Ingrid Sassenhagen

Ingrid Sassenhagen is a Tenure Track Researcher at the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde (IOW), Germany, specializing in Phytoplankton Ecology and Population Genetics. Her work focuses on plankton community dynamics, amplicon sequencing, and trophic interactions in coastal and shallow marine ecosystems. She holds a PhD in Biology from Lund University (2015) and a German Diploma (equivalent to MSc) in Biology from the University of Rostock (2010).

Research Interests: Her expertise spans phytoplankton monitoring using advanced techniques like Imaging Flow Cytobot and amplicon sequencing, local adaptation mechanisms in phytoplankton, and trophic interactions within plankton communities. She investigates the ecological success of invasive microalgae and the genetic basis of population structure in harmful algal blooms.

Publications: Sassenhagen has contributed to over 15 peer-reviewed articles, including studies on environmental DNA applications, ciliate grazing dynamics, and the genetic mechanisms underlying algal bloom formation. Her work bridges genomics, ecology, and biogeochemistry to address challenges in marine and freshwater systems.

Professional Background: Prior to her current role, she held postdoctoral positions at institutions including the Laboratoire d’Océanologie et de Géosciences (France) and the University of Texas at Austin (USA). She also led an Olle Engkvist Fellowship project at Uppsala University (2020–2023).

Labs/Teams: Active within the Biological Oceanography and Marine Chemistry groups at IOW, collaborating on projects related to shallow-water processes (STB) and plankton community monitoring.