Anthropology & Human Genomics / Human Biology

Evolution of Molecular Circuitries

• Why are we so similar and yet so different from chimpanzees?
• How can we use genetics to understand human brain evolution?
• How can we use evolutionary information to understand human genetics?

These questions are the framework for our research. We approach them using mouse models, iPS cells, cancer samples and genomic technologies, in particular RNA-Sequencing.

Epigenetics

Epigenetic mechanisms control cell-, tissue-, and development-specific gene expression. We study the basic epigenetic mechanisms involved in pluripotency, development and disease. We use a broad spectrum of methods centered around the application of advanced light microscopy to study protein dynamics, protein-protein interactions, and subcellular localization in live and fixed cells. In combination with genetic, biochemical, and biophysical approaches we aim to better understand the epigenetic pathways controlling embryonic development and the defects leading to cancer formation.