Homburg, respectively. To warrant transdisciplinary research training, indeed, each fellow is supervised by at least two PIs affiliated with complimentary faculties or institutes. The objectives were to recruit 15 international Ph.D. students for advanced research training on this topic, and thus to i) create new knowledge and tools leading up to the identification of promising new drug candidates for further pharmaceutical development and ii) excellent career opportunities for the fellows.
