Many non-model microbes have been identified as having great potential for biotechnology, such as in bioplastic production or alternative energy sources. Some microbes are particularly interesting because of their ability to thrive on waste and produce useful products. Frequently, however, the bottleneck for such enterprises is the lack of knowledge on how to enhance production by controlled gene expression. I have developed a biotechnological method (patent application number WO 2023/021108 A1) which will allow control over gene expression in any bacterium.

I am looking for partners in Australia who have a useful microbe, or consortium of microbes, and would like to cooperate with me to apply my biotechnological invention to enhance production performance from waste during fermentation.

I lead a small research group within the Institute for microbiology and molecular biology at the Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany. I am an Australian who has been living in Germany for the past 18 years. My group loves to discover new ways to control gene expression in all sorts of different bacteria, from Cupriavidus necator (model for bioplastic (PHA) production) to Rhodobacter sphaeroides and various other Alphaproteobacteria that are of industrial interest, as well as newly isolated microbes from various waste sources.