Dr. Haßdenteufel earned her Ph.D. in Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Saarland University in Germany. Focusing on very small human proteins, she identified components and mechanisms for their transport across membranes in human cells – including the first description of hSnd2.

 

Sarah was awarded a Novartis stipend to initiate her new structural biological mini-project, now as a postdoc of Prof. Richard Zimmermann. To broaden her expertise in x-ray crystallography, she went to the laboratory of Prof. Howard Young in Canada. They met during Sarah’s term as a fellow of the International Research Training Group on Membrane Proteins and Diseases.

 

Sarah’s passion for depicting her research visually in comics has gained her invitations to present in classic conference rooms as well as on theater stages of Science slams.

 

When asked about her motivation in science and in life, she responds: “What makes me understand makes me happy. I like exploring in and outside the lab; I like traveling and seeing the world, meeting peoples and cultures.”

 

Sarah is looking forward to continuing her scientific journey at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel and joining the community of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities. At the Department of Molecular Genetics, she will work with Prof. Maya Schuldiner on exploiting high-content microscopy-based screening techniques to enable her to address both structural and functional cell biological questions.