Research Areas

The fusion of synaptic vesicles with the pre-synaptic plasma membrane (neuronal exocytosis) is a key process for neurotransmitter release at the neuronal synapse.  The research group of Dr. Nils-Alexander Lakomek develops and implements advanced solution and proton-detected solid-state NMR methods to study the three-dimensional structure and dynamics of membrane proteins and intrinsically disordered proteins involved in neuronal exocytosis. Proteins are embedded in a lipid bilayer environment and studied at physiological temperatures.

Academic Career

Dr. Nils-Alexander Lakomek studied Physics at the University of Göttingen (1999-2004) and did his doctoral studies at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen (research group Prof. Christian Griesinger, 2004-2008). After different research stays at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the United States (research group Dr. Ad Bax, 2009-2012), the Department of Neurobiology at Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen (research group Prof. Reinhard Jahn, 2012-2014) and the ETH Zurich (research group Prof. Beat Meier, 2014-2019), since 2020 Dr. Lakomek heads a DFG Heisenberg research group at the Institute for Physical Biology (IPB) at HHU and the joined Biomolecular NMR center of HHU and the Forschungszentrum Jülich.

• Heisenberg Fellowship, German Research Foundation (DFG), since 2020
• Marie Skłodowska Curie Program by the EU (2014-2016)
• NIH/DFG Research Career Transition Award Program (2009-2014)
• Prize by the Foundation Council of the University of Göttingen (2009)
• Raymond Andrew Prize by the European Ampere Society (2009)
• Otto Hahn Medal by the Max Planck Society (2009)
• Ernst Award by the German Chemical Society (2008)