I am broadly interested in major evolutionary transitions such as the origin of the eukaryotic cell and its symbiotic organelles, mitochondria and plastids. I work at the interface of multiple disciplines, particularly evolutionary biology, cell biology, genomics, microbiology, biochemistry, and computational biology. My favorite model systems are any symbiotic organisms, insects, protists, and marine microbes.
I grew up near Prague, did my graduate work in Budweis, and then my research brought me to the USA, UK, Canada, and finally Japan.