KOZIOL LABORATORY

Our goal is to make fundamental discoveries about the ‘building blocks of life’, namely DNA and RNA, to better understand complex brain functions.

The Koziol Laboratory is located at the Chinese Institute for Brain Research (CIBR) Institute. Our focus is on discovering and studying novel DNA and RNA modifications and to investigate their role in the healthy and diseased brain. 

As a proof of principle, we have first discovered a novel DNA modification in vertebrate genomes, called methylated deoxyadenosine (Koziol et al., 2015). This finding opened entirely novel avenues for investigation and pioneered an exciting new area of biology. 

Therefore, in addition to studying this novel DNA modification that is now known to be important for brain function, the Koziol Laboratory is studying and aiming to discover novel DNA and RNA modifications and investigate their role in the brain. Where possible, we explore how our discoveries can be exploited to improve human health.

The Koziol Laboratory combines molecular biology, bioinformatics, mass spectrometry and biochemistry to discover and study DNA and RNA modifications. We use human and mouse tissue culture as an in vitro model, as well as human and mice tissues, and mice as an in vivo model.

We are an interactive, friendly, collaborative, international, dynamic and well funded research group that nurtures independent thinking and welcomes trying novel, often unconventional ideas.

Through CIBR, the Koziol Laboratory is associated with several top Universities in China, from where our PhD students come from.

We speak English in the laboratory. We often collaborate with other scientists, not only locally, but have strong international links, in particular with scientists from the University of Cambridge, UK, and in the US, where the Koziol’s Laboratory Principal Investigator, Magdalena Koziol, carried out her research for several years.

Overall, our laboratory offers many opportunities for personal and professional development. Hence, if you are interested, join us.

We are well supported, and are extremely grateful to the following organizations and funding bodies:

(1) CIBR core funding; 2019-2025

(2) Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, the Innovative Unit of Medical Neurobiology: A research grant shared between Minmin Luo, Yi Rao, Chen Jian, and our lab; 2019-2023

(3) 2 x Beijing Postdoctoral Research Foundation Fellowships; 2020-2022