EMBO Grant for Dr Ludwik Gąsiorowski to build a laboratory for research on flatworm regeneration

22 01 2026

Dr Ludwik Gąsiorowski from the Institute of Evolutionary Biology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, has received funding under the prestigious EMBO Installation Grant (European Molecular Biology Organization) for the project entitled: “Evolution of molecular, morphological, and physiological complexity in microscopic animals.”

As part of the project, Dr Gąsiorowski will study flatworms as a group that is an exception to

the common belief that the evolution of microscopic body size is linked to morphological simplification, which leads to the loss of many genes that become unnecessary from a developmental point of view.

This concept assumes that microscopic organisms should have a simple body plan and reduced genomes. In this view, miniaturisation is seen as a one-way and irreversible evolutionary process that results in a permanent loss of morphological and genetic complexity. However, unlike in some animal groups such as annelids or molluscs, flatworms show the opposite trend: despite earlier miniaturisation, evolution has repeatedly produced life forms with large body size.

The aim of Dr Gąsiorowski’s research is to understand the processes in flatworms at the level of the genome, embryonic development, and body organisation that enabled them to “escape” the one-way evolutionary trap of miniaturisation.

EMBO is an international organisation bringing together more than 2,100 outstanding researchers in molecular biology. Each year, early-career scientists from the Czech Republic, Estonia, Croatia, Greece, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Montenegro, Poland, Portugal, and Türkiye can apply for EMBO Installation Grants.

EMBO Installation Grants, worth EUR 50,000 per year, support young scientists in establishing an independent research group and building their own laboratory. In this year’s edition, 10 early-career scientists from 9 countries were selected.

We warmly congratulate Dr Gąsiorowski on receiving the grant and wish him every success in carrying out the research project.

Details: www.embo.org/press-releases/ten-scientists-awarded-embo-installation-grants-2026