Meyer Axel

Meyer Axel is a Professor of Zoology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Konstanz, Germany, since 1997. He leads the Genome Center Konstanz and co-chairs the International Max-Planck Research School in Organismal Biology. His research focuses on molecular phylogenetics, speciation in African cichlids, molecular evolution, comparative genomics, and evo-devo. Axel holds a Ph.D. from UC Berkeley (1988) and has held visiting roles at Stanford, UC Berkeley, and the Joint Genome Institute. He has received numerous awards, including the ERC Advanced Grant and EMBO membership.

Education:

• Ph.D., Zoology, UC Berkeley (1984–1988)
• M.S., Zoology, UC Berkeley (1983–1984)
• Vordiplom, Universität Marburg (1979–1982)

Research Interests:

• Molecular phylogenetics of vertebrates (fish, amphibians, lungfish, coelacanths)
• Speciation mechanisms in Nicaraguan crater lake cichlids
• Evolution of developmental genes (Hox, hedgehog)
• Fish-specific genome duplication events
• Comparative genomics of adaptive radiations

Awards:

• Hector Prize (2011)
• ERC Advanced Grant (2011)
• Member of Academia Europaea (2012)

Editorial Roles:

• Editorial Board Member, PLoS ONE (since 2009)
• Associate Editor, BMC Evolutionary Biology (since 2008)
• Advisory Board Member for multiple journals including Journal of Molecular Evolution