Research group Group Jonas

Research in our lab is focused on the mechanisms that allow bacteria to control their own growth and reproduction. In particular, we try to understand how bacteria can dynamically adjust their growth rate and mode of proliferation in response to fluctuating environmental conditions, for example changes in nutrient availability or at the onset of environmental stress. As our primary model organism we use the fresh water bacterium Caulobacter crescentus, which divides asymmetrically and has well-defined cell cycle phases. In addition, we do some of our work in Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa to investigate how precise regulation of cell cycle progression and stress adaptation contributes to bacterial persistence and pathogenesis.