Detlev Arendt - Biography#

Detlev Arendt studied biology at the University of Freiburg in Germany, where he also obtained his doctorate in natural sciences. Since 2003, his laboratory in the Developmental Biology Unit at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory has established the marine annelid Platynereis dumerilii as a molecular model for evolutionary, developmental and neurobiological research. His major interest is the evolution of animal body plans and nervous systems. He has also studied the evolution of photoreceptor cells and in recent years pioneered the new field of cell type evolution and development. He holds a honorary professorship at the Centre for Organismal Studies at Heidelberg University.