Michelle Borley Verstraaten

About me

I am broadly interested in genomics and ecology, especially in the microbial world. During my master’s in biology at Stockholm University, I joined the Pelagic Microbiology (formerly Microbial Interactions) group to carry out my degree project. I screened a mutant library of genetically engineered Synechocystis cyanobacteria for potential amino acid auxotrophs, i.e., cells that could not produce an essential amino acid for themselves. In my current project, I am knocking out specific genes in this cyanobacterium to test whether pairs of auxotrophs can support each other’s growth. Establishing metabolic division of labour between cyanobacteria mutants will be an important step in promoting the sustainable development of biotechnology.