Discovering prehistoric microbes and their natural products
In our laboratory, we examine archaeological samples, for example dental calculus, from which we want to extract natural substances that could be used as antibiotics. Due to their exceptional state of preservation, such samples provide access to genetic material of microorganisms that lived many centuries or even millennia ago!
Using state-of-the-art extraction and sequencing methods, bioinformatic analysis now makes it possible to investigate the evolution and characteristics of these organisms. Using so-called "genome mining", we can search for genes in their DNA information that are responsible for the production of bioactive molecules. Such genes can be genetically engineered into modern microorganisms to discover new and interesting natural products. These natural products help us to learn more about the evolution of bacteria and to find new antibiotics.
We open the doors of our laboratory to you and invite you to see how we unlock the secrets of ancient microorganisms.
