Thomas Wollert

Thomas Wollert is a faculty member at the Institut Pasteur, leading the Unit Membrane Biochemistry and Transport since 2017. He also holds a Lecturer (Privatdozent) position at Ludwig Maximillian University Munich since 2016, focusing on membrane biology and autophagy mechanisms in cellular homeostasis.

• PhD in Biochemistry (2003-2007), Helmholtz-Centre for Infection Research
• Habilitation in Biochemistry (2016), LMU Munich

His research explores how biological membranes interact with proteins to regulate autophagy, a process critical for degrading damaged organelles and pathogens. He investigates phagophore formation, membrane remodeling, and autophagy's role in neurodegenerative diseases using structural biology and advanced imaging techniques (e.g., cryo-EM, fluorescence lifetime imaging).

His publications highlight autophagy's structural dynamics, including ATG16L1 in membrane cup formation and TECPR1 in aggrephagy. Collaborations with Fluorescence Imaging and NanoImaging facilities support his work. Awards include the Eppendorf Award (2015), ERC Starting Grant (2015), and EMBO Young Investigator (2015).

• 2015: Eppendorf Award for Young European Investigators
• 2015: ERC Starting Grant
• 2015: EMBO Young Investigator Award
• 2014: Walther Flemming Medal
• 2009: Nancy Nossal Fellowship
• 2008: EMBO Long Term Fellowship
• 2008: Elisabeth Garteff Award
• 2008: Förderpreis for doctoral thesis
• 2008: Bayer-Schering Pharma PhD-Award

His work bridges structural biology, biophysics, and cell biology to uncover autophagy's molecular principles for drug development against diseases caused by autophagy dysfunction.