Aalborg university

Environmental Microbiology group led by prof. Per Halkjær Nielsen is part of the Center for Microbial Communities at Aalborg University, Denmark. The group studies microbial communities, interactions, and processes in the environment, both in manmade and natural systems. The main research focus of the group is the investigation of the identity, neurophysiology, and ecology of microbes found in a range of engineered habitats, as well as unraveling the diversity and activity of microbial “Dark Matter” - the undescribed majority on the planet. Our goal is to reveal the identity and function of uncultured microbes in natural and engineered systems in order to obtain a better ecosystem understanding and to carry out informed manipulations. We use state-of-the-art technologies to obtain knowledge that can be applied for sustainable development with resource recovery, bioenergy production and improvement of human health. We apply molecular tools for ecosystem screening, perform statistical analyses of factors driving community assembly, omics-related methods, and advanced microscopy and spectroscopy. Our major activity is MiDAS (Microbial Database for Activated Sludge and anaerobic digesters) - a collaboration with utilities and consultants aiming at studies of the microbiology driving resource recovery, bioenergy production, and clean water security. Throughout the years we have established a comprehensive database of microbes present in Danish wastewater treatment systems. In the past two years, we have expanded MiDAS activities to the plants from more than 30 countries across the globe (MiDAS Global), where we collaborate with researchers from around the world to reveal the diversity of microorganisms present in activated sludge and anaerobic digester ecosystems.