I will probably be hiring either a PhD or a Postdoc in the near future. If you are interested in deep biochemical history or molecular mechanisms of evolution please get in touch.

A new preprint from the lab. I won't do a tweetorial until this is peer reviewed, but I think it's a banger, led by @JedNzy. It's about Rubisco and what chaperones are really for. He's on the market, get him while you can. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Origin of chaperone dependence and assembly complexity in Rubisco biogenesis

Molecular chaperones assist with the folding and assembly of protein clients. Consequently, they are essential to diverse cellular functions. In most aerobic photosynthetic organisms such as B-cyanoba...

biorxiv.org

The Beeby lab's magnum opus on the Campylobacter flagellum is out. This is a uniquely powerful flagellum and how it evolved out of simpler precursors will keep us busy for a while still. Check it out! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

In situ structure of a bacterial flagellar motor at subnanometre resolution reveals adaptations for increased torque - Nature Microbiology

In situ cryoEM and modelling of the Campylobacter jejuni flagellar motor characterize the periplasmic scaffold and the structural basis for increased torque generation.

nature.com

Franziska did a spectacularly successful PhD in my group and to a large extend set up the lab when we first started. I'm extremely happy for her (though not the least bit surprised) that she won these very important awards for her PhD. Watch this one, great things are certain to come.

Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology@mpimicrobiomarburg.bsky.social · last yr.

📢 Congratulations 𝗗𝗿. 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘇𝗶𝘀𝗸𝗮 𝗦𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗸𝗲𝗿 for receiving the Otto Hahn Medal and Otto Hahn Award from @maxplanck.de ! 🎉 The honors recognize her exceptional work @georghochberg.bsky.social. 🌟 Exciting times ahead! #MaxPlanck #ResearchExcellence www.mpi-marburg.mpg.de/1511259/2025...

New paper from the lab from Sriram Garg in my group. We introduce a general substitution matrix for structural phylogenetics. I think this is a big deal, so read on below if you think deep history is important. academic.oup.com/mbe/advance-...

A general substitution matrix for structural phylogenetics.

Abstract. Sequence-based maximum likelihood (ML) phylogenetics is a widely used method for inferring evolutionary relationships, which has illuminated the

academic.oup.com

An enormous amount of work went into this from so many people: our leadership at the MPI and the university, the scientific team, the administrative support and of course all the scientists that did the science that laid the foundation for all this. What a rush to be part of this!

Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology@mpimicrobiomarburg.bsky.social · last yr.

📢 We are proud and delighted that our Microbes for Climate (M4C) Cluster of Excellence has been selected for the 2025 Excellence Strategy! 🌟Together with @unimarburg.bsky.social, we look forward to exciting #microbe research – stay tuned! @unimarburg.bsky.social @maxplanck.de‬ @synmikro.bsky.social

Dennis from the group contributed to this paper, showing that an assembly chaperone of PSII has identifiable precursors in non-photosynthetic organisms.

SSchuller Jan@schullerjm.bsky.social · last yr.

Happy to present the lab latest work, today from the green-side. The ultimate PSII assembly intermediate that directly precedes incorporation of the Mn4O5Ca cluster and formation of the OEC. Psb32 binds to PsbV, challenging the assumption the extrinsic subunits all associate spontaneously in-vivo.

This is a wild paper. The anaerobic biochemistry is definitely worth your while (and beyond me to explain), but let me try to explain why this is also an evolutionary bombshell. This is about how nitrogen fixation evolved as we know it.

Fidel Ramírez-Amador@fidelormz.bsky.social · last yr.

I'm truly excited to announce our new publication in @nature.com unraveling a central picture of the Methyl-coenzyme M reductase (MCR) activation machinery and it's strong ATP dependency - kudos to @rnfr2d2.bsky.social for the fantastic illustration! LINK: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Now also on here to very occasionally post protein evolution stuff.