Zippelius Lab
Meet our lab members
Prof. Dr. Alfred Zippelius
Professor of Translational Oncology
Deputy Head of the Department of Medical Oncology
Alfred Zippelius is Professor of Translational Oncology at the University of Basel and Co-Head of Medical Oncology at the University Hospital Basel. He studied medicine at Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU) Munich and completed his doctoral thesis at the former Institute of Immunology headed by Prof. Gert Riethmüller. He subsequently conducted postdoctoral research as a DFG/Emmy-Noether Fellow at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in Lausanne with Prof. Pedro Romero and Prof. Daniel Speiser, before establishing his first independent research group at the University Hospital Zurich, where he also completed his specialist training in Medical Oncology.
He joined the University of Basel as an SNF Professor and Group Leader of the Laboratory of Cancer Immunology and is now Full Professor of Translational Oncology. His research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of immune dysfunction in cancer and translating these insights into novel immunotherapeutic strategies. He has authored more than 150 peer-reviewed publications and is an inventor on several patents in the field of cancer immunology.
His work has been recognized through numerous competitive awards and fellowships, including the DFG/Emmy-Noether Fellowship, the Swiss National Science Foundation Eccellenza Program, and the Dora Seif Cancer Award.
Prof. Zippelius serves on national and international scientific advisory and review boards and contributes to the evaluation of research programs, fellowships, and funding initiatives across Europe. He has acted as reviewer and panel member for organizations including the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF), the Geneva Translational Oncology Awards & Fellowships, Fondation Leenaards, FondAction contre le cancer, the San Salvatore Foundation, the Krebsliga beider Basel, and the Geistlich-Stucki Foundation. He regularly reviews for leading journals and previously served as Section Editor for the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer (JITC).
Despite his responsibilities in patient care, research leadership, and academic service, he remains driven by the scientific questions that first attracted him to cancer immunology. He enjoys discussing new ideas with students, debating unexpected experimental results, and exploring emerging concepts in the field. Lab members occasionally encounter him late in the evening reviewing data or working on a manuscript, a reminder that curiosity remains one of the most powerful forces in science.
Meet the Team
Senior Scientist
Dr. Karin Schäuble
Karin joined the lab in 2024 as a senior scientist and is deeply involved in guiding PhD projects with wisdom and patience. Her expertise helps keep the scientific ship afloat. She enjoys dancing Lindy-hop, proving that good rhythm applies both to music and to research planning.
Lab Manager
Petra Herzig
Petra joined the lab in 2013 and is our all-knowing lab manager, capable of locating any reagent, document, or missing student. She keeps the lab running smoother than our centrifuges on a good day. Outside of work, she travels the world with her husband and son.
Technicians
In vivo Technician
Mélanie Buchi
Melanie has been part of the lab for a decade and is our in vivo mastermind. She ensures our animal work runs smoothly while maintaining a home zoo featuring a horse and two cats. It’s no surprise she has a special connection with the mice and she hopes to one day have her own little farm.
Postdoctoral Researchers
Project Leader
Dr. Maryam Akramisomeabozorg
Maryam joined the lab after graduating from the lab of Nobel prize laureate Tasuku Honjo, bringing an impressive set of metabolism and T-cell expertise (and bragging rights). She explores how metabolic pathways shape immune responses. After work, she can be spotted playing beach volleyball or collecting passport stamps like data points.
Postdoc
Dr. Talyn Chu
Talyn joined the lab in 2024 and brought with her a solid toolkit in T-cell biology and infection. She currently explores how immune cells behave under microbial pressure. In her free time, she enjoys reading and biking, ideally in environments where neither pathogens nor deadlines are chasing her.
Postdoc
Dr. Irene Fusi
Irene started her PhD in 2022 and has been fearlessly dissecting immunocytokines and T-cell behavior ever since. She investigates new ways to harness immune cells for therapy. Outside the lab, she is usually sipping coffee or watching Formula 1 like it’s a high-stakes immunological race.
Postdoc
Dr. Michael Sandholzer
Michael is our resident bioinformatics wizard, specializing in turning chaotic datasets into beautiful figures and meaningful discoveries. Whether it's deciphering cryptic error messages or answering what is probably the tenth "quick bioinformatics question" of the day, he's always there to help the rest of us mere biologists find our way. Outside the lab, he applies the same dedication to lifting weights as he does to analyzing data.
PhD students
Jonas Fürst
Jonas is a medical student who bravely began his PhD journey in 2020 in collaboration with T3 Pharma. His research focuses on neutrophils and cytokines in cancer, which he approaches with unwavering determination (fueled largely by caffeine). Outside the lab, he can be found in the gym or negotiating with his cats for personal space.
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Kristina Kromer
Kristina began her PhD in 2023 in collaboration with the Roche Institute for Human Biology. She uses organoid systems to explore macrophage biology in 3D glory. When she’s not culturing tiny organs, she’s hand-crafting pottery that may or may not resemble them.
Victor Le Gall
Victor joined the lab in 2024 as a PhD student and immediately fell in love with multiplexed imaging and complex in vitro models, because why make things simple? His work focuses on visualizing immune interactions in exquisite detail. On weekends, he competes in bingo tournaments with alarming intensity.
Joëlle de Vaan
Joëlle joined the lab in 2024 as a Master's student and decided to stay for a PhD in collaboration with T3 Pharma. She explores how a bacterial cancer therapy can remodel the TME by using a variety of orthotopic mouse models. When she's not in the lab, she can usually be found reading, spending time with friends, or hopping on a train to see her family in the Netherlands.
Max George
Max started his PhD in 2025 with T3 Pharma as his industrial partner. He works on bacteria-based cancer therapy platforms, because what’s cooler than weaponized microbes? In his spare time, he practices kickboxing, presumably preparing for Reviewer 2.
Daniel Hajnal
Daniel began his MD-PhD in 2025, focusing on NK cells and spatial analysis. As a freshly graduated physician, he is particularly interested in translating his research into clinical applications to improve patient care. In his free time, he likes to be with his friends in Zürich and has a passion for photography.
Bachelor & Master students
Silvia Ferrer Coloma
Jennifer Revin
Alumni
Deborah Carnibella
Dr. Nicole Oelgarth
Dr. Clara Serger
Dr. Thuy Luu
Louisa Arndt
Dr. Xiaoyun Li
Dr. Asmita Pant
Dr. Sofia Tundo
Andrijana Rodic
Dr. Dominic Schmid
Leyla Don
Dr. Markus Germann
Dr. Laura Fernandez Rodriguez
Dr. Marcel Trefny
Dr. Nicole Kirchhammer
Dr. Abhishek Kashyap
Florian Rosentreter
Dr. Elham Pishali
Dr. Daniela Thommen
Dr. Lucia D'Amico
Dr. Sandra Kallert
Dr. Michal Stanczak
Dr. Franziska Uhlenbrock
Dr. Philipp Müller
Dr. Jens Schreiner
Dr. Matthias Kreuzaler
Dr. Narasimha Rao Uda
Dr. Kea Martin
Dr. Sébastien Wieckowski