Our lab studies the function and evolution of genetic regulatory networks in microbes and mammals. We combined experimental, computational biology and theoretical approaches. A main research paradigm is experimental evolution with which we evolve microorganisms in the lab to tackle basic questions on mechanisms, economy and dynamics of evolutionary processes. We aim to distill the genetic determinants of evolvability – the capacity of organisms to evolve. We study how sequence elements, embedded with genes, determine the efficiency with which genes are expressed in cells. A major focus is on regulation of protein translation in which we study the design principles of translation efficiency. In particular, we investigate the tRNA and mRNA pools of organisms and investigate how the interplay between them determines the efficiency, productivity and fidelity of protein translation.
