BIO Juergen Knoblich

Juergen Knoblich

Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IMBA), Vienna AT  |  CV

Jürgen Knoblich is deputy scientific director of the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA) in Vienna.The Knoblich lab, at IMBA, uses Drosophila and mouse genetics, as well as 3D culture models derived from human ES or iPS cells to identify the molecular mechanisms that control asymmetric cell division and allow cells to create daughter cells of such dramatically different properties. To transfer their knowledge from animal models to the developing human brain and to link it to human neurological disorders, they have developed a 3D culture method to model the early steps of human brain development starting from either hES or iPS cells. Recent highlights include the generation of cerebral organoids that model human brain development and microcephaly, a role for the SWI/SNF complex in preventing lineage reversion and inducing temporal patterning in neural stem cells and insights into the mechanisms that control spindle orientation to maintain symmetric divisions in the developing cortex.

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