Abel VERTESY

Abel VERTESY

  • Postdoc
  • Research Knoblich

Former and Current Positions

  • 2019-2025 – Postdoctoral Researcher, Knoblich Group, IMBA, Vienna

  • 2013–2018 – Ph.D. Researcher, van Oudenaarden Group, Hubrecht Institute, Utrecht

  • 2011-2013 – Master in Systems Biology, University of Heidelberg

  • 2006-2010 – Bachelor Thesis Student, Müller Group, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest

Academic Honors and Awards

  • ISSCR Abstract merit award (2024)
  • EMBO Long-Term Fellowship LTF1112 (2019)
  • Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship 898231 (2019)
  • EMBO Short-Term Fellowship STF7133 (2017)
  • Curie-Hubrecht Grant (2017)
  • BioQuant Scholarship (2013)
  • DAAD Postgraduate Scholarship (2012)
  • Baden-Württemberg State Scholarship (2011)
  • Erasmus Scholarship (2009)

Research Projects

Synaptic connectivity mapping in human cortical organoids 

We developed a sequencing-based method to map synaptic connections in brain organoids at single-cell resolution. By combining barcoded rabies tracing with transcriptomics, we uncovered connectivity patterns of neuronal identity and discovered wiring defects in a Tuberous Sclerosis model. This work establishes a scalable approach to study how genetic or developmental perturbations reshape human neural networks.

Identifying metabolically stressed cells in brain organoids

Organoids are known to suffer from metabolic stress, which distorts interpretation. It was unclear, if this was a global effect, or only affecting a subset of cells. We introduced Gruffi, the first tool to detect and filter stressed cells directly from single-cell datasets, without the need for special experimental setups. Now widely adopted, this approach enhances the accuracy of organoid studies and sets a standard for addressing metabolic artifacts in 3D neural models.