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Alexander von Humboldt Professorship 2025

Sebastian Deindl

Sebastian Deindl is a biophysicist whose research results are of exceptional importance both to basic research and to medicine. By appointing him to a Humboldt Professorship, the University of Tübingen wants to continue driving its leading international position in structural biology.

  • Nominating University: University of Tübingen
Porträt von Sebastian Deindl
Saturn-ähnliches Dekortationsbild

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Structural biology

In the cells of our bodies there are thousands of so-called molecular machines that steer essential processes such as DNA replication. They are composed of proteins or protein complexes that are so tiny that they only measure a few nanometres. By definition, molecular machines are dynamic and constantly in motion – which is why classical means of observing their static architecture do not satisfactorily explain how they function.

This is the problem occupying Sebastian Deindl who is using an innovative concept in integrated structural biology in his research. Together with his group, he investigates how the structure of protein complexes changes dynamically when they are fulfilling their function. To this end, he employs a combination of single molecule fluorescence imaging, structural biology techniques, biochemistry and computer simulations. His goal is to manage to combine dynamic realtime information from the single molecule experiments with biochemical and structural data. He then wants to make films of molecular machines that will help us gain a comprehensive understanding of how they function. Of relevance in the field of medical research are Sebastian Deindl’s studies of nucleic acid interacting enzymes, for example, which in cases of abnormal functioning or dysregulation are often associated with the emergence of serious diseases like cancer.

At the University of Tübingen, Sebastian Deindl is invited to assume the Chair in Structural Biology at the Interfaculty Institute of Biochemistry (IFIB). By integrating dynamic studies, the university plans to propel the field into the international vanguard.

Brief bio

Sebastian Deindl studied at Tübingen and completed his doctorate at the University of California at Berkeley, United States, in 2009. He was subsequently a postdoc at Harvard University, United States. In 2014, he moved to Uppsala University, Sweden, where he was made a full professor of molecular biophysics in 2022. His research has earned him various international awards, including an ERC Starting Grant (2017) and the EMBO Young Investigator Award (2019). He also received an ERC Advanced Grant in 2022.

Sebastian Deindl has been selected for a Humboldt Professorship and is currently conducting appointment negotiations with the German university that nominated him for the award. If the negotiations end successfully, the award will be granted in 2025.