Professor
Poul Nissen
Professor
Email: pn@mbg.au.dk
Mobile: +4528992295
Phone: +4587155508
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0948-6628
Professor of Protein Biochemistry & Director pn@mbg.au.dk
Aarhus University (AU), Dept. of Molecular Biology and Genetics (MBG) phone +45 28992295
Gustav Wieds Vej 10C http://dandrite.au.dk
DK – 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark http://mbg.au.dk
Education
1993 – 1997 PhD, molecular biology, AU
1987 – 1993 MSc, Chemistry/protein crystallography, AU
Employment
2006 – now Professor of Protein Biochemistry, AU-Dept. Molecular Biology and Genetics (MBG)
2002 – 2006 Assoc. prof., AU-MBG
2000 – 2004 Ole Rømer research fellow, AU-MBG
1997 – 2000 DFF Postdoctoral fellow with Prof. T.A. Steitz, Yale University (Nobel laureate 2009)
1997 Postdoctoral fellow with Prof. J. Nyborg, AU-MBG
Appointments
2013 – now Director, Danish node of Nordic-EMBL Partnership for Molecular Medicine, Danish Research Institute of Translational Neuroscience – DANDRITE (dandrite.au.dk)
2007 – 2017 Director, PUMPkin Centre, Danish National Research Foundation (pumpkin.au.dk)
2005 – 2013 Coordinator, Dept. Molecular Biology and Genetics, Section for Structural Biology
Research Interests
Integrative neuroscience and structural biology, membrane proteins, P-type ATPases and secondary transporters, protein-protein and protein-lipid interactions of biomembranes, calcium signaling, memory research, action potentials, neurotransmitter transporters, structure-based protein engineering and drug discovery, single-molecule studies, spin-out, innovation.
International Science Evaluation and Advisory committees (selected)
2018 – now Speaker for Nordic EMBL Partnership for Molecular Medicine
2018 – now Committee member at the BII of the Novo Nordisk Foundation
2017 – now ERC-Synergy Evaluation panel
2016 – now Scientific Advisory Committee, European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL)
2016 – now Scientific Advisory Board (chair), Max-Planck Institute of Biophysics, Frankfurt
2015 Board of Scientific Counselors, US National Institute Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NIH/NINDS)
2011 – now Scientific Advisory Board, Center for Structural Systems Biology, Hamburg
2008 – 2016 Scientific Advisory Board, Center for Protein Research, Copenhagen University
2006 – now Site visit committees: 2019, EMBL-Hamburg, 2018 EMBL-Heidelberg, 2018 KU-Biology, 2015 EMBL-Hamburg, 2013 EMBL-Grenoble, 2010 MRC-LMB Structural Biology Division, Cambridge, 2006 INSERM-Rennes
2005 – now Reviewer for research councils in Canada (NSERC), Holland (NWO), Sweden (VR), France (INSERM, ANR), UK (MRC, BBSRC), Spain, Wellcome Trust, EMBO, BIF, ERC
2002 – now More than 40 PhD dissertation committees (e.g. Aarhus, Copenhagen, Yale, Paris, Leuven, Göteborg, Cambridge, Helsinki, Nijmegen, Trondheim, Sydney, Frankfurt)
2005 – now 15 full professor position evaluation committees
2008 – 2015 Project Evaluation Committee (chair 2012-2015), EMBL-Hamburg
2010 – 2013 EMBO Membership committee
2010 ERC panel LS1, Starting Grants
Danish Research Agencies
2017 – now Coordinator, Nordic-EMBL-ESS working group
2016 – now Coordinator, Danish ESS Lighthouse Research Initiative
2015 – now ESS Strategy working group, Danish Agency for Research and Innovation
2015 – now Danish Roadmap for Research Infrastructures EMBIO (Electron Microscopy of Biological Molecules)
2011 – 2017 X-ray and neutron facilities advisory committee, Danish Agency for Research and Innovation
2010 Health, biotech and life science, infrastructure roadmap committee, Danish Agency for Research and Innovation
Aarhus University Committees (selected)
2015 – now AU Science and Technology Faculty “Tenure and Promotions Committee”
2011 – now Management committee, AU Dept. Molecular Biology and Genetics
2005 – now Research Committee, AU Dept. Molecular Biology and Genetics
2013 – now Research Committee, AU iNANO
2010 AU committee (chair) “Research organisation and infrastructure”
2010 – now AU leadership position review committees (2010 head of department, 2011 TTO director, 2013 dean, 2015 head of department)
2005 – 2009 Chairman of the PhD committee, Dept. Molecular Biology and Genetics
Editorial Activities
2010 – 2015 Editorial board, FEBS Journal
2002 – 2008 Contributor to Biomed Central “Faculty of 1000”
2000 – now reviewer for e.g. Nature and Nature journals, Science, EMBO J, PNAS, Structure
Other Organizational, Editorial Activities (selected)
2017 – now Executive board of Videnskabsklubben
2013 – now Grant committee, Margrethe Møller Fonden
2015 Organizer, 2015 meeting of the Nordic-EMBL Partnership for Molecular Medicine
2014 Chairman, Gordon Research Conference on Membrane Transport Proteins
2013 Co-organizer, Benzon Symposium “Structure Function and Dynamics of Membrane Proteins”
2008 Co-organizer 12th“Na,K-ATPase and related transport ATPases of P-type”
2011 – 2016 School board at Risskov Skole (acting chair 2014, elected chair 2015-2016)
2007 – now Editorial Advisory Board, EMBO Journal and EMBO Reports
2005 – 2011 Member of the board, Danish Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Scientific Societies
Danish Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Danish Society for Crystallography
Danish Society for Neuroscience
2014 Elected fellow of the Academy of Technical Sciences in Denmark (ATV)
2011 Elected fellow of the Danish Academy of Natural Sciences (DNA)
2008 Elected fellow of the Royal Danish Academy for Science and Letters
2006 Elected fellow of the European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO)
Honors and Awards
2018 The Carlsberg Foundation Research Prize
2017 The Novo Nordisk Prize
2017 – 2022 Distinguished Chair Professor for Research, National Taiwan University,
2016 – 2021 Adjunct Professor, University of Copenhagen
2016 Dir. Ib Henriksen Foundation Research Prize
2016 Gregori Aminoff Prize, The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
2013 – 2018 Adjunct Professor, Aalborg University
2010 Aarhus University, Holst-Knudsen Research Prize
2009 Invited delegate, Chemistry Nobel Prize ceremony, Stockholm
2009 ERC Advanced Research grant, BIOMEMOS
2008 Elite Researcher Prize, Danish Ministery of Science & Technology
2006 Anders Jahre Prize for Young Researchers, Norway
2006 Hede Nielsen Prize for Young Researchers
2005 Hallas-Møller Stipend, Novo-Nordisk Foundation
2002 Newcombe-Cleveland Prize, AAAS
2001 EMBO Young Investigator
2000 Ole Rømer grant award, Danish Research Council
1997 PhD Gold Medal from Danish Academy of Natural Sciences
1997 Postdoctoral award, Danish Research Council
Invited talks/keynotes (recent, selected)
· GRC on Membrane Transport Proteins, March 2019
· Public University Lectures, Aarhus and Copenhagen, Oct.- Nov. 2018
· IRB/IBMB-CSIC Biomed Seminar, Barcelona Sep. 2019
· mPEPC1 workshop, EMBL-Hamburg, Sep. 2018
· COMPPAA Symposium, New Center for Structural Biology, June 2018
· Membrane Proteins in Health and Disease, Banff, Canada, April 2018
· Gordon Research Conference “Ligand Recognition & Molecular Gating“, Ventura CA, Mar. 2018
· Hamburg Life Science Summit, Hamburg, Jan. 2018
· 2017 ShanghaiTech-SIAIS Bioforum, Shanghai, China, Nov. 2017
· 15thinternational conference on Na,K-ATPase and related P-ATPases, Otsu, Japan, Sep. 2017
· Neutrons in Structural Biology meeting, Institut Laue-Langevin, Grenoble, France June 2017.
· 50thErice Course "Integrative structural biology", Erice Sicily, June 2017
Supervision/mentoring
Completed: 19 MSc, 21 PhD, 4 PhD (co-supervisor), 19 postdocs
Current: 2 BSc students, 3 MSc students, 9 PhD students (incl. 2 Boehringer-Ingelheim stipends, 2 Lundbeck Foundation fellowships, 2 industry-PhD with Novo Nordisk), 5 postdocs (incl. Lundbeck Foundation
fellowship, MS Curie Fellow, Region of Extremadura Research Fellowship)