This SBMI Symposium is sponsored by the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology – Hans-Knöll Institute (HKI); as well as the Cluster of Excellence Balance of the Microverse with the Jena School for Microbial Communication (JSMC) and the Collaborative Research Centers “FungiNet” and “PolyTarget” that are funded by the German Research Funding Organisation DFG.