Introduction by way of YouTube
Get an impression of Freddy's research!
Link to playlistMalaria Research: Frischknecht
Lab members
Current members
Prof. Dr. Friedrich Frischknecht (Group leader, 2005 - present)
Bismarck Dinko, PhD (Postdoc, 2026 ongoing)
Dr. Julia Sattler (Postdoc, since 2010 in the Frischknecht lab)
Dr. Mirko Singer (Postdoc, 2022 - present)
Dr. Yannik Voß (Postdoc, 2024 - present)
Long Chun (PhD student, 2025 - present)
Buyuan He (PhD student, 2021 - present)
Yvonne Sokolowski (PhD student, 2024 - present)
Kevin Walz (PhD student, 2021 - present)
Dongwan Zhang (PhD student, 2025 - present)
Tyrese Neumann-Hamid (MD student, 2025 - present)
Maximilian Winter (MD student, 2025 - present)
Miriam Reinig (Technician)
Aude Bourgeteau (MSc student, 2026)
& various BSc students :-)
SPOT: a web-tool enabling swift profiling of transcriptomes
The Frischknecht lab proudly presents SPOT (Swift Profiling Of Transcriptomes), a web tool that allows not only differential expression analysis but also fast ranking of genes fitting transcription profiles of interest.
Flashtalk by F. Frischknecht
Why study microtubules in Plasmodium?
watch the talkTalk by F. Frischknecht
Why have we not been able to eradicate malaria?
Watch the talk (also interesting for non-scientists)Podcast with F. Frischknecht
Interview with Freddy in which he tells us how he got interested in malaria research and that we are still far a away from a malaria vaccine... Listen in!
Link to Podcast episodeJob offers
We normally have open positions for medical doctoral students and master students. If you are interested in working in a highly interactive team within an interdisciplinary environment using reverse genetic approaches, state-of-the-art microscopy techniques and are not afraid of new challenges and biophysical methods, please send us your CV, 2 letters of recommendation and a 1-page statement of motivation within a single pdf. We also usually have some vacancies for short term stays of a minimum of 6 weeks. For those send an informal enquiry to "fratsch(at)gmail.com".
Publications
Selected publications of the Frischknecht group
=> Cover gallery by F. Frischknecht
Favourites
Projects / Networks
Malaria
Walt Disney's classic "The winged scourge": (1) (2)
BBC documentary on malaria (part 1 of 6)
Dr Seuss On Malaria: "This is Ann"
Music and malaria: (1) (2 / Stieber Twins-Malaria)
E-learning
Correlative microscopy
Activities
Alumni
Postdocs
Marek Cyrklaff, 2008 - 2025
Matthias Wagner, 2023 - 2024
Nathália Ferreira Lima, 2022 - 2024 (Infectotest project)
Juliane Kutzner, 2020 - 2021
Carolina Matos, 2018 - 2021
Ross Douglas, 2013 - 2019, now: Group leader, Justus-Liebig University Giessen
Saskia Egarter , 2014 - 2017, now: Scientific writer
Gunnar Mair, 2012 - 2016, now: PI at University of Iowa, Ames
Noa Dahan, 2014 - 2015, now: Postdoc at Weitzmann Institute Rehovot
Martin Streichfuss, 2013 - 2014, now: Robert Bosch, Reutlingen
Leandro Lemgruber, 2010 - 2012, then: Rockefeller University, now: Head of EM unit, Glasgow University
Claudia Kuss, 2010 - 2012: now: Clinical study analyst, Berlin
Kai Uhrig, 2009, now: Consultant at McKinsey
Sylvia Münter, 2005 - 2009, then: Carl Zeiss Munich, now: Microscope Facility, Heidelberg University Hospital
PhD students
Monami Chowdhury, 2021 - 2025
Annika Binder, 2021 - 2025
Simran Panda, 2021 - 2023
Johanna Ripp, 2016 - 2020
Benjamin Spreng, 2014 - 2018, now with Johnson and Johnson, Switzerland
Katharina Quadt, 2013 - 2018, then: Application specialist, Zendia, Heidelberg, now: Labor Limbach, Heidelberg
Julianne Mendi Muthinja, 2013 - 2017
Konrad Beyer, 2013 - 2016, now: Consultant with Catenion, Berlin
Hirdesh Kumar, 2012 - 2016, now: Postdoc with Tolja Niraj at NIH, USA
Dennis Klug, 2012 - 2017, now: Postdoc with Stephanie Blandin in Strasbourg
Kartik Bane, 2011 - 2016, then Postdoc at Yale, now: Scientific editor, Mumbai
Janina Hellmann (Master, PhD student and Postdoc) 2007 - 2012, now: Teacher at Gymnasium Bruchsal
Simone Lepper, 2007 -2011, then: Arithmeum Museum for Mathematics, Bonn, now: Nikon, Heidelberg
Mikhail Kudryashev, 2005 -2009, then: Group leader at MPI Frankfurt, now: Group leader at MDC Berlin
Stephan Hegge, 2005 -2010 and (Postdoc) 2010 - 2011, now: Associate with consulting company Catenion, Berlin
Technicians
Carrie Anderson, 2021 - 2024 (Infectotest project)
Katarina Abramovic, 2010 -2011
Iris Arnold, 2009 -2010
Aurore Guiet, 2008
Diana Scheppan, 2005 -2009
Andrea Hecker, 2005
Medical doctoral students
Lars Sippmann, 2024 - 2025
Yann Gomez, 2024 - 2025
David Lubotsky, 2022 - 2024
Smilla Steinbrück, 2023 - 2024 (see also her report on her time in the U.S.)
Luisa Zechel, 2022 - 2023
Aiman Abdelrahim, 2021 - 2022 (see also his report on his time in Sudan)
Joshua Leutiger, 2021 - 2022 (see also his report on his time in Tanzania)
Martin Jäcklin, 2021 - 2022
Cindy Zheng, 2021 - 2022
Bastian Löhning, 2020 - 2021
Friedrich Braumann, 2020 - 2021 (see also his report on his time in Rwanda)
Lukas Keiber, 2020 - 2021
Leon Mühlsteffen, 2020 - 2021
Simon Kracht, 2019 - 2020
Maurizio Wack, 2017 - 2018
Henriette Prinz, 2016 - 2017
Julia Aktories, 2015 - 2016
Katja Haßler, (joint student with Jake Baum) 2015 - 2016
Ulrike Amelung, 2011
Björn Alex, 2008 - 2010
Natalia Lüsebrink 2008 - 2009
MSc students
Lena Haaga, 2024 - 2025
Fenja Nuglisch, 2024 - 2025
Marzia Matejcek, 2024 - 2025
Maren Gehringer, 2023 - 2025
Katharina Röver, 2023 - 2024
Yvonne Sokolowski, 2022 - 2024
Pratika Agarwal, 2022 - 2023
Shafaq Riaz, 2022
Nathan Ribot, 2021 - 2022
Kevin Walz, 2020 - 2021
Juyeop Kim, 2020 - 2021
Felix Mikus, 2020 - 2021
Philip Ehmann, 2020
Dominic Schwarz, 2019 - 2020
Manuela Aguirre Botero, 2019
Michelle Yee, 2019
Annika Binder, 2019
Xanthoula Smyrnakou, 2019
Martina Nieß, 2019
Emma Pietsch, 2018 - 2019
Nadine Renner, 2018
Claudia Di Biagio, 2017
Hannah Fleckenstein, 2016
Rebekka Weber, 2016
Johanna Kratzer, 2015 -2016
Madlen Konert, 2013 -2014
Jennifer Marschall, 2012 -2013
Conny Bernecker, 2010 -2011
Mirko Singer, 2009
Oliver Mazodze (research student) 2008 -2009
Janina Hellmann, 2007-2008
Luis Barniol, 2007 - 2008
Marion Hliscs (research student), 2006 - 2007
BSc students
Amari Eßwein, 2025
Zhuli Valacheva, 2025
Walter Hitschfeld, 2025
Michelle Müller, 2025
Lili Weiß, 2024 - 2025
Louisa Schön, 2023 - 2024
Madleen Piegsa, 2023
David Jewanski, 2023
Nina Droste, 2023
Sina Kühnel, 2023
Lukas Radtke, 2022
Roberta Malamud, 2022
Sina Heineken, 2021
Yvonne Sokolowski, 2021
Meret Hopf, 2021
Christan Simon, 2021
Marilena Wittmaack, 2020
Konstantin Fischer, 2020
Marzia Matejcek, 2020
Elias Farr, 2020
Tobias Walther, 2018
Lisa Nechyporenko, 2018
Nadine Klingberg, 2018
Marie Neuhoff, 2018
Paul Rothhaar, 2018
Dominik Ricken, 2017
Patrick Kübler, 2017
Jaqueline Hammer, 2017
Christian Sommerauer, 2016
Benjamin Lang, 2016
Leanne Strauss, 2016
Sarah Goellner, 2015
Paul Ott, 2014
Michael Staniek, 2014
Polina Mantaj, 2013
Samantha Ebersol, 2013
Elisabeth Singer, 2013
Tony Völtzke, 2013
Dietmar Mehlhorn, 2013
Lucas Schütz, 2011
Andreas Balz, 2010
Jenny Pestl, 2008
Jan-Peter Röderer, 2008
RISE visitors
The following students enriched our lab for 3 months during summer visits paid by the US-German or Canadian-Baden-Würrtemberg exchange programmes.
Ashley Smith, 2007
Christiana Baloescu, 2008
Carmen Bayly, 2010
Alice Nasto, 2010
Loren Chan, 2011
Olivia Ramsey, 2012
Steven Mee, 2013
Kristina Kelly, 2014
Frea Mehta, 2015
Serina Khater, 2016
Sydney Sparanese, 2017
For alumni of Heidelberg University see
For EMBL Alumni Association see:
www.embl.de/aboutus/alumni/index.html
to the left: Brochure (put together by Maj Britt Hansen, Freddy Frischknecht and Mehrnoosh Rayner) on poster exhibition as part of the staff-alumni reunion in 2010.
News - Frischknecht Group
Publication in Nature Physics
(24 November 2025)
New findings by scientists in our department (Frischknecht lab) together with colleagues from the local Institute for Theoretical Physics and Johns Hopkins University in the USA: Malaria parasites move on right-handed helices, which is made possible by a previously unexplained asymmetry in the parasite's body structure. These findings could in turn be helpful in testing new drugs and vaccines.
If you would like more information about the research, it is available in the journal Nature Physics:
L. Lettermann, M. Singer, S. Steinbrück, F. Ziebert, S. Kanatani, P. Sinnis, F. Frischknecht, U. S. Schwarz: Chirality of malaria parasites determines their motion patterns. Nature Physics (November 24, 2025), https://doi.org/10.1038/s41567-025-03096-0
Alternatively, we recommend the press release from Heidelberg University Hospital.
Interview with F. Frischknecht
(19 September 2024)
On the occasion of the annual report 2023 of Heidelberg University hospital Prof. Till Bärnighausen (Heidelberg Institute for Global Health) and our group leader Prof. Friedrich Frischknecht were interviewed on the fascinating topic of 'Mosquitoes and Men'. A very interesting insight, especially as the infection route of malaria is also explained. The complete annual report 2023 is available here
How to get in touch:
