Backed by a grant of DKK 40 million, Professor Lars Nielsen is to lead a team of researchers at
DTU Biosustain over the coming seven years.
Professor Lars Nielsen, one of the foremost researchers in developing tools for analysing and designing complex biological systems, is to relocate his research activities from the University of Queensland in Australia to DTU Biosustain in Denmark. The move follows the decision by the Novo Nordisk Foundation to award him a Laureate Research Grant in the amount of DKK 40 million over the next seven years.
The purpose of the grant is to attract some of the world’s leading researchers in the areas of biomedicine and biotechnology to Denmark, thereby reinforcing Danish research as a whole.
“Taking on Professor Lars Nielsen makes DTU an even more attractive workplace for the leading minds in the world in the field of biotechnology, and means that DTU will be viewed as an even more attractive partner for leading international universities and biotech companies,” says Henrik Wegener, Provost.
In taking the job at DTU, Lars Nielsen will be returning to the place where it all began. It was 25 years ago that he studied biochemical engineering here, nurturing expectations of finding work with Novo after completing his studies. However, he first travelled to Australia to put the finishing touches to his final project which centred on animal cell cultures.
Lars Nielsen was so enthralled by the field that he went on to write his PhD on the topic. He will soon be back at DTU again to work on the same problem at DTU Biosustain, which is financed by the Novo Nordisk Foundation.
Unique model
“The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, DTU has created a unique model for bringing together leading researchers in the field of metabolic engineering with the objective of developing new strategies that promote and reduce the cost of developing cell factories,” says Lars Nielsen.
He goes on to explain that the primary goal of his research will be to produce comprehensive models for explaining a major change in the metabolism of cancer cells, which also occur when culturing mammalian cells in the laboratory.
The ultimate aim is to attempt to understand the molecular and metabolic differences between cancer cells and healthy cells. To tackle this assignment, Lars Nielsen will be setting up a strong research team that can help him develop a detailed model of how cancer cells and other fast-growing cells generate lactic acid.
The professor will be taking up his new position in June 2015, and will be working at the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology until DTU Biosustain moves into new facilities in Building 220 towards the end of next year. The team will, however, be set up in the centre’s existing buildings during the autumn.
Article in DTUavisen no. 3, March 2015.