"There are no such things as applied sciences, only applications of science"
(Louis Pasteur)

Main Objective

Our research tries to bring knowledge from the lab to the computer and back. The focus lies on the generation and utilisation of nucleic acid data. This is applied to quit diverse fields such as

Bee Health in Apple Orchards

The health of pollinators is influenced by various factors. In particular, the intensification of agriculture, including the use of pesticides and the homogenization of landscapes, has a negative impact on the population development and health of pollinators. So far, the effects of agricultural intensification on pollinator health have been studied mainly for honeybees and bumblebees, while the health of wild solitary bees has received less attention. Our project aims to investigate the health status of Osmia spp. over three generations. In spring 2024, we placed nesting aids in and next to selected managed apple orchards in Saxony. In the coming years, we analyze the DNA of the collected pollen as well as the microbiome of the offspring of solitary bees. Based on the genetic information, we want to show how the diversity of the pollen diet influences the health status of the next generation of Osmia species.


DFG Research Project: Bee health in apple orchards

Pollen Analysis

Bees in agroecosystems are important pollinators for many crops. In cooperation with Prof. Dr. Catrin Westphal from the University of Göttingen we investigate the diversity of pollen sources and resulting effect on honey bee and bumble bee behaviour. Furthermore, we address biodiversity and bee health aspects with bee keepers in Saxony.


From pollen via DNA to biodiversity and bee ecology.

Breeding Varroa Resistent Bees

In the last century, the Varroa mite spread all over the world as a harmful parasite in bee hives. Since then, generations of beekeepers have been trying to enable their colonies to survive the winter. Despite considerable efforts, the successes have been mixed at best, and in some cases it is foreseeable that they will be endangered by the possible development of resistance. It is therefore urgently necessary to find new ways in the future.


With two partners we hope to develop helpful tools for bee keepers.

To facilitate the breeding of Varroa-resistence bees, we cooperate with Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Wiesmann from the Technical University Dresden and the Landesverband Sachsen Varroaresistenzzucht e.V. in Saxony.

Hereditary Diseases in Sheep-Poodle

The living sheep-poodle population in Germany once had a size of around 150 individuals. This increases the risk of inbreeding effects. Together with breeders, in particular Nina Borzner from Marburg and Mechthild Jennissen-Tibbe from Oberseifersdorf we try to identify potential hereditary diseases.


uering for genetic markers with genomic and genetic association studies.

Hydrogen Producing Purple Bacteria

Hydrogen is a powerful and carbon-free energy carrier. It can be produced from water or organic substrates by sunlight powered bacteria. On the basis of genetic strain variations and resulting transcriptome activities we analyse the hydrogen producing capabilities of purple and cyanobacteria. A thorough analysis of one particular purple bacterial strain was the main objective of the doctoral thesis of Nadine Wappler. Based on her thesis, successfully defended in January 2022, we are currently employing gene editing techniques in order to optimize hydrogen production efficiency.


Genetic analyses lead to candidate gene selection and phenotype analysis.

Past Projects

Bio-Composition of Aerosols

In-door farming results in concentrated aerosols and exhaust air. This may lead to high local concentrations of pathogenic microorganisms or spores. The goal was to develop novel techniques that help to identify these quickly. During his doctoral thesis, finished in January 2023, Robert Leidenfrost developed a proof-of-concept pipeline from sample taking to nanopore-based DNA-sequencing and quatitative dection of microorganisms. This work was carried out in cooperation with Prof. Dr. Michael Göttfert form Technical University of Dresden, PD Dr. Udo Jäckel from the German Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health in Berlin and Dr. Henriette Mietke from the State Agency for Environment and Agriculture in Nossen

Classification of Pathogenic Bacteria

Tularemia is a disease that is severe and can be transmitted between humans to animals. Together with PD Dr. Herbert Tomaso from the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institute in Jena we developed a fast, nucleic acid-based classification system for the disease causing sero-strains. This work was essentially carried out by Robert Leidenfrost and Eric Zuchantke.

Data Integration, Modelling and Visualisation

High-throughput technologies in the field of metabolite, protein and nucleic acid analytics leads to large inter-connected datasets. The goal was to develop a platform to integrate and visualise these data and facilitate modelling and simulations. This project was part of the EU-consortium CyanoFactory with Gabriel Kind being the local researcher.

Anaerobic Digestion

Methane is a well established energy carrier that can be generated from organic waste. The goal was to gain understanding of the dynamics of the transcriptome in anaerobic digesters. The obtained data shall facilitate modelling of the process, in particular with respect to changing substrates, in order to optimise methane production. This project was in the hands of Lucy Löser (formerly Stark) in my lab.

Group Members