Projects

Click on the link to learn more about the projects. The classifications of the projects (Forschungsmodul, summerschool, BSc-thesis and MSc-thesis) are suggestive. If a project interests you for a Forschungsmodul but has a MSc-thesis classification, you are still strongly encouraged to contact the relevant supervisor to discuss the project.

Open Projects



  • Role of phase separation in the activity of de novo proteins


    • Using AlphaFold2 to identify promising de novo protein candidates


      • Ongoing Projects



      • Chemosensory genes and mate perception in the viviparous cockroach /Diploptera punctata/
        • Supervisor: Bertrand Fouks
        • Project type: FoM / BSc


      • Genome annotation of slave-maker ants and their hosts for comparative analyses
        • Supervisor: Alice Séguret
        • Project type: MSc thesis


      • Are de novo genes real? Characterization of possible de novo genes from Homo sapiens (lab-based)
        • Supervisor: Andreas Lange
        • Project type: FM/BSc/MSc-thesis (students welcome)


      • Improving RADIANT
        • Supervisor: Carsten Kemena
        • Project type: BSc/Msc-thesis


      • Implementing porthoDom
        • Supervisor: Carsten Kemena
        • Project type: BSc


      • The role of alternative splicing in the evolution of eusociality in Blattodea
        • Supervisor: Mark Harrison
        • Project type: FM/BSc/MSc-thesis


      Previous Projects



        • Development of a high-throughput assay to identify possible foldable de novo proteins
          • Supervisor: Margaux Aubel & Lars Eicholt
          • Project type: BA/FM


          • Chaperones - The holy grail for soluble expression of de novo proteins from D. melanogaster in E.coli? (lab-based)
            • Supervisor: Andreas Lange
            • Project type: FM/BSc/MSc-thesis (students welcome)


          • Adaptive Laboratory Evolution: Mapping Epistatic Mutations Within Ancestral Sulfatases
            • Supervisor: Berndjan Eenink
            • Project type: FoM/BSc-thesis


          • Adaptive Laboratory Evolution: Disentangling and Combining Mutations to Reveal Epistatic Effects
            • Supervisor: Bert van Loo
            • Project type: FoM/BSc/MSc-thesis


          • Identifying the transcriptional regulators of two insulin peptides, important in the development of termite queens.
            • Supervisor: Mark Harrison/Alice Séguret
            • Project type: FM/BSc/MSc-thesis


          • Does methylation target transposable elements in the termite Macrotermes natalensis?
            • Supervisor: Alice Séguret/Mark Harrison
            • Project type: FM


          • The evolution of gene network properties during slavemaker evolution
            • Supervisor: Alice Séguret
            • Project type: FM


          • The potential role of repeats in the evolution of slave-making
            • Supervisor: Alice Séguret
            • Project type: FM


          • Immunity gene family evolution in the European Beewolf
            • Supervisor: Evelien Jongepier
            • Project type: MSc project


          • Historical Enzyme Evolution: Emergence of Sulfatases in the Metallo-β-Lactamase Superfamily
            • Supervisor: Bert van Loo
            • Project type: FoM/BSc/MSc-thesis


          • Reading frame extension as potential domain emergence mechanism
            • Supervisors: Andreas Lange/Brennen Haemes
            • Project type: MSc-thesis


          • Evolution of RNA structure.
            • Supervisor: Jasmin Kurafeiski
            • Project type: FM/BSc/MSc


          • Effects of Epistasis on Transcription Factor Binding
            • Supervisor: Jasmin Kurafeiski
            • Project type: Summer School Project


          • Comparative analysis of chemoreceptors in cockroaches
            • Supervisor: Mark Harrison
            • Project type: MSc-thesis


          • Inference of C- and N-terminus protein extensions
            • Supervisor: April Kleppe
            • Project type: BSc-thesis


          • Evolution-Inspired Protein Engineering and Design: Learning from the Evolutionary History of Haloalcohol Dehalogenases?Comparative analysis of chemoreceptors in cockroaches
            • Supervisor: Bert van Loo
            • Project type: BSc-thesis


          • Evolution-Inspired Protein Engineering and Design: the Effect of Selection Pressure on Secondary Activities
            • Supervisor: Bert van Loo
            • Project type: FoM/BSc/MSc-thesis


          • Investigating proto-genic ORFs
            • Supervisor: Brennen Heames
            • Project type: Forschungsmodul


          • Creating a Benchmark for RADS
            • Supervisor: Carsten Kemena
            • Project type: BSc-thesis


          • Fast domain annotation
            • Supervisor: Carsten Kemena
            • Project type: Forschungsmodul


          • New Proteins out of Thin Air?
            • Supervisor: Jonathan Schmitz
            • Project type: BSc-thesis


          • Evolutionary rate of novel genes
            • Supervisor: Jonathan Schmitz
            • Project type: Forschungsmodul


          • Evolution-Inspired Protein Engineering and Design: Learning from the Evolutionary History of Haloalkane Dehalogenases?
            • Supervisor: Bert van Loo
            • Project type: BSc-thesis


          • Identifying regulatory elements associated with de novo genes
            • Supervisor: Brennen Heames
            • Project type: Summer School Project


          • Genomic adaptations in the Wolbachia endosymbiont of the European beewolf
            • Supervisor: Evelien Jongepier
            • Project type: Forschungsmodule


          • The genomics of enemy recognition in the slaves of slavemaker ants
            • Supervisor: Evelien Jongepier
            • Project type: MSc


          • Domain-Exon Overlap
            • Supervisor: Carsten Kemena
            • Project type: Forschungsmodule


          • Partial Domain inclusion into Dogma
            • Supervisor: Carsten Kemena
            • Project type: Forschungsmodule


          • Are de novo genes real? Characterization of possible de novo drosophila genes (lab-based)
            • Supervisor: Andreas Lange
            • Project type: FM/BSc/MSc-thesis


          • Finding de novo genes in human populations
            • Supervisor: Daniel Dowling
            • Project type: Forschungsmodule


          • Testing the evolutionary theory of ageing on eusocial insects
            • Supervisor: Mark Harrison
            • Project type: FM/MSc-thesis


          • Atlas - a de novo gene important for spermatogenesis in male Drosophila melanogaster? (lab-based)
            • Supervisor: Andreas Lange
            • Project type: FM/BSc