Prof. Dr. Christof Niehrs Department of Molecular Embryology - HBIGS

Prof. Dr. Christof Niehrs
Department of Molecular Embryology
German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ)
69120 Heidelberg, Germany
Phone: +49-(0)6221-42 4690
Fax: +49-(0)6221-42 4692
E-mail: niehrs@dkfz.de
29.4.62, Berlin (West)
CURRICULUM VITAE
1994 – present Head of division "Molecular Embryology" at the German Cancer Research
Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg
2000 Chair of Molecular Embryology at University of Heidelberg/DKFZ
1999 Offer for full professorship at the University of Karlsruhe, declined
1998 Offer for full professorship at the University of Bochum, declined
1997 Habilitation, University of Heidelberg
1990 - 1993 PostDoc, University of California, Los Angeles
1986 - 1990 PhD at EMBL Heidelberg with Dr. W.B. Huttner
1981 - 1986 Study of Biochemistry at the Freie Universität Berlin
COORDINATING FUNCTIONS
2005 – present Member of steering committee for the joint Helmholtz DFG Graduate College
“Signaling Centers and Gene Expression in Development and Regeneration”
2003 – present Speakter of the research topic “Cell and Tumor Biology”, DKFZ, Heidelberg
CONSULTANT ACTIVITY
The German Research Council (DFG); Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher, Leopoldina; The
Max-Planck Society; European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO);The German-Israeli
Foundation for Scientific Research & Development; The Swiss National Science Foundation;
The Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine; Centre Nationale de la Recherche et des
Sciences (CNRS); Ministre de la Recherche (France); The National Science Foundation, USA;
The Wellcome Trust; The Volkswagen Foundation; The Human Frontier Science Program
Organization
HONORS (selection)
2003 Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize of the German Research Foundation (DFG)

FIELDS OF INTEREST
Developmental Biology, Wnt Signalling, Stem cell research
CURRENTLY FUNDED PROJECTS
SFB488, GRK791, 2 DFG-projects; 2 projects supported by the EU, Landesstiftung Baden-
Württemberg, German-Israeli-foundation, industry-support
PUBLICATIONS (8 most important publications):
Davidson, G., Wu, W., Shen, J., Bilic, J., Fenger, U., Stannek, P., Glinka, A., Niehrs, C. (2005)
Casein kinase 1 couples Wnt receptor activation to the cytoplasmic signal transduction. Nature
438: 867-872
Kazanskaya O., Glinka A., Del Barco Barrantes I., Stannek P., Niehrs C., Wu W. (2004) R-
Spondin2 Is a Secreted Activator of Wnt/beta-Catenin Signaling and Is Required for Xenopus
Myogenesis. Dev. Cell 74: 525-534
Hansis, C., Barreto, G., Maltry, N., Niehrs, C. (2004) Nuclear reprogramming of human somatic
cells by xenopus egg extract requires BRG1. Curr Biol. 14(16):1475-80.
Karaulanov E, Knochel W, Niehrs C. (2004) Transcriptional regulation of BMP4 synexpression in
transgenic Xenopus. EMBO J. 23: 844-856.
Böttcher R., Pollet N., Delius H., Niehrs C. (2004) The transmembrane protein XFLRT3 forms a
complex with FGF receptors and promotes FGF signalling. Nat. Cell Biol. 6: 38-44.
Mao, B., Wu, W., Davidson, G, Marhold, J., Li, M., Mechler, B.M, Delius, H., Hoppe, D., Stannek,
P., Walter, C., Glinka, A. and Niehrs, C. (2002) Kremen proteins are Dickkopf receptors that
regulate Wnt/beta-catenin signaling. Nature 417: 664-667.
Mukhopadhyay, M., Shtrom, S., Rodriguez-Esteban, C., Chen, L., Tsuku, T., Gomer, L.,
Dorward, D. W., Glinka, A., Grinberg, A., Huang, S.-P., Niehrs, C., Izpisúa Belmonte, J.-C., and
Westphal, H. (2001). Dickkopf1 is required for embryonic head induction and limb
morphogenesis in the mouse. Dev. Cell 1: 423-434.
Mao, B., Wu, W., Li, Y., Hoppe, D., Stannek, P., Glinka, A. and Niehrs, C. (2001) LDL receptor
related protein 6 is a receptor for Dickkopf proteins Nature 411: 321-325.

EXPERIENCE IN THE SUPERVISION OF DOCTORAL CANDIDATES
Member of numerous thesis committees
International reviewer of doctoral theses
SUPERVISED DISSERTATIONS
Danila Baldessari, PhD (2004) A cDNA-microarray study in Xenopus laevis: Global gene
expression profiling and cluster analysis
Current occupation: unknown
Ralph Böttcher, PhD (2004) Identification and characterisation of XFLRT3, a novel modulator of
FGF signalling during early Xenopus development
Current occupation: unknown
Emil Karaulanov, PhD (2004) Transcriptional regulation of BMP synexpression in Xenopus-in
vitro, in vivo and in silico analyses
Current occupation: unknown
Ivan del Barco Barrantes, PhD (2003) Role of Dickkopf1 and Dickkopf3 in mouse development
Current occupation: unknown
Clemens Kiecker, PhD (2001) On the role of signalling by growth factors of the TGFβ and Wnt
superfamilies during embryonic axis formation and patterning in Xenopus laevis
Current occupation: unknown
Wei Wu, PhD (2001) Regulation of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway by dickkopf family
members in Xenopus embryos
Current occupation: unknown

Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Christof
Niehrs
Department of Molecular Embryology
German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg
D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany
Phone: +49-(0)6221-42 4690
Fax: +49-(0)6221-42 4692
E-mail: niehrs@dkfz.de
29.4.62, Berlin (West) Professor
SCIENTIFIC VITA
1981 - 1986 Study of Biochemistry at the Freie Universität Berlin
1986 - 1990 PhD at EMBL Heidelberg with Dr. W.B. Huttner
1990 - 1993 PostDoc, University of California, Los Angeles
1997 Habilitation, University of Heidelberg
2000 Chair of Molecular Embryology at University of Heidelberg/DKFZ
1994 - now Head of division "Molecular Embryology" at the German Cancer Research
Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg
COORDINATING FUNCTIONS
2003 – now Speakter of the research topic “Cell and Tumor Biology”, DKFZ, Heidelberg
2005 – now Member of steering committee for the joint Helmholtz DFG Graduate College
“Signaling Centers and Gene Expression in Development and Regeneration”
Science Program Organization
SCIENTIFIC REVIEWER (selection)
Cell, Nature, Nature Cell Biology, Science, EMBO Journal, EMBO Reports, Genes &
Development,
Developmental Cell, Current Biology, Development, Molecular and Cellular Biology,
Mechanisms of Development.
PRIZES (selection)
2003 Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize of the German Research Foundation (DFG)
FIELDS OF INTEREST
Developmental Biology, Wnt Signalling, Stem cell research