​Small RNA expression in coral-dinoflagellate symbiosis; Genomics

Marine ecology has driven me already for several years and has led me via various stations to my Master studies at KAUST. My research here will focus on the function of small modulatory RNAs (e.g. microRNA) and their role in the interaction of the coral host and its symbiotic dinoflagellate. Both – the molecular mechanisms of the endosymbiosis and the general role of small RNAs in gene expression – are still poorly understood and together form a fascinating field of study. Beside the computational construction of smRNA Iibraries, I’ll try to experimentally verify functional smRNAs in the transcriptome and their target genes back in the ‘wet-lab’.

• ​B.Sc. University of Tübingen and Alfred-Wegener-Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany