About us

Research Groups at the Sars Centre

Studies of the basic biological processes in marine organisms

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by Joan Soto Angel

Updated: 17.02.2020 (First published: 02.02.2018)

Chourrout Group

With the new model system Oikopleura, we try to understand how simple animals evolved from more complex ancestors.

Rentzsch Group

The group is using the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis as a model organism for studying the development and regeneration of the nervous system.

Hausen Group

To better understand animal evolution we compare development, molecular and structural features of cell types and organ systems in several invertebrates.

Nematostella vectensis (Cnidaria, Anthozoa)

Steinmetz Group

We study the balance between nutrition, growth and reproduction in the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis to understand its emergence during animal evolution.

Chatzigeorgiou Group

Our group is studying the evolution and function of the nervous system in urochordates, using modern neurobiological and genetic Toolkits.

Burkhardt Group

Our group studies the evolutionary history of synaptic signalling machineries to better understand the first appearance(s) of synapses and neurons.

Lynagh Group

Our group studies the biophysical function and evolution of neurotransmitter receptors, using molecular phylogenetics, chemical biology, and electrophysiology.

Glover Associate Group

We study neural development and function in the urochordate Oikopleura, from gene expression to behavior, using molecular and functional imaging approaches.

Valen Associate Group

We study the regulation of translation during development and the mystery of pervasive translation across UTRs and non-coding RNA.

Our Animal Facilities

Using molecular techniques, the Sars Centre aims to use marine animals as model systems to study development, most often in an evolutionary context.

Former Groups of Sars Centre

All Publications

Original Results with Sars Centre Address