Welcome to Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics

We belong to the Faculty of Life Sciences of the University of Vienna and are part of the Vienna Ecology Centre. Since April 1, 2013 we are the Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics Division of the Department of Ecogenomics and Systems Biology. 

 

 

Archaea arose together with Bacteria as the first organisms on this planet about 3.5 billion years ago. They form a separate domain of life beside Bacteria and Eukaryotes and inhabit virtually all environments on Earth, including the most extreme environments that can sustain life.
Our division studies the Biology of Archaea as well as bacterial symbioses with a focus on ecological, physiological and evolutionary aspects to shed light on the diversity and fundamental distinctions between these two prokaryotic groups.

In particular we are interested in:

- The ecological distribution of archaea from terrestrial, aquatic and hot environments

- The phylogeny of archaea

- The metabolism and genomes of ammonia oxidizing thaumarchaeota

- virus-defense (CRISPR-) systems of hyperthermophilic archaea

- physiology and biotechnological application of methanogenic archaea

- bacterium-nematode symbioses

We thus attempt to improve the understanding of the role of microorganisms, in particular of archaea, in global biogeochemical cycles and in early evolution.

 

12.08.2018
 

ISME funding made available to assist young scientists in attending ISME17.

 

07.08.2018
 

A movie based on a true story by Andrea Söllinger

22.06.2018
 

"Chromosome segregation in non-model bacteria - daring a leap in to the cellular anatomy of animal symbionts"

05.06.2018
 

On May 14th 2018, the European Molecular Biology Laboratory elected Christa Schleper as a new member.

04.06.2018
 

Congratulations, Simon!

30.05.2018
 

We cordially invite you to Vienna to the 6th edition of the international conference “Molecular Biology of the Archaea: from mechanisms to ecology”. ...

Guest Lectures

17.01.2017
 

"Squeezing Responsibility into Rhythms of Academic Life"

 

We, 17 January 2017, 12:30 p.m. Lecture Hall II, UZA 1

24.06.2016
 

Prof. Lisa Stein of University of Alberta, Canada, will give an open guest lecture: "NO way to Nitrous Oxide Production by Ammonia-Oxidizers".

24.06.2016
 

Prof. Jan Willem Erisman, Professor of Integrated Nitrogen Studies, VU University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, CEO of Louis Bolk Institute, will...