Prokaryotic microorganisms are the oldest, most abundant, and most diverse life forms on Earth, driving essential global processes. A large fraction of these organisms remains uncultured using traditional methods, constituting a vast ‘Microbial Dark Matter’ – a reservoir of hidden metabolic potential and ecological roles. The Kaster lab addresses this challenge by integrating single-cell, population, and community sequencing with bioinformatics and artificial intelligence tools.

Our research aims to reveal the contributions of Microbial Dark Matter to biogeochemical cycles and unlock its catabolic abilities for biotechnological innovation. Current projects focus on bioenergy transformation by coupling sequencing in our single-cell genomics facility with bioprocessing and tailored bioinformatics. We also employ AI‑driven pattern recognition in the DNA sequence space to illuminate functional dark matter for the discovery of novel biocatalysts.