Daniel Poveda Huertes

Daniel Poveda Huertes serves as Assistant Professor in the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences at the University of Copenhagen's Faculty of Science, specializing in the Section for Plant Biochemistry. His research focuses on microalgal biology and biotechnology within the Algae Biosynthesis research group led by Johan Andersen-Ranberg.

Dr. Poveda Huertes investigates fundamental microalgal biology with emphasis on SAR microalgae including Nannochloropsis oceanica, Phaeodactylum tricornutum, and Breviolum minutum. His work spans photosynthetic pigment biogenesis, lipid accumulation mechanisms, and genome engineering tool development to optimize microalgae for sustainable bioproduction. Microalgae represent ideal candidates for green transition technologies due to their CO₂ fixation capabilities (responsible for ~50% of global fixation), seawater growth compatibility, and unique metabolic traits.

His publication portfolio reveals strong trends in algal genetic engineering and mitochondrial biology, with recent work establishing breakthroughs in stramenopile algae transformation efficiency and chlorophyll c biosynthesis. The research bridges fundamental molecular mechanisms with industrial applications in biotech, food additives, and pharmaceutical production.

Scientific Recognition:

• NNF Industrial Biotechnology and Environmental Biotechnology Postdoctoral Fellowship (2021) for PhotoMASS project
• VILLUM Experiment Grant (2023) for MOONWALK project studying algae buoyancy

Dr. Poveda Huertes actively advises students and has served as iGEM team advisor (2021-2022). His externally funded projects include the NNF PhotoMASS initiative (2022-2025) developing phototrophic marine algae for sustainable synthetic biology, and the VILLUM MOONWALK project (2024-2026) investigating algae buoyancy mechanisms. His research has generated significant media interest including coverage in Spanish-language outlets about microalgae's sustainable potential and features about growing algae for astronaut nutrition.

He maintains active research collaborations across international networks with substantial digital engagement (144+ Mendeley readers, 63+ X mentions) and his work has been referenced in Wikipedia pages related to mitochondrial biology.