Bert De Rybel

Bert De Rybel is a VIB Group Leader and Associate Professor at Ghent University. He leads the Bert De Rybel Lab at the VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology, focusing on vascular development in plants using systems and cell biology approaches. His research explores how vascular tissues proliferate and diversify through oriented cell divisions, with a particular emphasis on the TMO5/LHW transcription factor complex in Arabidopsis.

Key research areas include plant biology, systems biology, and cell biology, with model organisms like Arabidopsis, poplars, and bryophytes. Recent work includes groundbreaking studies on plant root 'puberty' phases and drought responses, published in Science and New Phytologist. De Rybel collaborates with institutes like the VIB Screening Core and Ghent University, securing grants such as FWO awards. His lab employs advanced techniques like single-cell transcriptomics and bioinformatics tools like Scywalker.

He oversees a team of PhD students and postdocs, including Akshay Gokulendran Nair and Eline Verhelst. The lab’s work contributes to understanding plant development’s molecular mechanisms, with implications for climate-resilient agriculture.