Johannes Rebelein

Dr. Johannes Rebelein (b. 1986) leads the Emmy Noether Research Group at the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology in Marburg, Germany, and is concurrently a Junior Group Leader at the LOEWE Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SynMikro). Since 2020, his team has focused on understanding and engineering microbial metalloenzymes—particularly nitrogenases—for sustainable activation of N₂ and CO₂, aiming to convert these abundant molecules into valuable chemicals such as ammonia, methane, hydrogen and hydrocarbons.

Education & Career:

• B.Sc. Biotechnology, TU Braunschweig (2010)
• M.Sc. Biotechnology, TU Braunschweig (2012)
• Ph.D. Biological Sciences, University of California, Irvine (2016)
• EMBO Long-Term Postdoc, University of Basel, Department of Chemistry (2017–2020)
• Since 2020: Emmy Noether Group Leader, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology
• Since 2020: Junior Group Leader, LOEWE Center for Synthetic Microbiology, Marburg

Research Focus:
Rebelein’s laboratory integrates structural biology, bioinorganic chemistry, enzymology and synthetic biology to elucidate fundamental mechanisms of nitrogenase catalysis and to repurpose these ancient enzymes for next-generation biotechnological applications. Current projects include structural elucidation of iron nitrogenase complexes, engineering nitrogenases for CO₂ and CO reduction, and developing novel metabolic pathways that incorporate these reactions into microbial metabolism.

Scientific Awards & Funding:

• Emmy Noether Programme Award (DFG)
• EMBO Long-Term Fellowship

Lab & Mentorship:
The group currently supervises six doctoral researchers (Frederik Schmidt, Niels Oehlmann, Ana Lago Maciel, Grgo Marijan, Marcello Herzog, Jing Chen) and one master’s student (Emily Rothemann). The lab is actively recruiting postdoctoral fellows and graduate students interested in metalloenzyme engineering and synthetic biology.