Jack Pronk

Prof. Jack Pronk is a Full Professor and Head of the Biotechnology Department at Delft University of Technology’s Faculty of Applied Sciences. His research focuses on microbial physiology, industrial yeast performance, and metabolic engineering, particularly in anaerobic metabolism and second-generation bioethanol strategies. He leads the Jack Pronk Group, collaborating with Pascale Daran-Lapujade and Jean-Marc Daran in the Industrial Microbiology section. His work involves optimizing yeast strains for industrial applications, including anaerobic growth and pentose fermentation. Pronk is also actively involved in teaching Life Science & Technology programs at TU Delft and Leiden University. His research is funded by ERC, BE-Basic, and DSM, and his team includes PhD candidates, postdocs, and technicians specializing in fermentation, genomics, and bioinformatics. Notable projects include the ERC Advanced project Eloxy and collaborations on bioethanol production with the Van Loosdrecht group.