Aarhus Universitets segl

Kjeldgaard Lectures: Ben Engel

Prof. Dr. Ben Engel, Head of Research Group Biozentrum, University of Basel, CH. Environmental structural biology: Exploring the molecular architecture of bioenergetic organelles.

Oplysninger om arrangementet

Tidspunkt

Onsdag 18. marts 2026,  kl. 13:15 - 15:00

Sted

1871-120 (Nucleus)

Wednesday 18 March 2026 @ 13:15 – 14:00
Followed by PhD-session at 14:30-15:00
(Coffee and cake will be served between lecture and PhD-session)
1871-120 (Nucleus)
Hosted by: Esben Lorentzen

Environmental structural biology: Exploring the molecular architecture of bioenergetic organelles

In this talk, I will show how our group uses cryo-electron tomography to explore bioenergetic organelles, which extract energy from the environment and thereby sustain life on our planet. We are investigating how these globally important organelles are built, repaired, and adapt to environmental stress. The talk will explore the molecular organization of crista membranes in mitochondria and thylakoid membranes in chloroplasts, the latter of which generates biological energy from just sunlight and water. We will also take a look pyrenoids, microcompartments in chloroplasts that enable Rubisco to efficiently fix atmospheric CO2. Finally, I will share our lab's preliminary work "taking cryo-ET into the field" to visualize environmental samples at molecular resolution.