Christian Mayer
Max Planck Research Group Leader · Martinsried, Munich
christian.mayer@bi.mpg.de · Curriculum vitae (PDF) · ORCID · Google Scholar
I am a developmental neuroscientist studying how inhibitory neurons acquire their identities and become part of brain circuits. My background combines mouse genetics, developmental neurobiology and single-cell genomics. Since 2018, I have led an independent Max Planck Research Group in Martinsried, where we develop experimental and computational approaches to connect gene regulation, cell lineage and neuronal differentiation.
The group is based at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, formerly the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology.
Our research · The group · Publications
Teaching and mentoring
I teach the Neurogenesis and Axonogenesis lectures in the GSN core curriculum, a graduate course on gene-regulatory mechanisms in brain development, a week-long practical course on perturbation sequencing, and a graded master’s seminar at LMU’s Faculty of Biology. I have served on ten thesis advisory committees at LMU and TUM.
Since 2018, two doctoral researchers have completed their PhDs in the group, and two doctoral projects are ongoing. The group has also supported the training of three postdoctoral researchers and eleven bachelor’s and master’s students. Our mentoring practices include weekly individual meetings and regular discussions of research and literature.
I am a faculty member of four graduate schools:
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences (GSN), LMU Munich (since 2018)
- IMPRS for Biological Intelligence, formerly Brain, Behavior and Imaging (since 2018)
- IMPRS for Molecular Life Sciences (since 2019)
- IMPRS for Translational Psychiatry (since 2026)
Positions and education
| Period | Position |
|---|---|
| Since 2018 | Max Planck Research Group Leader, Free-Floater Programme, Martinsried |
| 2017–2018 | Postdoctoral researcher, Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Boston; Gord Fishell |
| 2015–2018 | Guest scientist, New York Genome Center; Rahul Satija |
| 2012–2017 | Postdoctoral researcher, NYU Neuroscience Institute / NYU Langone Medical Center; Gord Fishell |
| 2007–2011 | Doctoral research, Center for Molecular Neurobiology Hamburg (ZMNH), University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf; Ulrich Boehm. Dr. rer. nat., University of Hamburg, 2011 |
| 2001–2006 | Diploma in Biology, University of Konstanz; Erasmus exchange at the University of Milan, 2004 |
Selected funding and distinctions
Current support
| Organisation | Programme | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Max Planck Society | Max Planck Research Group, Free-Floater Programme | Since 2018 |
| Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft | Research Grant MA 8481/2-1 | 2025–2028 |
| EMBO | Young Investigator Programme | 2023–2026 |
| SFARI, Simons Foundation | Pilot Award | 2025–2027 |
| Nancy Lurie Marks Family Foundation | Research Grant | 2025–2027 |
Previous funding and distinctions
| Organisation | Award or programme | Year or period |
|---|---|---|
| European Research Council | Starting Grant 803984 | 2019–2024 |
| EMBO | Long-Term Fellowship | 2012–2014 |
| University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf | Gebhard Koch Doctoral Prize for Cell Biochemistry and Neurobiology | 2011 |
Scientific service
I co-edited the Developmental Patterning and Evolution issue of Current Opinion in Genetics & Development (2026) and served on the international jury for the PEPR Cell-ID programme, France 2030 / ANR (2026). Since 2022, I have co-organised the institute’s Keynote Lecture Series and Emerging Scientist Series, which I co-founded. I have been a member of the Animal Welfare Commission of the MPI for Biological Intelligence and the MPI of Biochemistry since 2023.
I review research proposals for the ERC, ANR, DFG, SNSF, FWO, ISF and EMBO, and manuscripts for journals published by Cell Press and Nature Portfolio.