Nicole Poulsen
I am a marine phycologist whose primary interest is the cell biology of diatoms. My research focuses on understanding how some diatoms are able to stick to virtually any surface underwater and achieve their remarkable gliding motility.
Qualifications
PhD in Marine Botany, University of Melbourne, Australia, 2000
BSc. (Hons) in Science, University of Melbourne, Australia, 1996
Experience
2001-2004 PostDoc, University of Regensburg, Germany
2005-2012 Research Scientist II, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA
2012- Senior Scientist, TU Dresden, Germany
Teaching
Biochemistry Masters' Program
Gene Expression and Manipulation
Functional Biological Materials
Funding
2010-2016 Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR)
Molecular Mechanism of Diatom Adhesion
2018-2022 Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)
The molecular basis of diatom adhesion and motility
2022-2025 Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG): PoL Nucleation grant together with Prof. Stefan Diez
Acto-myosin cooperativity and regulation underlying the gliding motility of diatoms
2025
Dynamic switching of cell-substrate contact sites allows gliding diatoms to modulate the curvature of their paths
S. Golfier, V. F. Geyer, N. Poulsen*, S. Diez*
bioRxiv.2025.03.18.643962 (2025)
2024
Gliding motility of the diatom Craspedostauros australis coincides with the intracellular movement of raphid-specific myosins
M. G. Davutoglu, V. F. Geyer, L. Niese, J. R. Soltwedel, M. L. Zoccoler, V. Sabatino, R. Haase, N. Kröger, S. Diez*, N.Poulsen*
Commun Biol 7, 1187 (2024)
2023
Diatom adhesive trail proteins acquired by horizontal gene transfer from bacteria serve as primers for marine biofilm formation
J. Zackova Suchanova, G. Bilcke, B. Romanowska, A. Fatlawi, M. Pippel, A. Skeffington, M. Schroeder, W. Vyverman, K. Vandepoele, N. Kröger, N. Poulsen
New Phytologist 240, 770-783 (2023)
Thalassiosira pseudonana (Cyclotella nana) (Hustedt) Hasle et Heimdal (Bacillariophyceae): A genetically tractable model organism for studying diatom biology, including biological silica formation
N. Poulsen, N. Kröger
J. Phycol. early view (2023)
On the role of cell surface associated, mucin-like glycoproteins in the pennate diatom Craspedostauros australis (Bacillariophyceae)*
N. Poulsen, H. Hennig, V. F. Geyer, S. Diez, R. Wetherbee, S. Fitz-Gibbon, M. Pellegrini, N. Kröger
J. Phycol. 59, 54-69 (2023)
2022
Shedding light on silica biomineralization by comparative analysis of the silica-associated proteomes from three diatom species
Skeffington, A*., Gentzel, M., Ohara, A., Milentyev, A., Heintze, C. Böttcher, L., Görlich, S. Shevchenko, A., Poulsen, N., Kröger, N*.
Plant J. 110, 1700-1716 (2022).
Chapter 14: Adhesion and motility
Poulsen, N., Davutoglu, M.G., Zackova Suchanova, J.
The Molecular Life of Diatoms, (eds Falciatore, A., Mock, T.) Springer (in press)
2021
Diurnal transcript profiling of the diatom Seminavis robusta reveals adaptations to a benthic lifestyle
Bilcke, G., Osuna-Cruz, C.M., Santana Silva, M., Poulsen, N., D’hondt, S., Bulankova, P., Vyverman, W., De Veylder, L. and Vandepoele, K.
The Plant Journal (2021)107,315–336
2020
Chitin synthase localization in the diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana
M. Wustman, N. Poulsen, N. Kröger, K. H. van Pée
BMC Materials 2, Article number: 10, 2020.
The Seminavis robusta genome provides insights into the evolutionary adaptations of benthic diatoms
C. Osuna-Cruz et al.
Nature Communications, 11, Article: 3320, 2020.
Mating type specific transcriptomic response to sex inducing pheromone in the pennate diatom Seminavis robusta
G. Bilcke, K. Van den Berge, S. De Decker, E. Bonneure, N. Poulsen, P. Bulankova, C. M. Osuna-Cruz, J. Dickenson, K. Sabbe, G. Pohnert, K. Vandepoele, S. Mangelinckx, L. Clement, L. De Veylder, W. Vyverman
ISME Journal (2020)
Genetically Programmed Regioselective Immobilization of Enzymes in Biosilica Microparticles
E. Kumari, S. Görlich, N. Poulsen, N. Kröger
Adv. Funct. Mater., 30, 2000442, 2020.
2019
Identification of proteins in the adhesive trails of the diatom Amphora coffeaeformis
M. Lachnit, M.T. Buhmann, J. Klemm, N. Kröger, N. Poulsen*
Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B., 374: 20190196, 2019.
2018
Biomineralization as a paradigm of directional solidification: A physical model for molluscan shell ultrastructural morphogenesis
V. Schoeppler, L. Gránásy, E. Reich, N. Poulsen, R. de Kloe, P. Cook, A. Rack, T. Pusztai, I. Zlotnikov*
Adv. Mater. 30 , 1803855, 2018.
2016
Establishing super-resolution imaging for proteins in diatom biosilica
P. Gröger, N. Poulsen, J. Klemm, N. Kröger, M. Schlierf
Scientific Reports 6, Article number: 36824, 2016.
Biochemical composition and assembly of biosilica-associated insoluble organic matrices from the diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana
A. Kotzsch, D. Pawolski, A. Milentyev, Anna Shevchenko, A. Scheffel, N. Poulsen, Andrej Shevchenko, N. Kröger
J. Biol. Chem. 291, 4982-4997, 2016.
2014
A Tyrosine-rich Cell Surface Protein in the Diatom Amphora coffeaeformis identified through Transcriptome Analysis and Genetic Transformation
M. T. Buhmann, N. Poulsen, J. Klemm, M. R. Kennedy, C. D. Sherrill, N. Kröger
PLOS ONE 9, e110369, 2014.
Isolation and biochemical characterization of underwater adhesives from diatoms
N. Poulsen*, N. Kröger , M. J. Harrington, E. Brunner, S. Paasch and M. T. Buhmann
Biofouling 30, 513-523, 2014.
2013
Nitrate and carbonate concentration for high glucose content in microalgae
N. Kröger, S. J. Miller, N. Poulsen
US patent US8569040 B1 (approved).
Pentalysine clusters mediate silica targeting of silaffins in Thalassiosira pseudonana
N. Poulsen, A. Scheffel, V. C. Sheppard, P. M. Chesley, N. Kröger
J. Biol Chem. 288, 20100-20109, 2013.
2012
Live Diatom Silica Immobilization of Multimeric and Redox-active Enzymes
V. C. Sheppard, A. Scheffel, N. Poulsen, N. Kröger
Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 78, 211-218, 2012.
2011
Nanopatterned protein microrings from a diatom that direct silica morphogenesis
A. Scheffel, N. Poulsen, S. Shian, N. Kröger
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 108, 3175-3180, 2011.
A Systematic Screen to Discover and Analyze Apicoplast Proteins Identifies a Conserved and Essential Protein Import Factor
L. Sheiner, J. Piester, N. Poulsen, W. Beatty, M. Behnke, O. Lucas, M. W. White, B. Striepen
PLOS Pathogens 2011 Dec;7(12):e1002392, 2011
2010
Characterization of an endoplasmic reticulum-associated silaffin kinase from the diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana
V. C. Sheppard, N. Poulsen, N. Kröger
J. Biol. Chem. 285, 1166-1176, 2010.
2009
Protein-Mediated Layer-by-Layer Syntheses of Freestanding Microscale Titania Structures with Biologically Assembled 3-D Morphologies
Y. Fang, Q. Wu, M. B. Dickerson, Y. Cai, S. Shian, J. Berrigan, N. Poulsen, N. Kröger, K. H. Sandhage
Chem. Mater. 21, 5704-5710, 2009.
Protein-enabled synthesis of monodisperse titania nanoparticles on and within polyelectrolyte matrices
E. Kharlampieva, J. M. Slocik, S. Singamaneni, N. Poulsen, N. Kröger, R. R. Naik, V. V. Tsukruk
Adv. Funct. Mat. 19: 2303-2311, 2009.
2008
Diatoms - from cell wall biogenesis to nanotechnology
N. Kröger, N. Poulsen
Annu. Rev. Genet. 42, 83-107, 2008.
The Phaeodactylum genome reveals the evolutionary history of diatom genomes
C. Bowler, et al.
Nature. 456, 239-244, 2008.
Bio-enabled Surface-mediated Growth of Uniform Titania Nanoparticles
E. Kharlampieva, T. Tsukruk, J. M. Slocik, H. Ko, N. Poulsen, R. R. Naik, N. Kröger, V. V. Tsukruk
Adv. Mater. 20, 3274-3279 (2008).
Identification of peptides capable of inducing the formation of titania but not silica via a subtractive bacteriophage display approach
Y. Fang, N. Poulsen, M. B. Dickerson, Y. Cai, S. E. Jones, R. R. Naik, N. Kröger, K. H. Sandhage
J. Mater. Chem. 18, 3871-3875, 2008.
2007
Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics of Silica Biomineralization in Diatoms
N. Kröger, N. Poulsen
Handbook of Biomineralization - Biological Aspects and Structure Formation (E. Baeuerlein, ed.), Wiley-VCH, p. 43-58, 2007.
Silica immobilization of an enzyme via genetic engineering of the diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana
N. Poulsen, C. Berne, J. Spain, N. Kröger
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 46, 1843-1846, 2007.
2006
Bio-enabled synthesis of Rutile (TiO2) at ambient temperature and neutral pH
N. Kröger, M. B. Dickerson, G. Ahmad, Y. Cai, M. S. Haluska, K. H. Sandhage, N. Poulsen, V. C. Sheppard
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 45, 7239-7243, 2006.
Molecular genetic manipulation of the diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana (Bacillariophyceae)
N. Poulsen, P. M. Chesley, N. Kröger
J. Phycol. 42, 1059-1065, 2006.
2005
Biosilica Nanofabrication in Diatoms: The Structures and Properties of Regulatory Silaffins
N. Kröger, N. Poulsen
MRS Proceedings, 873, K1.2 doi:10.1557/PROC-873-K1.2, 2005.
A new molecular tool for transgenic diatoms: Control of mRNA and protein biosynthesis by an inducible promoter-terminator cassette
N. Poulsen, N. Kröger
FEBS J. 272, 3413-3423, 2005.
2004
Silica morphogenesis by alternative processing of silaffins in the diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana
N. Poulsen, N. Kröger
J. Biol. Chem. 279, 42993-42999, 2004.
2003
Biosilica formation in diatoms: Characterization of native silaffin-2 and its role in silica morphogenesis
N. Poulsen, M. Sumper, N. Kröger
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 100, 12075-12080, 2003.
1999
Diatom gliding is the result of an actin-myosin motility system
N. Poulsen, I. Spector, T. P. Spurck, T. F. Schultz, R. Wetherbee
Cell Motil. Cytoskeleton 44, 23-33, 1999
1998
Phylogenetic diversity of parabasalian symbionts from termites, including the phylogenetic position of Pseudotrypanosoma and Trichonympha
P. J. Keeling, N. Poulsen, G. I. McFadden
J. Euk. Microbiol. 45, 643-50, 1998