Wolf-Dietrich Hardt and Martin Pilhofer elected EMBO member
EMBO is an organization of leading researchers that promotes excellence in the life sciences in Europe and beyond. Today it announced the election of 60 researchers as EMBO members, two of them are group leaders in the Department of Biology at ETH Zurich. Through this lifelong honour, new EMBO Members are recognized for their outstanding achievements in the life sciences.
The Hardt lab studies molecular, cellular and evolutionary concepts of bacterial infections. Salmonella Typhimurium, a common cause of food-borne diarrhea, serves as the primary model. The disease results from complex and dynamic interactions between the pathogen's virulence factors and metabolism with the normal microbiota inhabiting the gut, the host's gut epithelium and its immune system. The group integrates expertise from biochemistry, microbiology, genetics, cell biology, biomedical imaging, systems biology, mathematical modelling, immunology and evolutionary biology to decipher the basic principles explaining the pathogen's biology, the host's mucosal immune response, and the function of the microbiota during discrete stages of disease.
Link to the website of the Hardt lab.
Microbes interact with other cells in most ecological settings. The Pilhofer lab studies macromolecular machines mediating cell-cell interactions, with a focus on mechanism, structure and evolution. The group integrates information from the molecular to the cellular and intercellular scale, by combining cryo-electron tomography with other imaging methods and functional assays. The lab's main topics are 'Contractile Injection Systems' and 'Asgard archaea'.
Link to the website of the Pilhofer lab.
About EMBO
EMBO is an organization of more than 2,100 leading researchers that promotes excellence in the life sciences in Europe and beyond. The goals of the organization are to support talented researchers at all stages of their careers, stimulate the exchange of scientific information, and help build a research environment where scientists can achieve their best work.
EMBO helps young scientists to advance their research, promote their international visibility and ensure their mobility. Courses, workshops, conferences, and scientific journals disseminate the latest research and offer training in techniques to maintain high standards of excellence in research practice. EMBO helps to shape science and research policy by seeking input and feedback from our community and by following closely the trends in science in Europe.
For more information: external page www.embo.org