Thomas Posch

Prof. Thomas Posch is a Professor at the Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of Zurich. His research focuses on freshwater protists, microbial food webs, and the ecological impacts of climate change on aquatic systems, particularly Lake Zurich. He leads projects investigating symbiotic interactions between prokaryotes and protists, the expansion of toxic cyanobacteria like Planktothrix rubescens, and the effects of lake warming on microbial dynamics. Collaborations include institutions like the Institute of Hydrobiology (Czech Republic) and the SUPSI Laboratory of Applied Microbiology. His work combines field studies, molecular techniques (e.g., in situ hybridization), and long-term monitoring. Current projects address ciliate ecology, cyanobacterial genomics, and the development of cultivation methods for uncultivated microbes. Teaching includes courses on limnology, evolution, and microbial ecology. Research outputs span climate-driven shifts in food webs, microbial diversity, and biogeochemical processes in freshwater ecosystems.