Dr. habil. Tim Lüddecke
is a zoologist and biochemist studying bioactive molecules from animals. His research focuses on understanding how peptides and proteins from animal venoms evolve, function and can be translated into smart biologics. Today, he leads a research group at the Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology and teaches at Justus Liebig University Giessen.
Curriculum Vitae
Bibliometric Indicators (Google Scholar May 2026) - Citations: >1200 H-index: 21 I10-index: 33
Dr. habil. Tim Lüddecke
Fraunhofer IME-BR
Ohlebergsweg 12
35392 Gießen
Germany
[email protected]
Education
Justus Liebig University of Gießen 04/2022-01/2026
Habilitation
Zoology and Biotechnology
Supervision: Prof. Dr. A. Vilcinskas
Justus Liebig University of Gießen 09/2018-03/2021
Doctor of Natural Sciences (Dr. rer. nat)
Summa cum laude
Supervision: Prof. Dr. A. Vilcinskas
Technical University of Braunschweig 04/2016-08/2018
Master of Science in Biology
Supervision: Prof. Dr. M.Vences
Technical University of Braunschweig 10/2012-04/2016
Bachelor of Science in Biology
Supervision: Prof. Dr. M. Vences
Heubach GmbH 08/2008-01/2012
Apprenticeship to Chemical Laboratory Assistant
IHK certified
Robert Bosch Comprehensive School 07/2008
Abitur
Current Position
Fraunhofer IME-BR 04/2021-Present
Research Group Leader
Justus Liebig University of Gießen 04/2021-Present
Lecturer
Institute for Insect Biotechnology
Positions Held
LOEWE-Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics 09/2018-12/2024
Project Area Speaker for Natural Product Genomics (2023-2024)
Steering Committee Member (2021-2024)
Fraunhofer IME-BR 09/2018-03/2021
PhD Candidate
Technical University of Braunschweig 04/2015-08/2018
Student Assistant
Zoological Institute, Department for Evolutionary Biology
Heubach GmbH 02/2012-09/2012
Chemical Laboratory Assistant
International Experience and Appointments
National Museum of Namibia 10/2025-Present
Affiliated Researcher
Scientific Awards
Invitee to 15th Sino-German symp. on science and technology 2025
Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
Start Up Award 2024
LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics
Alumnus of 72nd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings 2023
Physiology or Medicine
Dissertation Prize 2021
Justus-Liebig-University Gießen
Selected Independent Funding (Principal Investigator)
Individual Proposal 54504040837 2024
Giftzusammensetzung und Variation in der Milosviper €256.931
German Research Foundation (DFG)
Genome Sequencing Grant 2023
Sequencing a german reference genome of Vipera berus €3500
German Society for Herpetology and Herpetoculture
Individual Proposal 505696476 2022
Funktionsvenomik der Kreuzotter in Deutschland €219.400
German Research Foundation (DFG)
Funding (Consortium Member or Partner Investigator)
ARC Linkage Grant LP250200872 2026
Eco-friendly venom-derived pesticides targeting dipteran pests $200.000
Australian Research Council
Continuation Grant LOEWE-TBG 2021
Subproject "Animal Venomics" €15.6M (own project €800.000)
Hesse Ministry of Science and Arts
Selected Board Memberships and Positions of Trust
European Section and ECR Committee Member 2024-Present
International Society on Toxinology
First Chairman 2023-Present
German Arachnological Society
Steering Committee Member 2021-2024
LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics
Substitute Management Committee Member for Germany 2020-2021
EU COST action “European Venom Network”
Selected Services as Editor
Guest Editor 2025-Present
npj drug discovery
Editorial Board 2025-Present
Discover Toxicology
Editorial Board 2025-Present
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution
Editorial Board 2021-Present
Physiological Entomology
Editorial Board 2021-Present
Frontiers in Pharmacology
Service as Grant Reviewer
Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (AvH, Ger), Czech Science Foundation (GACR, CZ), Department for International Cooperation in Higher Education (OeAD, Aut), European Research Council (ERC), German Arachnological Society (DeArGe, Ger), National Science Foundation (NSF, USA).
Service as Journal Reviewer ( Selected from >30 Journals)
Advanced Science, BMC Biology, BMC Genomics, Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences, Communications Biology, Ecology and Evolution, eLife, Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Journal of Animal Ecology, Microbial Ecology, Molecular Biology and Evolution, Nature Communications, PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.
Selected Publications (from >80 Articles)
1. Dersch, L., J. Krämer, S. Hurka, M. Damm, O. Bolken, A. Centurion, B. Omokungbe, L. Schulte, M. Marner, K. Hardes, T.F. Schäberle, A. Vilcinskas, T. Lüddecke (2026): Vector Venom: Venomics of Aedes albopictus reveals a large enzyme repertoire and novel cecropins with activity against E. coli. npj drug discovery, 3, 7.
2. Lüddecke, T., S. Hurka, J. Dresler, T. Lübcke, V. von Wirth, G. Lochnit, T. Timm, V. Herzig, A. Vilcinskas (2025): Comparative venomics suggests an evolutionary adaption of spider venom from predation to defense. Communications Biology, 8, 1496.
3. Dersch, L., O. Bohlken, J. Krämer, L. Schulte, K. Hardes, M. Marner, T.F. Schäberle, A. Vilcinskas, T. Lüddecke (2025): Linear peptides from the venom of large marsh horsefly (Tabanus autumnalis) larvae facilitate prey capture and defense. Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology,182, 104349.
4. Peng, X., L. Dersch, J. Dresler, T. Lüddecke, T. Dederichs, P. Michalik, S. Peigneur, J. Tytgat, A. Hassan, A. Mucciolo, M. Robinson-Rechavi, G. Zancolli (2025). Beyond venomous fangs: Uloboridae spiders have lost their venom but not their toxicity. BMC Biology, 23, 159.
5. Damm, M., A. Vilcinskas, T. Lüddecke (2025): Mapping the architecture of animal toxin systems by mass spectrometry imaging. Biotechnology Advances, 108548.
6. Avella, I, L. Schulte, S. Hurka, M. Damm, J. Eichberg, S. Schüttmann, M. Henke, T. Timm, G. Lochnit, K. Hardes, A. Vilcinskas, T. Lüddecke (2024): Proteogenomics-guided functional Venomics resolves the toxin arsenal and activity of Deinagkistrodon acutus venom. International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 278(4), 135041.
7. Dresler, J., V. Herzig, A. Vilcinskas, T. Lüddecke (2024): Enlightening the toxinological dark matter of spider venom enzymes. npj biodiversity 3, 25.
8. Fischer, M.L., H. Schmidtberg, O. Tidswell, B. Weiss, L. Dersch, T. Lüddecke, N. Wielsch, M. Kaltenpoth, A. Vilcinskas, H. Vogel (2024): Divergent venom effectors correlate with ecological niche in neuropteran predators. Communications Biology 7, 981.
9. Erkoc, P., S. Schiffmann, T. Ulshöfer, M. Henke, M. Marner, J. Krämer, R. Predel, T.F. Schäberle, S. Hurka, L. Dersch, A. Vilcinskas, R. Fürst, T. Lüddecke (2024): Determining the pharmacological potential and biological role of linear pseudoscorpion toxins via functional profiling. iScience, 110209.
10. Lüddecke, T., V. Herzig, B. M. von Reumont, A. Vilcinskas (2022): The biology and evolution of spider venoms. Biological Reviews 97: 163-178.
Selected Invited Talks (from >35 Presentations)
1. Lüddecke, T. (2026): Animal Venom - from evolutionary innovation to translational application. Invited talk to zoological seminar at Masaryk University (Brno, Czech Republic).
2. Lüddecke, T. (2026): Modern Venomics: integration of multi-omics and synthetic biology as a tool to discover novel chemistry in small invertebrates. Invited talk at 38th Irsee Natural Product Symposium (Irsee, Germany).
3. Lüddecke, T. (2025): Functional venomics-guided insights into the evolution and chemical diversity of spider venoms. Invited talk at 32nd meeting of the French Society of Toxinology SFET (Nice, France).
4. Lüddecke, T. (2025): Evolutionary adaption of spider venom from predation to defense. Invited talk at Venom and Saliva Unleashed Symposium (Amsterdam, Netherlands).
5. Lüddecke, T. (2025): Tiergifte als Quelle biomolekularer Innovation. Invited talk at die Farben der Biotechnologie conference (Gießen, Germany).
6. Lüddecke, T. (2025): Tiergifte: Wie tödliche Toxine zur Medizin von Morgen werden. Invited talk at Karl-von-Frisch Preisverleihung (Marburg, Germany).
7. Lüddecke, T. (2023): A bird´s eye perspective on venom biotechnology. Invited talk at Interdisciplinary Summer School on Snakebite Envenoming of the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (Hamburg, Germany).
8. Lüddecke, T. (2023): Heilende Gifte: Wie die tödlichsten Waffen des Tierreichs zu der Medizin von morgen werden. Invited talk at Tiere in der Medizin (Greifswald/ Germany).
9. Lüddecke, T. (2022): Harnessing novel bioresources from venoms of small arachnids. Invited talk at 21st World Congress of the International Society on Toxinology 2022 (Abu Dhabi/ United Arab Emirates).
10. Lüddecke, T. (2021): Many-legged assassins and master chemists: understanding arthropod venoms as a source for biomolecular innovation. Keynote talk to the Ento21 conference of the Royal Entomological Society (online).
Memberships in Scientific Associations
Asian Society for Arachnology (ASA), German Society for Arachnology (DeArGe), International Society on Toxinology (IST); European Federation of Biotechnology, German Society for Herpetology and Herpetoculture (DGHT), VIPERA e.V. .