I am a basic science researcher trained in molecular and cell biology, with expertise in transdisciplinary research. My primary focus is investigating the circadian aspects of (patho-) physiology, specifically in relation to the liver. I am particularly interested in understanding how circadian, endocrine, and metabolic pathways work together to maintain homeostasis, as well as how disruptions in these pathways can contribute to pathological conditions.
Following the completion of my PhD at Heidelberg University in Germany in 2013, I pursued post-doctoral studies as a Marie-Curie Fellow at Birmingham University (UK) and École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (Switzerland). During this time, I utilized omics-approaches to elucidate the metabolic changes caused by impaired mitochondrial glucocorticoid biosynthesis and adrenal insufficiency. Additionally, I investigated the relationship between mitochondrial function and stress-induced depression. In order to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying rhythmic expression of metabolic genes, I also developed tools that facilitate the study of how circadian clock components and glucocorticoids cooperatively drive these processes.
In 2019, I have joined the Physiology of Circadian Rhythms laboratory at the Institute of Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, to investigate the role of the circadian clock and chronodisruption in metabolism and liver disease.
Journal Article: Understanding circadian dynamics: current progress and future directions for chronobiology in drug discovery
Weger, Meltem, Weger, Benjamin D. and Gachon, Frédéric (2023). Understanding circadian dynamics: current progress and future directions for chronobiology in drug discovery. Expert Opinion on Drug Discovery, 18 (8), 893-901. doi: 10.1080/17460441.2023.2224554
Journal Article: Multiomics reveals multilevel control of renal and systemic metabolism by the renal tubular circadian clock
Bignon, Yohan, Wigger, Leonore, Ansermet, Camille, Weger, Benjamin D., Lagarrigue, Sylviane, Centeno, Gabriel, Durussel, Fanny, Götz, Lou, Ibberson, Mark, Pradervand, Sylvain, Quadroni, Manfredo, Weger, Meltem, Amati, Francesca, Gachon, Frédéric and Firsov, Dmitri (2023). Multiomics reveals multilevel control of renal and systemic metabolism by the renal tubular circadian clock. Journal of Clinical Investigation, 133 (8) e167133, 1-17. doi: 10.1172/JCI167133
Other Outputs: A role for caveolar proteins in regulation of the circadian clock
Fonseka, Sachini, Weger, Benjamin D., Weger, Meltem, Martel, Nick, Hall, Thomas Edward, Varasteh Moradi, Shayli, Gabriel, Christian H., Kramer, Achim, Ferguson, Charles, Fernández-Rojo, Manuel A., Alexandrov, Kirill, Rawashdeh, Oliver, McMahon, Kerrie-Ann, Gachon, Frederic and Parton, Robert G. (2022). A role for caveolar proteins in regulation of the circadian clock.
Host-Microbe Interactions and the circadian clock in Liver Disease
Doctor Philosophy
Weger, Meltem, Weger, Benjamin D. and Gachon, Frédéric (2023). Understanding circadian dynamics: current progress and future directions for chronobiology in drug discovery. Expert Opinion on Drug Discovery, 18 (8), 893-901. doi: 10.1080/17460441.2023.2224554
Bignon, Yohan, Wigger, Leonore, Ansermet, Camille, Weger, Benjamin D., Lagarrigue, Sylviane, Centeno, Gabriel, Durussel, Fanny, Götz, Lou, Ibberson, Mark, Pradervand, Sylvain, Quadroni, Manfredo, Weger, Meltem, Amati, Francesca, Gachon, Frédéric and Firsov, Dmitri (2023). Multiomics reveals multilevel control of renal and systemic metabolism by the renal tubular circadian clock. Journal of Clinical Investigation, 133 (8) e167133, 1-17. doi: 10.1172/JCI167133
Jouffe, Céline, Weger, Benjamin D., Martin, Eva, Atger, Florian, Weger, Meltem, Gobet, Cédric, Ramnath, Divya, Charpagne, Aline, Morin-Rivron, Delphine, Powell, Elizabeth E., Sweet, Matthew J., Masoodi, Mojgan, Uhlenhaut, N. Henriette and Gachon, Frédéric (2022). Disruption of the circadian clock component BMAL1 elicits an endocrine adaption impacting on insulin sensitivity and liver disease. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119 (10) e2200083119, e2200083119. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2200083119
Weger, Meltem, Weger, Benjamin D. and Gachon, Frédéric (2022). The mechanisms and physiological consequences of diurnal hepatic cell size fluctuations: a brief review. Cellular Physiology and Biochemistry, 56 (S2), 1-11. doi: 10.33594/000000489
Weger, Benjamin D., Gobet, Cédric, David, Fabrice P. A., Atger, Florian, Martin, Eva, Phillips, Nicholas E., Charpagne, Aline, Weger, Meltem, Naef, Felix and Gachon, Frédéric (2021). Systematic analysis of differential rhythmic liver gene expression mediated by the circadian clock and feeding rhythms. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118 (3) e2015803118, 1-12. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2015803118
Weger, Meltem, Alpern, Daniel, Cherix, Antoine, Ghosal, Sriparna, Grosse, Jocelyn, Russeil, Julie, Gruetter, Rolf, de Kloet, E Ronald, Deplancke, Bart and Sandi, Carmen (2020). Mitochondrial gene signature in the prefrontal cortex for differential susceptibility to chronic stress. Scientific Reports, 10 (1) 18308, 1-15. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-75326-9
Weger, Meltem, Weger, Benjamin D, Schink, Andrea, Takamiya, Masanari, Stegmaier, Johannes, Gobet, Cédric, Parisi, Alice, Kobitski, Andrei Yu, Mertes, Jonas, Krone, Nils, Strähle, Uwe, Nienhaus, Gerd Ulrich, Mikut, Ralf, Gachon, Frédéric, Gut, Philipp and Dickmeis, Thomas (2020). MondoA regulates gene expression in cholesterol biosynthesis-associated pathways required for zebrafish epiboly. eLife, 9 e57068, 1-35. doi: 10.7554/elife.57068
Papilloud, Aurélie, Weger, Meltem, Bacq, Alexandre, Zalachoras, Ioannis, Hollis, Fiona, Larrieu, Thomas, Battivelli, Dorian, Grosse, Jocelyn, Zanoletti, Olivia, Parnaudeau, Sébastien, Tronche, François and Sandi, Carmen (2020). The glucocorticoid receptor in the nucleus accumbens plays a crucial role in social rank attainment in rodents. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 112 104538, 104538. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2019.104538
Weger, Meltem, Weger, Benjamin D., Goerling, Benjamin, Poschet, Gernot, Yildiz, Melek, Hell, Ruediger, Luy, Burkhard, Akcay, Teoman, Guran, Tulay, Dickmeis, Thomas, Mueller, Ferenc and Krone, Nils (2018). Glucocorticoid deficiency causes transcriptional and post-transcriptional reprogramming of glutamine metabolism. EBioMedicine, 36, 376-389. doi: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2018.09.024
Weger, M., Diotel, N., Weger, B. D., Beil, T., Zaucker, A., Eachus, H. L., Oakes, J. A., do Rego, J. L., Storbeck, K. -H., Gut, P., Straehle, U., Rastegar, S., Mueller, F. and Krone, N. (2018). Expression and activity profiling of the steroidogenic enzymes of glucocorticoid biosynthesis and the fdx1 co-factors in zebrafish. Journal of Neuroendocrinology, 30 (4) e12586, e12586. doi: 10.1111/jne.12586
High anxiety trait: a vulnerable phenotype for stress-induced depression
Weger, Meltem and Sandi, Carmen (2018). High anxiety trait: a vulnerable phenotype for stress-induced depression. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 87, 27-37. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.01.012
Weger, Meltem, Sevelinges, Yannick, Grosse, Jocelyn, de Suduiraut, Isabelle Guillot, Zanoletti, Olivia and Sandi, Carmen (2018). Increased brain glucocorticoid actions following social defeat in rats facilitates the long-term establishment of social subordination. Physiology and Behavior, 186, 31-36. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2018.01.008
Genetic disruption of 21-hydroxylase in zebrafish causes interrenal hyperplasia
Eachus, Helen, Zaucker, Andreas, Oakes, James A., Griffin, Aliesha, Weger, Meltem, Guran, Tulay, Taylor, Angela, Harris, Abigail, Greenfield, Andy, Quanson, Jonathan L., Storbeck, Karl-Heinz, Cunliffe, Vincent T., Muller, Ferenc and Krone, Nils (2017). Genetic disruption of 21-hydroxylase in zebrafish causes interrenal hyperplasia. Endocrinology, 158 (12), 4165-4173. doi: 10.1210/en.2017-00549
Stem cells and the circadian clock
Weger, Meltem, Diotel, Nicolas, Dorsemans, Anne-Claire, Dickmeis, Thomas and Weger, Benjamin D. (2017). Stem cells and the circadian clock. Developmental Biology, 431 (2), 111-123. doi: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2017.09.012
Impaired constitutive and regenerative neurogenesis in adult hyperglycemic zebrafish
Dorsemans, Anne-Claire, Soule, Stephanie, Weger, Meltem, Bourdon, Emmanuel, d'Hellencourt, Christian Lefebvre, Meilhac, Olivier and Diotel, Nicolas (2017). Impaired constitutive and regenerative neurogenesis in adult hyperglycemic zebrafish. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 525 (3), 442-458. doi: 10.1002/cne.24065
Extensive regulation of diurnal transcription and metabolism by glucocorticoids
Weger, Benjamin D., Weger, Meltem, Goerling, Benjamin, Schink, Andrea, Gobet, Cedric, Keime, Celine, Poschet, Gernot, Jost, Bernard, Krone, Nils, Hell, Ruediger, Gachon, Frederic, Luy, Burkhard and Dickmeis, Thomas (2016). Extensive regulation of diurnal transcription and metabolism by glucocorticoids. PLoS Genetics, 12 (12) e1006512, e1006512. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1006512
Griffin, Aliesha, Parajes, Silvia, Weger, Meltem, Zaucker, Andreas, Taylor, Angela E., O'Neil, Donna M., Mueller, Ferenc and Krone, Nils (2016). Ferredoxin 1b (Fdx1b) is the essential mitochondrial redox partner for cortisol biosynthesis in zebrafish. Endocrinology, 157 (3), 1122-1134. doi: 10.1210/en.2015-1480
Glycolysis supports embryonic muscle growth by promoting myoblast fusion
Tixier, Vanessa, Bataille, Laetitia, Etard, Christelle, Jagla, Teresa, Weger, Meltem, DaPonte, Jean Philippe, Straehle, Uwe, Dickmeis, Thomas and Jagla, Krzysztof (2013). Glycolysis supports embryonic muscle growth by promoting myoblast fusion. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 110 (47), 18982-18987. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1301262110
The circadian clock and glucocorticoids - Interactions across many time scales
Dickmeis, Thomas, Weger, Benjamin D. and Weger, Meltem (2013). The circadian clock and glucocorticoids - Interactions across many time scales. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, 380 (1-2), 2-15. doi: 10.1016/j.mce.2013.05.012
Weger, Benjamin D., Weger, Meltem, Jung, Nicole, Lederer, Christin, Braese, Stefan and Dickmeis, Thomas (2013). A chemical screening procedure for glucocorticoid signaling with a zebrafish larva luciferase reporter system. Journal of Visualized Experiments (79) e50439. doi: 10.3791/50439
Weger, Meltem, Weger, Benjamin D., Diotel, Nicolas, Rastegar, Sepand, Hirota, Tsuyoshi, Kay, Steve A., Straehle, Uwe and Dickmeis, Thomas (2013). Real-time in vivo monitoring of circadian E-box enhancer activity: a robust and sensitive zebrafish reporter line for developmental, chemical and neural biology of the circadian clock. Developmental Biology, 380 (2), 259-273. doi: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2013.04.035
A chemical screening system for glucocorticoid stress hormone signaling in an intact vertebrate
Weger, Benjamin D., Weger, Meltem, Nusser, Michael, Brenner-Weiss, Gerald and Dickmeis, Thomas (2012). A chemical screening system for glucocorticoid stress hormone signaling in an intact vertebrate. ACS Chemical Biology, 7 (7), 1178-1183. doi: 10.1021/cb3000474
The light responsive transcriptome of the zebrafish: function and regulation
Weger, Benjamin D., Sahinbas, Meltem, Otto, Georg W., Mracek, Philipp, Armant, Olivier, Dolle, Dirk, Lahiri, Kajori, Vallone, Daniela, Ettwiller, Laurence, Geisler, Robert, Foulkes, Nicholas S. and Dickmeis, Thomas (2011). The light responsive transcriptome of the zebrafish: function and regulation. PloS One, 6 (2) e17080, e17080. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0017080
A role for caveolar proteins in regulation of the circadian clock
Fonseka, Sachini, Weger, Benjamin D., Weger, Meltem, Martel, Nick, Hall, Thomas Edward, Varasteh Moradi, Shayli, Gabriel, Christian H., Kramer, Achim, Ferguson, Charles, Fernández-Rojo, Manuel A., Alexandrov, Kirill, Rawashdeh, Oliver, McMahon, Kerrie-Ann, Gachon, Frederic and Parton, Robert G. (2022). A role for caveolar proteins in regulation of the circadian clock.
Host-Microbe Interactions and the circadian clock in Liver Disease
Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors: