Tobias Jürgen Erb

Prof. Dr. Tobias J. Erb is a leading chemical biologist and Max Planck Research Group Leader at the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology in Marburg, Germany, since 2014. He holds a Professorship in Biology at Philipps-Universität Marburg (since 2018) and serves as Director and Head of the Department of Biochemistry and Synthetic Metabolism. Erb's work focuses on synthetic metabolism, particularly developing novel enzymatic pathways for CO2 fixation and carbon conversion.

• Academic Affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Philipps-Universität Marburg
• Rank: Professor / Director
• Location: Marburg, Germany

Research Interests revolve around:

• Synthetic CO2-fixation pathways
• Enzymatic carbon conversion
• Artificial cell systems
• Metabolic network engineering
• Photosynthetic efficiency optimization

His research team has developed in vitro synthetic metabolic networks and pioneered "Photosynthesis 2.0" concepts. The group's work spans natural enzyme biochemistry to artificial organelles and cells, with applications in biofuels and pharmaceuticals. Recent publications highlight advances in:

• Engineering new-to-nature CO2-converting enzymes
• Implementing synthetic pathways in E. coli and cyanobacteria
• Developing electrobiological modules for carbon reduction
• Creating computational tools for metabolic sensor design

Scientific Awards include:

• ERC Advanced Grantee (2024)
• Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize (2024)
• Future Insight Prize (2022)
• ERC Starting Grantee (2015)
• C&EN "Talented 12" (2015)

His advising team includes 18 doctoral researchers and 5 master students working on projects like:

• Designing artificial chloroplasts
• Engineering carbon fixation pathways
• Developing novel biosensors
• Creating electrobiological systems

The group maintains extensive collaborations with theoretical biophysics departments, industry partners, and international researchers, including a long-term partnership with Prof. Esteban Vöhringer-Martinez's quantum dynamics team in Chile.