Research

Research Priorities: Marine biology, deep-sea research, symbioses between bacteria and invertebrates, chemosynthetic symbioses, ocean biodiversity and ecology

Nicole Dubilier is a German-American marine biologist and deep-sea researcher. She studies symbioses between bacteria and marine invertebrates. Her research delivers key insights into microbial symbioses and their importance for the oceans’ ecosystem.

Nicole Dubilier investigates symbioses – different species that mutually benefit from living in a shared environment – in marine invertebrates. Such creatures include, for example, mussels and worms, which inhabit hot springs in the deep sea. These creatures host bacteria in their bodies, which in turn provide their hosts with energy and nourishment, thus helping them survive. Some hosts are so dependent on these bacteria that they can even survive without a mouth and any kind of digestive tract.

As the deep sea is a very dark environment, the symbioses are usually with what are known as chemosynthetic bacteria. Unlike plants, these bacteria can create energy without help from sunlight. Instead, they use energy sources such as methane or hydrogen sulphide. This allows the bacteria and their hosts to make extreme environments their habitat. The research of Nicole Dubilier and her team has shown that chemosynthetic symbioses are widespread in marine environments. She was the first to discover that some hosts accommodate several different symbionts, which interact in a finely coordinated manner. In recent studies she has shown that chemosynthetic symbionts can use hydrogen gas and even toxic carbon monoxide as energy sources.

Nicole Dubilier has participated in numerous expeditions at sea and led international research trips, during which, for example, deep sea hot springs were investigated using underwater robots, and gutless worms were gathered from the sands of tropical coral reefs. She uses a broad range of modern techniques in her lab work, drawing on methods from molecular biology, physiology, and image analysis.

Her research has shown how diverse chemosynthetic symbioses can be, how successful microorganisms are at obtaining numerous different hosts as partners, and how many animal species benefit from these symbioses. Nicole Dubilier wants to continue learning about these symbioses, as they play a key role in the biodiversity and ecology of oceans. In addition, research into sea creatures can help us better understand the manifold and far more complex symbioses in humans.

Career

• since 2013 Director and Head, Department of Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Bremen, Germany
• since 2012 Professor for Microbial Symbiosis, Department of Biology/Chemistry, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
• since 2012 Associate Professor, MARUM – Centre for Marine Environmental Studies, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
• 2007-2013 Head, Research Group “Symbiosis”, Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Bremen, Germany
• 2004-2005 Visiting Professor, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France
• 2002-2006 Coordinator, International Max Planck Research School of Marine Microbiology, Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Bremen, Germany
• 2001-2006 Research Associate, Department of Molecular Ecology, Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Bremen, Germany
• 1997-2001 Postdoctoral Fellow, Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Bremen, Germany
• 1995-1996 Research Assistant, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
• 1993-1995 Postdoctoral Fellow, Harvard University, Cambridge, USA
• 1992 PhD in Marine Zoology, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
• 1990-1993 Research Associate, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
• 1985 Degree in Biology, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

Functions

• since 2023 Member, Executive Committee “Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement”, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, USA
• since 2022 Member, Scientific Advisory Board, Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering, Singapore
• since 2021 Member, Scientific Advisory Board, Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies (IMEDEA), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Spain
• since 2021 Member, Presidential Committee “Governance”, Max Planck Society, Munich, Germany
• since 2020 Member, Presidential Committee “Tenure Track”, Max Planck Society, Munich, Germany
• since 2020 Member, Senate Committee “Leadership Review”, Max Planck Society, Munich, Germany
• since 2020 Member, Perspectives Committee, Biology & Medicine Section, Max Planck Society, Munich, Germany
• since 2020 Member, Scientific Council, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn Napoli, Naples, Italy
• 2020-2022 President, International Society of Microbial Ecology (ISME)
• 2018-2020 Vice-President, ISME
• since 2018 Member, Board of Trustees, GEOMAR – Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, Kiel, Germany
• since 2018 Member, Selection Committee “Alexander von Humboldt Professorships”, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Bonn, Germany
• since 2018 Member, Executive Board, International Society of Microbiology
• since 2017 Member, Board of Directors, House of Science, Bremen, Germany
• 2016-2017 Chairperson, General Meeting Planning Committee, American Society of Microbiology (ASM), USA
• 2014-2015 Vice-Chairperson, General Meeting Planning Committee, ASM, USA
• 2014-2017 Member, Presidential Committee “Junior Scientists”, Max Planck Society, Munich, Germany
• since 2010 Member, General Meeting Planning Committee, ASM, USA
• 2012-2018 Member, Steering Committee, Symposium of Aquatic Microbial Ecology (SAME), Delft, the Netherlands
• since 2008 Member, Working Group 135 “Hydrothermal Energy Transfer and its Impact on the Ocean Carbon Cycle”, Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research (SCOR), International Cooperation in Ridge-Crest Studies (InterRidge)
• since 2007 Member, Advisory Board, MARUM – Centre for Marine Environmental Studies, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
• 2005-2012 Member, Steering Committee, InterRidge
• 2005-2007 Chairperson, Biology Working Group, InterRidge
• 2006-2010 Member, Steering Committee, Census of Marine Life Project ChEss (Biogeography of Deep-Water Chemosynthetic Ecosystems)
• 2006-2008 Member, Steering Committee, European Regional Group, ChEss
• 2003-2009 Counsellor, International Symbiosis Society (ISS)
• Member, Editorial Boards: Applied and Environmental Microbiology, Environmental Microbiology, FEMS Microbial Ecology, ISME Journal, Marine Genomics, mBio

Projects

• since 2019 Vice-Spokesperson, Cluster of Excellence (EXC) 2077 “The Ocean Floor – Earth's Uncharted Interface”, German Research Foundation (DFG), Germany
• 2016-2019 Subproject “The life cycle of the deep-sea Bathymodiolus metaorganism: symbiont transmission and colonization of the host gill epithelium”, Collaborative Research Centre (CRC) 1182, DFG, Germany
• 2014-2019 Principal Investigator, Advanced Grant “BATHYBIOME The Symbiome of Bathymodiolus Mussels from Hydrothermal Vents: From the Genome to the Environment”, European Research Council (ERC)
• since 2007 EXC 309 “The Ocean in the Earth System – MARUM – Centre for Marine Environmental Studies”, DFG, Germany
• 2007-2012 Subproject “Biosignatures in precipitates and altered rocks at hydrothermal systems of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge: organic geochemistry, microbiology and petrography”, Priority Programme (PP) 1144, DFG, Germany
• 2007-2010 Subproject “Investigations on population genetics and the influence of hydrothermal activity on bivalve growth at MAR hydrothermal vents”, PP 1144, DFG, Germany
• 2004-2006 Subproject “Tectono-magmatic evolution and fluid geochemistry and biology in hydrothermal vent fields of the Mid-Atlantic between 4 and 11°S m (M64/1)”, PP 511, DFG, Germany
• 2003-2011 Subproject “Gas chemistry and carbon cycling at hydrothermal systems along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge: time- and space-referenced biogeochemical and isotopic investigations”, PP 1144, DFG, Germany
• 2003-2011 Subproject “Geobiological coupling between hydrothermal vent fluids and symbiotic primary producers at spreading axes”, PP 1144, DFG, Germany

Honurs and Memberships

• 2024 Award for Environmental Research, ASM, USA
• since 2022 Member, Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Hamburg, Germany
• 2022, 2021, 2020, 2018, 2016, 2015, 2013, 2012 Excellence Award for Teaching, International Max Planck Research School of Marine Microbiology (MarMic), Bremen, Germany
• 2020 Excellence Professor Award, Petersen Foundation, New York City, USA
• 2019 Plymouth Marine Science Medal Lecture, Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML), Plymouth, UK
• since 2018 Member, European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO)
• since 2015 Member, German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, Germany
• since 2015 Member, European Academy of Microbiology
• 2014 Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize, DFG, Germany
• 2013 Investigator Award, Marine Microbiology Initiative, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Palo Alto, USA
• since 2013  Member, American Academy of Microbiology, USA
• since 2010 Member, AcademiaNet, Swiss National Science Foundation, Switzerland