Professor skilled in Plant Science, Plant Nutrients, Ecophysiology, Analytical Chemistry, and Research Management. Strong education professional with a PhD in agronomy from Københavns Universitet / University of Copenhagen.

My research deals with the mineral nutrition of agricultural crops. I have provided new fundamental knowledge to processes involved in acquisition of mineral elements from soil and on the functional role of mineral elements in metabolism. Currently my lab has a strong focus on integrating nanotechnology with plant science to fundamentally understand how nanoparticles interact with plant tissue and how we can utilize this knowledge to build the next generation of more efficient fertilizers. Concurrent with these activities, my lab has developed a range of new cutting-edge analytical techniques for mass-spectrometry-based analysis of mineral elements, their stable isotope ratios, chemical binding forms, and localization in tissue with cellular resolution.

Andrea received his MSc in Plant Biotechnology from the University of Turin, Italy. Andrea joined the Husted lab in 2019 as MSc student to work on his thesis project, investigating the interaction between hydroxyapatite nanoparticles and the plasma membrane in single cells. Andrea’s research currently focuses on studying and modeling the uptake and translocation pathways of foliar-applied Mn-based nanoparticles and their use as alternative foliar fertilizers. He defended his thesis December 2024 and has now continued as a Postdoc on our lab

Dorine has studied Biotechnology in Wageningen (NL) . The research she conducted during her PhD focused on the molecular mechanism steering non-coding DNA transcription. Now, as Scientific Project Manager she takes care of all non-science related project management tasks.

Katie has a BSc in Biochemistry and is currently in her final year of her MSc in Agriculture, specialising in Plant Science. During her research project, she will be investigating the pathway of foliar water uptake, focusing on the hydraulic activation of stomata.

Lucas received his MSc in Energy in Agriculture from the São Paulo State University, Brazil. Based on studies of nutrition, physiology and abiotic stress management in sugarcane (drought stress). Lucas joined the Husted lab in 2024 as PhD guest student, also from São Paulo State University, to work on his thesis project, investigating a soluble source of phosphorus (P) for foliar fertilization in C4 species (sugar cane and corn). Its objective is to verify the potential of foliar application of a soluble P source, applied to leaves, the interaction between P fertilizer and different detergent products, and determine their ability to restore plant nutrition and functionality.

Noémie has a MSc in “Biochemistry, Cellular and Biomolecular Biology”. Her interest shifted to plant physiology during her PhD thesis in Belgium, during which she worked mainly on the response of the model species Arabidopsis to nutrient stress. Concerned that research conducted on model species should be applied to crops and oriented towards today´s agricultural challenges, she joined our team for a 2-years Postdoc in September 2023. She now contributes to two projects; the first aiming at unraveling different crops’ strategies to maintain water absorption during drought, and the second aiming at describing effectiveness and impact of our new lipid-based foliar fertilizer in several species.

Sylwia holds a PhD in Plant Nutrition, where she explored how nitrogen and silicon applications influence the growth and cell wall composition of Brachypodium distachyon, a model plant species. As a postdoctoral researcher, she specialized in bioimaging, microarray profiling of various plant samples and worked on developing DNA-based probes to detect key plant cell wall components.

Currently, Sylwia is investigating the uptake and distribution of a new lipid-based fertilizer in cell cultures and Nordmann fir.

Thomas Hesselhøj Hansen, Stine Le Tougaard, Idil Ertem, Vandasue Saltenis

Augusta holds a MSc in Agriculture from University of Copenhagen and started working in the group as a research assistant performing yearly field experiments with phosphorus deficiency and foliar phosphorus applications in potato and barley. Besides working in the field, she studied the interactions between roots and hydroxyapatite nanoparticles finding these particles were taken up intact and were able to fully restore phosphorus functionalities in the plant.

Currently, she is working as a staff scientist involved in the different research projects ranging broad between synthesizing nanoparticles and study leaf uptake in our own laboratories and greenhouse. Besides, she works as the link between the different research collaborators involved in the projects, developing new sample methods and planning experiments.

Birte is a biophysicist with a background in soft matter and structural characterization. Currently she is involved in plant science and the improvement of fertilization strategies by employing nanoparticles as foliar delivery systems.
She has previously worked on lipid-based nanoparticles for vaccine delivery purposes and sustainable textile fibers based on regenerated cellulose. Her focus has been on the synthesis, structural characterization and establishing structure-activity relationships of the self-assemblies. She has a strong background in applying scattering techniques (light, X-ray) to characterize nanoparticles.

Francesco has a BSc in Viticulture and Enology and a MSc in Agriculture. During his PhD he is working on the development of nanofertilizers capable of reducing the environmental impact of phosphorus use in agriculture. Before starting his academic career, his professional experience mainly revolved around the winemaking industry. Over time, his focus has shifted towards fundamental research in plant science, and his expertise spans now across new and different areas, including biological imaging, analytical chemistry and nanoscience.

Lena is our lab technician supporting all activities on the ICP-MS platform and the general work in the lab.

Max has a background in biotechnology, forest and environmental science, He got fascinated by biogeochemistry and specifically nutrient behavior in soils and plants. Currently, he is working to investigate the behavior of water films on leaf surfaces and the induction of hydraulic activation of stomata. He uses confocal microscopy, x-ray microtomography, laser ablation ICP-MS, and gas exchange analyser systems. Hereby, he wants to contribute to the development of a new generation of efficient fertilizers in order to reduce environmental and social impacts of resource overuse.

Pauline has a BSc in Natural Resources with a specialization in Environmental Science and a MSc in Agriculture with a specialization in Production and Environment, both from the University of Copenhagen. She joined the Plant Nutrition research group in 2020 when she started her thesis project, studying the soil mobility and plant availability of hydroxyapatite nanoparticles. Since then she has been investigating the interactions between plant roots, nanoparticles and soil components, in order to understand the behavior of phosphate-containing nanoparticles in soil and their potential as an alternative P fertilizer.

Tommaso did his bachelor in “Agricultural Sciences and Technologies” at the Polytechnic University of Marche, in Italy. After that, he initiated his Masters in Agricultural Sciences in Denmark, where he shifted his focus onto Plant Science. During his Master Tommaso developed a strong interest and passion for plant nutrition. His research interests lie mostly on single cells, as a platform to study nanoparticles internalization. He is really keen on protoplasts isolation from leaf tissues, but he is also working with BY-2 and Soybean cells culture.

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Since 2022 Daniel is a tenured Assistant Professor with experience in Laser Ablation-ICP-MS, Liquid chromatography-ICP-MS, protein analysis , plant cultivation with trace element stress or deficiency.

Anders completed a BSc in Forestry and Landscape Engineering and is currently pursuing a MSc in agriculture. This shift in educational focus stemmed from his interest in plant nutrients, their function in soil and plants, and how they impact ecosystems. Since March 2024, he has been engaged in a project aiming to utilize phosphorus salts reclaimed from wastewater treatment plants as a nutrient source for plants.

Currently exploring nano-biotechnological advances to enhance foliar uptake and utilization of essential plant nutrients.

Lorenzo has completed the last year a BSc in Biology at University of Studies of Milano Bicocca in Italy. He just moved to Denmark to start its MSc in Agricolture with a specialization in Plant Science. Starting from September he joined the department to start his Master thesis project on phloem transport and root growth in drought conditions on barley.

Morten is our much appreciated gardener, who are taking care of our plants in climate chambers and greenhouses.

Rikke has a BSc in Natural Resources with a specialization in Plant Science at the University of Copenhagen. Currently, she is studying for her MSc in Agriculture with a specialization in Plant Science, where she writes her thesis in this group. She investigates the foliar water uptake from leaf surfaces and the induction of hydraulic activation of stomata.

Xiao received her Master’s degree in Food Science from Shaanxi Normal University, China. In her previous research, she engaged in micro/nanotechnology, including the synthesis and application of some functional micro/nanomaterials such as quantum dots, microgels, and micromotors. In August 2024, Xiao joined the Husted Lab and is currently working on the synthesis of Mn-containing nanofertilizers for further foliar applications in plants. She is also looking forward to the exciting interaction between nanomaterials and plant science.

Interested to work with us?
Future PhDs and Postdocs, contact us via vrodrigues@plen.ku.dk. We like pro-active people!