Members' Directory

Biography: I completed a degree in Natural Sciences at Cambridge University, UK before coming to Heidelberg as an exchange student with the Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes. While in Heidelberg, I undertook student research projects at the German Cancer Research Centre and EMBL.
On returning to the UK, I completed a doctorate in Drosophila development at Oxford University. I then decided to broaden my science communications skills, and currently write and edit articles for New Scientist magazine.

Biography: 1997-2004: MPI for Biophysical Chemistry, Goettingen, Research Technician in the department of Prof. Peter Gruss (model organism: mouse)

2004-2005: EMBL, Heidelberg, Research Technician in the lab of Senior Scientist Stephen M. Cohen (model organism: drosophila melanogaster)

2005-2008: VCCRI, Sydney, Research Technician in the lab of A/Professor Peter Currie (model organism: zebrafish)

since 2008: Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute, Senior Research Assistant, Prof. Peter Currie's lab

Biography: studies at the Ruprecht Karls University in Heidelberg (10/1995 - 01/2000)
Diploma Thesis with Dirk Bohmann at EMBL Heidelberg and University of Rochester, USA (02/2000 - 06/2001): AP1 interacting proteins in Drosophila
PhD thesis with Stephen Cohen at EMBL Heidelberg (08/2001 - 07/2004): the role of the bantam microRNA during Drosophila development and identification of microRNA targets
bridging postdoc with Stephen Cohen at EMBL Heidelberg (03/2005 - 01/2006): microRNA targets in Drosophila
postdoctoral studies with Gregory Hannon at Cold Spring HArbor Laboratories 03/2006 - 12/2008: The piRNA pathway and its role in silencing selfish genetic elements in the Drosophila germline
since 01/2009: groupleader at the IMBA in Vienna Austria

Biography: Date of birth: 7, Jan, 1977
Before EMBL: 1995-1998 University College London-Developmental Signalling Lab/ Dr. Caroline Hill

Biography: I was born in the south of Spain (Jerez de la Frontera), and soon in my early days I got interested in chemistry (which at that time took the name of pyrotechnia). After a few years at the University of Cadiz studying chemistry, I went to Madrid to follow up my studies in Molecular Biology in the University Autonoma. During those years I had the luck of meeting one of the best Fly Geneticist, Gines Morata. I spent a wonderful year in his laboratory before going to the EMBL. At the EMBL, I certainly had the best and the worst times of my live. A wonderful lab and an amazing PI, Steve Cohen, made the perfect mentoring situation where I studied drosophila wing development and morphogens. The best came from the unlimited science and being able to control the development of a living organism using genetics. The worst came from the frustration that is present in any good, fulfilling project, and the beats that you take (they say), make you stronger. All this happened at the EMBL, which is arguably the best place to make science, with an interactive atmosphere, where I got, not only exposure to terrific science, but some of my best friends (including my wife). After four unforgettable years, infinite walks in the Haupstrasse, Sundays waterskiing, and trips to Strasbourg, I moved to New York City, to the lab of Alex Schier. With Alex and his lab, I got exposed to a scientific kaleidoscope, a great leader, a better manager and an incredible scientist. We had a perfect synergism and science could not be more fun. After three and a half years studying Zebrafish development and these new mighty microRNAs, I had the luck to start my laboratory at Yale University a great institution with incredible resources and “interesting“ bureaucracy. In my group we are now undertaking the study of zebrafish development, and how small non-coding RNAs coordinate gene expression to shape vertebrate development.

Biography: I studied biochemistry in the University of Turku and did my PhD research in the laboratory of Lea Sistonen in Turku Centre for Biotechnology (PhD in 2004). My PhD project focused on phosphorylation- and sumoylation-mediated regulation of the heat shock response in mammalian cells. In 2005 I joined the laboratory of Steve Cohen in EMBL Heidelberg, where I studied insulin/TOR signaling in tissue growth control, using Drosophila as the main research model. During my post-doctoral training in 2007 I moved to Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory in Singapore along with the Cohen lab.

Biography: 2001 - present Intellectual Property Manager, EMBL Enterprise Management, Heidelberg, Germany (Intellectual Property, Patents, Copyrights, Trademarks, Agreements, Grants, Contracts)
1998 - 2001 Postdoctoral Work at European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Heidelberg, Germany (Developmental Biology, Cohen group, Drosophila leg development)
1995-1998 PhD Thesis Max-Planck-Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany (Developmental Biology, Jäckle Dept., Hoch group, Drosophila Malpighian tubule development)
1994 Diploma in Biology Philipps University Marburg, Germany (Developmental Biology, Jäckle Dept., Hoch group, Drosophila Malpighian tubule development)
1989 ? 1994 Biology Studies Philipps University Marburg, Germany (Genetics, Microbiology, Immunology, Biochemistry)

Fellowships:
1999 ? 2001 EMBO Long Term Fellowship
1999 Postdoctoral Fellowship Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
1995 ? 1998 Boehringer Ingelheim Fellowship

Publications:
Kerber B., Monge I., Mueller M., Mitchell P.J. and Cohen S.M. The AP-2 transcription factor is required for joint formation and cell survival in Drosophila leg development.Development. 2001 Apr;128(8):1231-8.

Carrera P.*, Abrell S.*, Kerber B.*, Walldorf U., Preiss A., Hoch M. and Jäckle H. A modifier screen in the eye reveals control genes for Kruppel activity in the Drosophila embryo. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1998 Sep 1;95(18):10779-84. *equal contribution

Kerber B., Fellert S. and Hoch M. Seven-up, the Drosophila homolog of the COUP-TF orphan receptors, controls cell proliferation in the insect kidney. Genes Dev. 1998 Jun 15;12(12):1781-6.

Kerber B., Fellert S., Taubert H. and Hoch M. Germ line and embryonic expression of Fex, a member of the Drosophila F-element retrotransposon family, is mediated by an internal cis-regulatory control region. Mol Cell Biol. 1996 Jun;16(6):2998-3007

Biography: Name Marco Milán

Born Madrid (Spain), 29-7-1968

Education

B.Sc. Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain (1991)

D.Phil Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain (1995)

Post-doctoral fellow Centro de Biología Molecular, Spain (1996-97)

Post-doctoral fellow European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Germany (1997-2000)

Professional experience

2000-2003 Staff scientist
European Molecular Biology Laboratory Heidelberg (Germany)

2003- Group leader
ICREA and Parc Cientific de Barcelona
Barcelona (Spain)