Daniel Petras receives Mattauch Herzog Award

Daniel Petras, CMFI Junior Research Group Leader, has received the Mattauch Herzog Award 2025 from the German Association for Mass Spectrometry (DGMS). Petras received the award for his work on developing functional metabolomics tools.

Metabolomics examines all small molecules (metabolites) in cells, tissues or an organism that are involved in metabolism. Functional metabolomics goes one step further: it analyzes how these metabolites interact with each other, control biological processes and change under different conditions.

“Since I was a student, I have deeply admired the pioneering work of the DGMS community, and, especially, the former Mattauch-Herzog Award awardees,” Petras said. “I am incredibly humbled to receive this honor and to be named alongside many of my heroes in the field. More importantly, this recognition reflects the hard work and dedication of my group and our collaboration partners, as we continue to develop new tools to explore how small molecules shape biological processes.”

In his Functional Metabolomics Lab, located at the University of Tübingen and the University of  California Riverside, Daniel Petras aims to understand and control microbial communities. The group combines a multidisciplinary approach at the interface of analytical chemistry, chemical biology, and microbial ecology. The lab's science mission is to develop and apply bioanalytical tools to determine the role of small molecules in complex ecosystems. The aim is to contribute to a better understanding and mitigation of global challenges such as declining planetary health, emerging infectious diseases, and antimicrobial resistance.

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About the Mattauch Herzog Award

The German Mass Spectrometry Society (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Massenspektrometrie, DGMS) presents the Mattauch-Herzog Award endowed by Thermo Fisher Scientific. Established in 1988 it is considered as one of the most prestigious scientific award in analytical sciences. Scientists in mass spectrometry are honoured by the award under the patronage of DGMS recognizing significant achievements made in the early stages of their career.

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