With effect from 15 September, Wageningen University, a part of Wageningen UR, has appointed Dr Bas Zwaan as Professor of Genetics. Professor Zwaan, currently associate professor of Evolutionary Biology at Leiden University, succeeds Professor Rolf Hoekstra who retired in February 2010.
Within his teaching mandate, Prof. Zwaan will focus on teaching the fundamentals and principles of genetics and on research into the genetics of evolutionary changes. In the research programme, he will concentrate on the interplay of mutation, genetic drift and natural selection in order to gain a better understanding of evolutionary changes from the past and to better predict them in the future. It is especially the mechanisms of adaptations that will take centre stage.
Bastiaan Johannes (Bas) Zwaan (Papendrecht, 1965) studied biology at the University of Groningen and received his doctorate there in 1993 when his predecessor Rolf Hoekstra was one of his supervisors. He graduated and took his doctoral degree with distinction. After taking his doctorate, he became a postgraduate researcher at University College in London and later he was a researcher, lecturer and associate professor within the Evolutionary Biology group at the University of Leiden. For his work, he was able to secure a number of external grants, especially for his research into the evolution of life histories and life span and ageing. He will continue his research into the interactions between genetics and the environment and the influence on ageing in Wageningen. He has also been a frequent publisher. Professor Zwaan is a member of the Editorial Board of several scientific journals and is a Council Member of the European Society for Evolutionary Biology.