The 22(nd) edition of the biennial International Symposium on Medicinal Chemistry (ISMC), sponsored by the European Federation of Medicinal Chemistry (EFMC), was held this year in Berlin. It was jointly organized by the Division of Medicinal Chemistry of the German Chemical Society (GDCh) and the Section of Pharmaceutical/Medicinal Chemistry of the German Pharmaceutical Society (DPhG). The symposium attracted a large international attendance of medicinal and synthetic chemists, as well as experts on drug R&D. This report summarizes some of the progress in the search for cures for malaria and tuberculosis infections.