Page path:

15.02.2013 Award for Marine Scientist

Jillian M. Petersen, Scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, has been selected by the Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography(ASLO) to receive the 2013 Raymond Lindeman Award
 
Award for Marine Scientist

Jillian M. Petersen, Scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, has been selected by the Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography(ASLO) to receive the 2013 Raymond Lindeman Award


The Raymond Lindeman award honors the author of an outstanding peer-reviewed, English-language paper in the aquatic sciences written by a scientist 35 years of age or less. Jillian M. Petersen is being recognized for her paper “Hydrogen is an Energy Source for Hydrothermal Vent Symbioses” Nature 476, 176–180. It was a landmark in the study of deep-sea symbioses. Her paper changed the understanding of the energy sources that fuel symbiotic primary production in the deep sea by showing that a third energy source, hydrogen, is used by the sulfur-oxidizing symbionts of hydrothermal vent Bathymodiolus mussels.

The award will be presented at the annual ASLO 2013 Aquatic Sciences Meeting at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, February 17-22, 2013.

Petersen was nominated for this award by Dr. Nicole Dubilier. In her nomination letter, Dr. Dubilier stated that “Petersen's ability to not only successfully use a wide range of interdisciplinary methods but to also interpret her results in depth and show their relevance for many other symbioses and the environment is remarkable for such a young scientist. I am convinced that her paper is only the beginning of a highly successful career in the aquatic sciences.”

Hailing from Brisbane, Australia, Dr. Petersen completed her Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Microbiology at the University of Queensland, working on wastewater treatment systems. To pursue her interest in marine microbes, she moved to northern Germany and did her Master’s of Science Degree at the International Max Planck Research School for Marine Microbiology and the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology in Bremen. Astounded to realize that we know more about the lifeless surface of the moon than the Earth’s deep sea, she decided to work on deep sea biology. She did her Master’s and Doctoral research in the Symbiosis Group of Dr. Nicole Dubilier at the Max Planck Institute in Bremen, working on symbioses between deep-sea invertebrates and the chemosynthetic bacteria that provide for their nutrition.

Petersen is currently trying to understand how hosts and symbionts interact, and how these intimate associations evolved by looking into the genomes of chemosynthetic symbionts.

“This is a premier ASLO award and it could have not been presented to a finer young scientist,” stated ASLO President, John Downing.

ASLO is an international aquatic sciences society that was founded in 1936. For more than 50 years, it has been the leading professional organization for researchers and educators in the field of aquatic science. The purpose of ASLO is to foster a diverse, international scientific community that creates, integrates and communicates knowledge across the full spectrum of aquatic sciences, advances public awareness and education about aquatic resources and research, and promotes scientific stewardship of aquatic resources for the public interest. Its products and activities are directed toward these ends. With more than 4500 members worldwide, the society has earned an outstanding reputation and is best known for its journals, its interdisciplinary meetings, and its special symposia. For more information about ASLO please visit our website at www.aslo.org.
 
Dr. John A. Downing, President
Association for the Sciences of Limnology & Oceanography
Iowa State University, Depts. of EEOB & ABE
251 Bessey Hall
Ames, IA 50011-1020
[Bitte aktivieren Sie Javascript]

Jillian M. Petersen, Ph.D.
Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology
Celsiusstr. 1
D-28359 Bremen
Germany
[Bitte aktivieren Sie Javascript]

CONTACT:
ASLO Business OfficeTel: 254-776-3550Email: [Bitte aktivieren Sie Javascript]

Press office at the Max Planck Institute
Dr. Rita Dunker +49 421 2028856 [Bitte aktivieren Sie Javascript]
Dr. Manfred Schlösser +49 2028704 [Bitte aktivieren Sie Javascript]
 
Back to Top