Our research focuses on the ecology and evolution of host-parasites. Using insects as study systems, we are interested in the diverse selection pressures that act on and between closely associated organisms, particularly the interplay between hosts and pathogens in complex insect societies.
Current research topics include the evolution of virulence and emergence of infectious viruses in animals (with a focus on insects); the evolution and ecology of social immunity in termites; and the interaction between diet, microbiota and immunity in cockroaches.
We are part of the Freie Universität Berlin, and our labs are situated in the BAM (Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und prüfung).
We are members of the Centre of Infection Biology and Immunity (ZIBI) and the Biodiversity Institute – Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB). We collaborate with the Berlin Center for Genomics in Biodiversity Research (BeGenDiv) and the core facility for biomacromolecular analysis BioSupraMol.
orcid.org/0000-0003-1119-5299
McMahon Lab 