Kiel Lights Up Purple: A Statement for 600,000 People Living with Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Purple facades, illuminated window animations, and a new music video: PMI and IKMB drew attention to life with inflammatory bowel disease on yesterday's World IBD
- Press Release of the Cluster of Excellence PMI -
Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) such as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis cause persistently recurring diarrhoea, fever, and pain, as well as severe psychological burden. In Germany, around 600,000 people are affected by IBD — a number that continues to rise. World IBD Day on 19 May aims to raise awareness annually for these diseases and the associated need for research.
Purple Kiel: Light Installation and Projection Art
Around the world, buildings and landmarks were illuminated in purple on World IBD Day. In Kiel, the Uni-Hochhaus (university high-rise) and the Welcome Center shone in the characteristic colour. At the Uni-Hochhaus, the student project Lighthouse added a special touch: targeted LED lighting of individual windows created pixelated animations on the building's facade — an unusual canvas right in the heart of the city. Visible were messages and images relating to life with IBD: for example, the inscription "IBD has no borders", an intestine with illuminated sites of inflammation, or the IBD ribbon in purple — the international symbol of the disease.
New Music Video "Men in Plum"
Accompanying the campaign, researchers from the Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology (IKMB) at CAU and the University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH) released the music video "Men in Plum". The video reflects the invisible burden that many patients carry, and the dedication of researchers striving for a better understanding of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. It was created by Dr Michel V. Hadjihannas, a scientist at IKMB, who developed the song concept and lyrics together with Professor Andre Franke.
Decades of Research in Kiel
At CAU and UKSH, researchers have been intensively studying inflammatory bowel diseases for decades — within the framework of the Excellence Cluster PMI and further projects such as the EU project "miGut-Health" and the DFG Research Unit "miTarget". Despite significant advances in understanding disease mechanisms and developing new therapeutic approaches, the need for further research remains high.
People with inflammatory bowel diseases will find a certified Centre of Excellence for Inflammation Medicine (Comprehensive Center for Inflammation Medicine, CCIM) at both UKSH sites — in Kiel and Lübeck — offering interdisciplinary and precision medicine-oriented treatment. Through participation in clinical trials, patients there can directly benefit from the latest research findings. With these two sites, a unique foundation for advancing inflammation medicine is taking shape in Schleswig-Holstein.
On 19 May, the world's attention turns to the people who live daily with Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis — with the shared goal of making their situation more visible and driving research forward.
Further information
Music video „Men in Plum": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYG45i-QGQc
EU-project miGut-Health: https://migut-health.eu/
miTarget: https://www.mitarget.org/
World IBD Day: https://worldibdday.org/
CCIM at UKSH: https://www.precisionmedicine.de/de/klinische-forschung/ccim
IKMB: https://www.ikmb.uni-kiel.de
Scientific contact
Prof. Andre Franke
Institut für klinische Molekularbiologie, UKSH und CAU
Medizinische Fakultät, CAU
Tel.: +49 431 500-15110
Mail: a.franke@mucosa.de
About the Cluster of Excellence PMI
The Cluster of Excellence “Precision Medicine in Chronic Inflammation” (PMI) is entering its second funding phase (2026–2032) in 2026, receiving its fourth consecutive grant for inflammation research. The Joint Science Conference (GWK) of the federal and state governments, together with the German Research Foundation (DFG), has approved the funding as part of the Excellence Strategy.
The cluster builds on its successful predecessor, “Inflammation at Interfaces” (2007–2018), and the first PMI funding period (2019–2025). Around 400 scientists from eight supporting institutions are involved in the interdisciplinary network: Christian Albrecht University of Kiel, the University of Lübeck, the University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein, the Research Center Borstel – Leibniz Lung Center, the Muthesius Academy of Fine Arts and Design, Kiel Institute for the World Economy, the Leibniz Institute for Science and Mathematics Education, and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology.
Press contact:
Cluster of Exzellence PMI
Scientific Office
Christian-Albrechts-Platz 4
D-24118 Kiel
Sonja Petermann
+49 431 880-4850
spetermann@uv.uni-kiel.de
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