August 2023 marks the end of our four-year journey within the HiPoAF project. Behind us are four years of collaboration, laughter, sweat, and hard work. Together we have ventured into the unknown, tackling various challenges surrounding the detection, maintenance, and semi-continuous cultivation of anaerobic fungi (i.e., fungi of the phylum Neocallimastigomycota).
The HiPoAF project sprouted two Ph.D. theses, seven Master theses, seven Bachelor theses, and eight student apprentice projects. As of September 2023, we have published 10 peer-reviewed papers in international journals and presented our research results through 11 talks and six posters at various international and national congresses.
We have further strengthened the team spirit with the HiPoAF team, and actively reached out and connected with researchers from Thailand, France, and the United States of America. We have volunteered in the international scientific community through the Anaerobic Fungi Network (AFN) and were heavily involved in the organization of the first International Anaerobic Fungi Congress (IAFC2022), the first anaerobic fungi-specific Webinar series (AFN webinars), the generation of a Real Science Gallery, and the organization of an anaerobic fungi specific session at the International Symposium on Anaerobic Microbiology (ISAM2023).
And most importantly, after four years of collaboration, we still are excited to work together on our next projects!