Megan Sørensen receives ERC Starting Grant
Microbiologist Megan Sørensen has been awarded an ERC Starting Grant, securing significant funding for her upcoming research on the evolution of endosymbiosis at CeMESS. It is one of three ERC Starting Grants awarded to the University of Vienna, each valued at approximately €1.4 to €1.7 million. This achievement brings the total number of ERC grants awarded to the university to 155.
Microorganisms were crucial in the evolution of life and play an important role in ecosystems. In her ERC-funded project TRANSITIONS, microbiologist Megan Sørensen investigates how closely networked interactions between microorganisms arise and evolve over time.
Exploring key phases in the evolution of endosymbiosis
She is studying partnerships between protists that are at critical turning points in their evolutionary integration. In particular, she is looking at the Paramecium-Chlorella endosymbiosis, which can be used to study the initial integration of independent partners into an endosymbiosis, and Paulinella chromatophora, which provides unique insights into the transition from endosymbiont to organelle. Sørensen aims to uncover the molecular basis of these relationships using a variety of techniques, from state-of-the-art technologies for visualising molecules within a single cell to field samples to observe these organisms in nature. Her work will shed light on fundamental evolutionary processes that continue to shape ecosystems and life on Earth today.
About Megan Sørensen
The microbiologist Megan Sørensen received her PhD from the University of Sheffield (UK) and worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Universities of Stockholm and Uppsala (Sweden). She then worked at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf with an EMBO fellowship and a Marie Skłodowska Curie fellowship. Her research record has had broad implications for the areas of endosymbiosis and plastid evolution, and has been at the forefront of leveraging protist model systems within these areas. In 2026, Megan Sørensen will join the Centre of Microbiology and Environmental Systems Science (CeMESS) at the University of Vienna.
About ERC Starting Grants
The European Research Council (ERC) has selected 478 early-career researchers across Europe to receive this year’s Starting Grants. With a total funding of €761 million, these grants support excellent research across diverse fields, including physical sciences and engineering, life sciences, and social sciences and humanities. The backing will help researchers at the beginning of their careers to launch their own projects, build research teams and pursue their most promising ideas.
