51cg

Dr Alexander Lorenz

Dr Alexander Lorenz
Dr Alexander Lorenz
Dr Alexander Lorenz

FHEA

Senior Lecturer

51cg
Email Address
a.lorenz@abdn.ac.uk
Telephone Number
+44 (0)1224 437323
Office Address

The Institute of Medical Sciences (IMS)

School of Medicine, Medical Sciences & Nutrition

51cg

Foresterhill

Aberdeen, AB25 2ZD

United Kingdom

 

Office: IMS, Room 4:20

Lab: IMS, Room 4:08

School/Department
School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition




Biography

Since 2021: Senior Lecturer in Fungal Genetics; School of Medicine, Medical Sciences & Nutrition; 51cg, UK

2013-2021: Lecturer in Molecular Cell Biology; School of Medicine, Medical Sciences & Nutrition; 51cg, UK

2007-2013: Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford, UK

2005-2007: Erwin Schrödinger-Fellow of the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) researching at the Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford, UK

2003-2005: Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Department of Chromosome Biology, University of Vienna, Austria

1992-2003: Studying Botany and Genetics at the University of Vienna, Austria and at the University of Cologne, Germany

Qualifications

  • PhD Genetics 
    2003 - University of Vienna, Austria 
    with distinction
  • MRes Botany 
    2000 - University of Vienna, Austria 
    with distinction
  • FHEA (Fellow of the Higher Education Academy) 
    2025 - Advance HE, UK 

Memberships and Affiliations

Internal Memberships

Programme Lead [Degree Coordinator] for BSc Molecular and Cellular Biology (since 05/2024)

Programme Lead [Degree Coordinator] for BSc Biotechnology (since 06/2025)

Programme Lead [Degree Coordinator] for BSc Microbiology (since 06/2025)

Chair of BSc Curriculum Review Workstream A - Molecular  (since 11/2025)

Foresterhill Biological Safety Committee: Chair (01/2023-12/2025), Biological Safety Officer (01/2016-12/2025), Member (10/2014-12/2025)

Health & Safety Committee of the School of Medicine, Medical Sciences & Nutrition: Member (12/2024-12/2025)

IMS BSc Review Workstream 4 - Workload: Member (03/2022-11/2022)

External Memberships

Member of the following learned societies:

Honorary Treasurer of the Genetics Society (05/2021-11/2025)

Associate Editor/Editorial Board Member: (since 2020), (since 2021), (2019-2025)

Ad hoc reviewer for international research journals: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

Grant reviewer: Academia Sinica|Taiwan, ANR|France, BBSRC|UK, Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland|UK, ERA-CAPS|European Union, Israel Science Foundation|Israel, MRC|UK, NSF|USA, NWO|Netherlands, RGC of Hong Kong|China, SRDA-APVV|Slovakia, Wellcome Trust|UK

Research

Research Overview

Research Areas

Biomedical Sciences

  • Supervising

Research Specialisms

  • Genetics
  • Microbiology
  • Mycology

Our research specialisms are based on the Higher Education Classification of Subjects (HECoS) which is , published under the licence.

Past Research

Pelletier C, Shaw S, Alsayegh S, Brown AJP, Lorenz A (2024) Candida auris undergoes adhesin-dependent and -independent cellular aggregation. - PLoS Pathogens 20 (3): e1012076 (27pp.)

Bravo Ruiz G, Ross ZK, Gow NAR, Lorenz A (2020) Pseudohyphal growth of the emerging pathogen Candida auris is triggered by genotoxic stress through the S phase checkpoint. - mSphere 5 (2): e00151-20 (17pp.)

Brown SD*, Mpaulo SJ*, Asogwa MN, Jézéquel M, Whitby MC, Lorenz A (2019) DNA sequence differences are determinants of meiotic recombination outcome. - Scientific Reports 9: 16446 (10pp.) (*these authors contributed equally)

Bravo Ruiz G, Ross ZK, Holmes E, Schelenz S, Gow NAR, Lorenz A (2019) Rapid and extensive karyotype diversification in haploid clinical Candida auris isolates. - Current Genetics 65 (5): 1217-1228

Lorenz A, Mehats A, Osman F, Whitby MC (2014) Rad51/Dmc1 paralogs and mediators oppose DNA helicases to limit hybrid DNA formation and promote crossovers during meiotic recombination. - Nucleic Acids Research 42 (22): 13723-13735

Lorenz A, Osman F, Sun W, Nandi S, Steinacher R, Whitby MC (2012) The fission yeast FANCM ortholog directs non-crossover recombination during meiosis. - Science (New York, N.Y.) 336 (6088): 1585-1588

 

 

Collaborations

Professor , Graduate School of Science, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Japan 

Dr Takashi Kubota, The Institute of Medical Sciences, 51cg, UK

Professor , Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology, University of Edinburgh, UK

Dr Hajime Murakami, The Institute of Medical Sciences, 51cg, UK

Professor , Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford, UK

Supervision

My current supervision areas are: Biomedical Sciences.

Sakinah Alsayegh, PhD in Molecular Microbiology 2019-2025 "Morphogenetic switching and antimicrobial resistance in Candida auris"

Chloe Pelletier, PhD in Medical Mycology 2019-2023 "Stress response and virulence in Candida auris"

Inês Dias Rebelo, MRes in Molecular Biology 2018-2019 "Epigenetics and meiotic recombination in Schizosaccharomyce pombe"

Stefaniya T. Stoichkova, PhD in Microbiology 2017-2024 "Tools for the genetic manipulation of Candida auris"

Samantha J. Mpaulo, PhD in Genetics 2017-2021 "DNA double-strand break formation during meiosis"

Zoe K. Ross, MRes and PhD in Medical Mycology 2017-2020 "Genome analysis of and antimicrobial resistance in Candida auris"

Simon D. Brown, PhD in Genetics 2013-2017 "Meiotic recombination in Schizosaccharomyces pombe"

Additionally, I have supervised 11 undergraduate summer/internship students, 16 BSc Honours projects, 2 MSci Honours project, and 20 MSc/MRes degree projects.

Funding and Grants

02/2020-09/2020: Seed Corn Fund (with Prof Neil Vargesson) - Institutional Strategic Support Fund, Wellcome Trust

10/2019-10/2022: Award for a 3-year PhD-studentship - Kuwait Cultural Office UK, Ministry of Higher Education, Kuwait

10/2019-10/2022: MRC-CMM award for a 3-year PhD-studentship (with Profs Al Brown & Neil Gow) - MRC & 51cg, UK

02/2019-07/2019: Research Incentive Grant - The Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland

07/2018-01/2020: Seed Award in Science - Wellcome Trust

01/2018-01/2019: Research Grant - Tenovus Scotland (with Prof Neil Gow)

10/2017-10/2020: MRC-CMM award for a 3-year PhD-studentship (with Prof Neil Gow) - MRC & 51cg, UK

10/2017-10/2021: IMS award for a 4-year PhD-studentship (with Prof Neil Gow) - 51cg, UK

10/2017-10/2021: EastBio-DTP awards for two 4-year PhD-studentships (with Prof Adele Marston, University of Edinburgh) - BBSRC

06/2017-11/2017: Seed Corn Fund (with Prof Neil Gow) - Institutional Strategic Support Fund, Wellcome Trust

04/2017: One-off Meeting sponsorship (with Dr Isabelle Colas) for the 9th British Meiosis Meeting in Dundee - Genetics Society UK

06/2016-08/2016: G&D Summer studentship (for Ki Choi CHAN, University of York) - Genetics Society UK

01/2015-09/2015: Research Incentive Grant - The Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland

10/2014-10/2015: Research Grant - Royal Society

10/2013-10/2017: DTG award for a 4-year PhD-studentship - BBSRC & 51cg, UK

09/2013: Principal’s Excellence Fund - 51cg

07/2005-07/2007: Erwin Schrödinger-Fellowship - Austrian Science Fund (FWF)

10/1997-06/1998: ERASMUS/SOCRATES-scholarship - European Union

Teaching

Teaching Responsibilities

Undergraduate Degree Co-ordination

BSc Molecular and Cellular Biology

BSc Biotechnology

BSc Microbiology

Course Co-ordination

GN3502 - Genetics

MB3006 - Molecular Biology of the Cell

Lecturing

MB3006 - Molecular Biology of the Cell: 'Cell Cycle & Cell Division' (Lectures, Tutorial)

GN3502 - Genetics: 'Mendelian Genetics', 'Chromosome Biology', 'Fungal Genetics', 'Genetic Engineering' (Lectures)

MC3504 - Molecular Microbiology: 'Fungal Genetics and Biology' (Lectures)

MB4050 - Genome Organisation and Analysis: 'Genome Integrity - DNA Repair, Homologous Recombination, and Meiosis' (Lectures)

Practicals & Workshops

BI20M3 - Molecular Biology of the Gene: 'Restriction Analysis of DNA'

GN3502 - Genetics: 'Analysis of Meiotic Recombination'

GN3502 - Genetics: 'Pedigree Analysis'

Student Supervision

MB4502 - 'Molecular Biology Honours Research Project'

MB5904 - 'Masters Research Project'

Currently, co-supervisor of two PhD students.

Non-course Teaching Responsibilities

Personal Tutor for 7 UG students in various degree programmes and at all levels

Member of 9-months and 24-months PhD student assessment panels

Publications

Page 4 of 6 Results 31 to 40 of 52

  • Slx8 removes Pli1-dependent protein-SUMO conjugates including SUMOylated Topoisomerase I to promote genome stability

    Steinacher, R., Osman, F., Lorenz, A., Bryer, C., Whitby, M. C.
    PloS ONE, vol. 8, no. 8, e71960
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • How not to get cross(ed): A novel role for FANCM orthologs in meiotic recombination

    Lorenz, A., Whitby, M. C.
    Cell Cycle, vol. 11, no. 18, pp. 3347-3348
    Contributions to Journals: Editorials
  • The fission yeast FANCM ortholog directs non-crossover recombination during meiosis

    Lorenz, A., Osman, F., Sun, W., Nandi, S., Steinacher, R., Whitby, M.
    Science, vol. 336, no. 6088, pp. 1585-1588
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • Mug20, a novel protein associated with linear elements in fission yeast meiosis

    Estreicher, A., Lorenz, A., Loidl, J.
    Current Genetics, vol. 58, no. 2, pp. 119-127
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • The DNA helicase Pfh1 promotes fork merging at replication termination sites to ensure genome stability

    Steinacher, R., Osman, F., Dalgaard, J. Z., Lorenz, A., Whitby, M. C.
    Genes & Development, vol. 26, no. 6, pp. 594-602
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • Ultrafine anaphase bridges, broken DNA and illegitimate recombination induced by a replication fork barrier

    Sofueva, S., Osman, F., Lorenz, A., Steinacher, R., Castagnetti, S., Ledesma, J., Whitby, M. C.
    Nucleic Acids Research, vol. 39, no. 15, pp. 6568-6584
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • A failure of meiotic chromosome segregation in a fbh1Δ mutant correlates with persistent Rad51-DNA associations

    Sun, W., Lorenz, A., Osman, F., Whitby, M. C.
    Nucleic Acids Research, vol. 39, no. 5, pp. 1718-1731
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • Roles of Hop1 and Mek1 in meiotic chromosome pairing and recombination partner choice in Schizosaccharomyces pombe

    Latypov, V., Rothenberg, M., Lorenz, A., Octobre, G., Csutak, O., Lehmann, E., Loidl, J., Kohli, J.
    Molecular and Cellular Biology, vol. 30, no. 7, pp. 1570-1581
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • The human Holliday junction resolvase GEN1 rescues the meiotic phenotype of a Schizosaccharomyces pombe mus81 mutant

    Lorenz, A., West, S. C., Whitby, M. C.
    Nucleic Acids Research, vol. 38, no. 6, pp. 1866-1873
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • Fbh1 limits Rad51-dependent recombination at blocked replication forks

    Lorenz, A., Osman, F., Folkyte, V., Sofueva, S., Whitby, M. C.
    Molecular and Cellular Biology, vol. 29, no. 17, pp. 4742-4756
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
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