Martijn Diender

Martijn Diender is an Assistant Professor at Wageningen University & Research, specializing in microbial systems for anaerobic gas conversion. His research focuses on carboxydotrophic microorganisms, microbial co-cultures, and biocatalysts for converting syngas (CO, H₂) into bio-based chemicals like polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) and medium-chain fatty acids.

Key projects include microbial networks for syngas conversion, haloalkaliphilic acetogens, and metabolic engineering of Clostridium species. He has co-advised PhD candidates in topics such as metal recovery from waste using microbial catalysts and syngas-driven chain elongation.

His work spans environmental microbiology, bioprocess engineering, and genomic analysis of novel microbial species. Notable contributions include discovering Natranaerofaba carboxydovora, an extremophilic CO-utilizing acetogen, and developing synthetic co-cultures for enhanced bio-product yields.