Brief summary of research over last 5 years / academic profile
Prof. Albers studies the molecular biology of Archaea. Although archaea are important players in processes on earth, like the carbon and nitrogen cycle, or the only producers of the climate gas methane, little is known about basic cellular concepts in these microorganisms. Albers studies different aspects of archaeal biology, like biofilm formation, signaling mechanisms, cell division, and the function and structure of surface appendages like pili and the archaellum, the motility structure of archaea. To study these areas of archaeal biology, she employs genetics, physiology, protein biochemistry, and structure elucidation, as well as microscopy methods at different resolutions.
International visibility, activities, prizes, scholarships etc.
Prof. Albers has developed genetic tools for thermoacidocphilic archaea, which has pushed the work on the molecular biology of archaea in general. For her commitment to understanding archaeal biology, she has been elected to the Academia Europaea, the American Academy of Microbiology, the Leopoldina (the German National Academy of Science), the European Academy of Microbiology, and EMBO. She received several grants including an ERC starting grant, a Momentum and a Life? Grant by the VW Foundation, a VENI and a VIDI grant by the Dutch Science Foundation (NOW), and several grants by the DFG (German Science Foundation). She serves on several committees and SABs and has been heading the BIO2 panel of the Belgian Science Foundation (FWO) for 5 years. Albers serves as an editorial board member of several journals including eLife, mBio, FEMS Microbiology Reviews, Frontiers of the Biology of Archaea, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, and others.
archaeaforbiotechnology.eu 