Wageningen University & Research
Wageningen University and Research (Wageningen UR) is a leading international organization in the life sciences, particularly in the field of healthy nutrition and living environment. With 6,500 employees and 10,000 students from more than 100 countries, Wageningen UR is a truly international organisation operating across the world. The scientific quality of research performed at Wageningen UR is evidenced by several international rankings and citation indices. The quality of Wageningen University as an institute of academic education is shown by its repeated top rank in the Netherlands for several studies, including biology.
Research within the Laboratory of Genetics centers around the interrelationship between genetics, heredity and evolution, and takes place within the Department of Plant Sciences. Current research addresses the following three themes: (1) Generating variation; (2) Genetics and levels of selection, and (3) Genetics of adaptations. A range of experimental model systems are used, including bacteria, fungi, plants and insects. The group of Prof Arjan de Visser uses the approach of microbial experimental evolution to address fundamental evolutionary questions. A major recent line of research involves the evolution of antibiotic resistance, particularly beta-lactams.