Jennifer uses genetic engineering and synthetic biology to enhance microbial metabolism for polymer production and other biotechnological applications
Jennifer had the opportunity to work on research projects both in Europe and Australia. In 2020, she earned her bachelor’s degree from Maastricht University in the Netherlands, where she followed the Maastricht Science programme with a focus on molecular biology. This interdisciplinary curriculum allowed her to explore diverse subjects such as biobased materials, biotechnology, metabolomics, and synthetic biology. Following her bachelor's degree, she pursued a two-year master’s program in Molecular Genetics and Biotechnology at Leiden University. The program emphasized practical experience, requiring two mandatory research projects alongside regular coursework. For her first project, she joined the Department of Molecular Biotechnology at the Institute of Biology in Leiden, where she worked on genetically engineering Streptomyces peucetius to produce N,N-dimethyldoxorubicin, a less toxic analogue of the widely used anticancer drug doxorubicin. For her second project, she joined the Department of Microbial Catalysis at the Forschungszentrum Jülich in Germany. Here, her research focused on metabolically engineering Pseudomonas taiwanensis to optimize the production of t-cinnamate and styrene, aiming to develop a more sustainable alternative to conventional styrene-based polymers. Jennifer also participated in the 2022 iGEM competition, the world’s largest synthetic biology student competition. The team’s project focused on engineering E. coli to produce bimetallic urchin-like nanoparticles for the use in photothermal therapy to treat head and neck cancer. Jennifer's current PhD research at AIBN focuses on genetically engineering Pseudomonas putida to metabolize lignin-derived monomers as a carbon source. The goal is to develop renewable aromatic monomers for VectranTM, a high-performance fiber traditionally derived from petrochemical sources.
Collaborations
Jennifer is pursuing her PhD under the joint supervision of Dr. Birgitta Ebert (AIBN) and Dr. Muxina Konarova (School of Chemical Engineering). Since lignin is used as a carbon feedstock, the extraction from biomass and lignin depolymerization will be done by the collaborator at the School of Chemical Engineering.