member of EAM

I studied Biochemistry at the Technical University of Hannover, Germany. I subsequently performed my PhD thesis at the Hannover Medical School on ‘ Genome analysis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa’ (1989-1993). After a first post-doc at the Hannover Medical School (1993-1995), I went for a second post-doctoral position to the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden (1995-1998). I subsequently held a junior research group leader position at the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research (1998-2001), until I returned to the KI in 2002 as an associate professor. Since 2012, I am full professor of Microbial Physiology. My  long-standing research interest is the molecular and epidemiological analysis of biofilm formation in microorganisms, including its impact on host interaction, with a certain focus on regulation by cyclic dinucleotide second messenger signaling and implication of extracellular matrix production. Another major long-standing research interest concerns the survival and persistence mechanisms of clone C of Pseudomonas aeruginosa world-wide predominant in patients and aquatic habitats.  Among major achievements I rate the (re)discovery of cyclic di-GMP and its identification as a second messenger involved in the sessility/motility single cell life style transition, first systematic genetic characterisation of Gram-negative biofilm formation in Salmonella typhimurium including identification of the exopolysaccharide cellulose as a major extracellular matrix component and discovery of Pseudomonas aeruginosa clone C world-wide prevalent in patients and the aquatic habitat.