Dr. Jakob Schweizer

Max Planck Institute for Dynamics of Complex Technical Systems
Process Systems Engineering
+49 (0)391 6110 191
N 3.12

Main Focus

Tasks:

  • Since 2023: Research coordination at MPI Magdeburg
  • 2021 - 2023: Scientific Coordination of the Cluster of Excellence Initiative SmartProSys
  • 2014 - 2021: Scientific Coordination of the Max Planck Research Network MaxSynBio

Scientific Foci:

  • Synthetic Biology
  • Biophysics
  • Self-organizing systems and chemical waves
  • Fluorescence microscopy
  • Research coordination, knowledge and quality management, public relations
  • Art & Science
  • History & Philosophy of Science
  • Sustainability in research and science, see also Max Planck Sustainability Network

Selected publications:

Mathew Stracy, Jakob Schweizer, David J. Sherratt, Achillefs N. Kapanidis, Stephan Uphoff and Christian Lesterlin. Transient non-specific DNA binding dominates the target search of bacterial DNA-binding proteins, Molecular Cell, 2021

Philipp Glock, Beatrice Ramm, Tamara Heermann, Simon Kretschmer, Jakob Schweizer, Jonas Mücksch, Göberk Alagöz und Petra Schwille. Stationary patterns in a two-protein reaction-diffusion system, ACS Synthetic Biology, 2019, 8, 1, 148-157

Kai Sundmacher und Jakob Schweizer. Max-Planck-Forschungsnetzwerk für die Synthetische Biologie. BIOSpektrum, 2016, 22

Eugenia Schneider, Jakob Schweizer, & Michael Mangold (2016). Bringing the parts together: Steps towards an in-silicoprotocell. IFAC-PapersOnLine, 2016, (26), 20-25.

Katja Zieske, Jakob Schweizer and Petra Schwille. Surface topology assisted alignment of Min protein waves, FEBS Lett. 2014 Jun 14

Jakob C. Schweizer, Martin Loose, Mike Bonny, Karsten Kruse, Ingolf Mönch und Petra Schwille. Geometry sensing by self-organized protein patterns, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), 2012, 109, 15283-15288

Jakob C. Schweizer, Matthias Garten und Petra Schwille. Packaging in Synthetic Biology,
In: Bio and Nano Packaging Techniques for Electron Devices, Gerald Gerlach and Klaus-Jürgen Wolter (Editors), Springer, 2012

Jakob C. Schweizer and Petra Schwille. Synthetic Biology - A New Way to Access Biological Phenomena, Imaging & Microscopy, 2011 Sep.


Curriculum Vitae

Dr. Jakob Schweizer studied physics, philosophy of religion and epistemology at the Technical University of Dresden, Université Denis Diderot (Paris), Ecole normale supérieure (Paris) and at the University of Leipzig. He received his PhD in synthetic biology from Prof. Petra Schwille (TU Dresden). In 2013 and 2014, he conducted research at the interface between synthetic biology, microbiology and digital image processing as a collaborator of the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry in Martinsried in a collaborative project at Oxford University. In 2014, Jakob Schweizer moved from the lab to research management and coordinated the Max Planck Research Network for Synthetic Biology (MaxSynBio) until 2021. Since 2021, he has been responsible for coordinating the SmartProSys research initiative in the field of sustainable process engineering and circular economy in the chemical industry at the interface between natural sciences, engineering and social sciences. From 2021 to 2022 Jakob Schweizer was involved in the collaborative project "Research in Social Responsibility" of the Helmholtz Association, Leibniz Association, Fraunhofer Society and Max Planck Society (MPI for the History of Science, Berlin).  Since January 2023 Jakob Schweizer is the research coordinator of the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics of Complex Technical Systems in Magdeburg.

Jakob Schweizer is actively involved in science communication, and honest and transparent dialog with the public is important to him. Jakob Schweizer is a member of the steering committee of the German Association for Synthetic Biology and is active at the interface between science and society. For example, he moderates events on bioethics, biosafety and biosecurity in the field of synthetic biology, organizes innovative dialogue formats such as the Science Watch Parties on the Netflix series "Biohackers" and develops concepts for the exchange between science and art.

Since 2014, he has also been committed to a climate and environmentally friendly science enterprise. To this end, he initiated the Max Planck Sustainability Network in 2019, which now consists of sustainability groups at over 45 Max Planck Institutes. Jakob Schweizer is an active member of the Scientists For Future movement; in 2019, he founded the regional group in Magdeburg, is involved in the movement's digital collaboration, and is a member of the board of the Scientists For Future funding association.

Since 2023 Research Coordinator of the MPI-DCTS
Since 2021 Science management at MPI-DCTS for the research initiative SmartProSys;
Cooperation partner in the collaborative research project "Research in Social Responsibility"
2014 - 2021 Science management at MPI-DCTS for the research network MaxSynBio
2013 - 2014 Visiting researcher in the lab of Prof. David Sherratt at the Oxford University, United Kingdom
Research topic: High-throughput methods for the analysis of Min protein oscillations in E. coli cells
2013 PhD graduation at the Biotec /TU Dresden, Germany
Title: Min-Protein Waves on Geometrically Structured Artificial Membranes
(Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Petra Schwille)
2012 - 2014 Research Assistant at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry in Martinsried (Munich), Germany
2007 - 2009 Scholarship holder of the DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, German Research Foundation) and member of the Graduate School Nano- and Biotechnologies for Packaging of Electronic Systems; research coordination and quality management
2005 - 2012 Research assistant at the Biotec /TU Dresden
Research and education in the field of fluorescence microscopy and biophysics; knowledge management and public relations
2005 Diploma (Master) thesis at the Biotec /TU Dresden
Title: Single-Molecule Anisotropy Measurements in Lipid Bilayers
(Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Petra Schwille)
2000 - 2001 Studies at the Université Denis Diderot (Paris 7, France)
Specialisation in biophysics and epistemology
1997 - 2005 Studies of physics and philosophy of religion at the Technischen Universität Dresden
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