About us
Basic research at the Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen addresses fundamental questions in microbial, algal, plant and animal biology, including the interaction between different organisms. The approaches we use range from biochemistry, cell and developmental biology to evolutionary and ecological genetics, functional genomics and bioinformatics. The institute currently has five active departments, each led by a Director: Protein Evolution (Andrei Lupas), Microbiome Research (Ruth Ley), Integrative Evolutionary Biology (Ralf Sommer), Algal Development and Evolution (Susana Coelho), and Molecular Biology (Detlef Weigel).
In addition, we host three independent research groups outside the departments, which extend and complement the departments’ scientific directions. Several core facilities provide advanced technical support, each being equipped with state-of-the-art instruments.
Affiliated with the Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen is the Friedrich Miescher Laboratory as an institution of the Max Planck Society, with four independent research groups.