Johannes Stigler

Prof. Dr. Johannes Stigler is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU), associated with the Gene Center Munich (Faculty 18). He holds a W2 professorship since 2023 and previously served as a tenure-track professor (2018–2023) and Emmy Noether Junior group leader (2017–2023). His academic journey includes a PhD in Biophysics from TU Munich (2008) under Prof. Matthias Rief, and postdoctoral research at Columbia University (2013–2016) and TU Munich (2008–2012).

His research focuses on the biophysical mechanisms underlying chromosomal organization, particularly the role of SMC proteins and CTCF in establishing hierarchical chromatin domains. Techniques include single-molecule imaging to study chromosomal crosslinkers and gene regulation dynamics. Key interests span chromatin folding, molecular mechanics, and epigenetic regulation.

Recent work has elucidated CTCF’s role in RNA recruitment and SA interactions, ISWI’s nucleosome-sliding mechanisms in dense chromatin, and Smc5/6’s stabilization of DNA fork junctions. His lab also explores repeat-protein nanosprings’ mechanical properties.

Prof. Stigler leads a team of postdoctoral researchers (e.g., Dr. Sarah Zernia, Dr. Marvin Freitag) and doctoral candidates (Garp Linder, Melanie Weiß). His funding includes ERC Starting Grant (2017), Emmy Noether Fellowship, and Feodor Lynen Fellowship. The Stigler Lab’s current projects are supported by DFG and EU grants.

Lab activities emphasize interdisciplinary approaches at the interface of physics and molecular biology, with a focus on mechanistic insights into chromosome structure-function relationships.