Our group works on mechanisms of intracellular signal transduction in fundamental biological processes, including cellular activation, differentiation and migration.  An emerging concept is the high systemic interdependence of cellular communication pathways. Our main interest therefore is the elucidation of circuits, which link immune control mechanisms to tissue renewal/maintenance and to metabolic stress regulation.

We are specifically interested in the elucidation of cytoplasmic enzymes and adapter proteins, which control motility and activation of mammalian immune cells. Furthermore, we have embarked on the elucidation of novel nucleic-acid/protein interactions, which act at the core of controlling   “stemness”/differentiation checkpoints in stem cells, in embryonic tissue and in tumor cells.

We use transgenic systems (e.g. conditional knock-out and the latest technologies of genome editing in mouse and zebrafish), in vitro techniques such as siRNA-mediated “knock-down”, as well as innovative and proprietary chemical inhibitors for our research. Furthermore, we particularly specialize in state of the art microscopical techniques with high resolution and high-speed image acquisition.

Our research is funded by several sources and we are members of SFB 704 „Molecular Mechanisms and Chemical Modulation of Local Immune Regulation“, of which Waldemar Kolanus is the spokesperson, of the Cluster of Excellence “ImmunoSensation” and of SFB 645, all funded by the DFG. The scientific endeavors of our lab, which is comprised of postdoctoral researchers, graduate  and undergraduate students, as well as technical staff, are furthermore embedded in a network of international and national collaborations. We also participate in the education of undergraduate students of Molecular Biomedicine, Biology, and Medicine at the University of Bonn.