The Metabolic Engineering Conference (ME16), set for June 15–19, 2025, in the heart of Copenhagen, is the premier event in the field, offering a unique platform to explore the latest methodologies and applications, connect with leading experts from both industry and academia, and forge new collaborations. In anticipation of this exciting event, we’re spotlighting one of the field’s rising stars and winner of the Jay Bailey Young Investigator Award in Metabolic Engineering, Dr. Nico J. Claassens, Associate Professor at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. Dr. Claassens is known for his pioneering work in microbial synthetic metabolism, leading a team focused on designing sustainable methods to convert CO2 and electricity into valuable carbon-based products, such as food proteins. His research pushes the boundaries of bioproduction, offering greener alternatives in a world seeking more sustainable solutions.
We caught up with Dr. Claassens to learn more about his recent work, the journey that led to his recognition, and what excites him most about the future of the field.
Can you tell us about your work and impact that led to you winning the award?
Since my postdoc in 2017 with Arren Bar-Even, I started working with students and colleagues on realizing the synthetic reductive glycine pathway in the bacterium Cupriavidus necator. This pathway is a much more ATP-efficient alternative than the natural Calvin Cycle for the fixation of the sustainable, CO2- and electricity-derived one-carbon feedstock formate. Through various metabolic engineering strategies, in 2020 we successfully realized this full metabolic heart transplantation, demonstrating full growth on formate via the synthetic pathway, and recently achieving a higher yield on formate via the synthetic pathway than via the natural Calvin cycle.
What excites you about the future of metabolic engineering?
There are two main aspects that excite me. First, the potential for the field to make a significant positive environmental impact by using truly renewable feedstocks—derived from electricity and CO2—rather than sugars for bulk food and chemical products. Second, I’m excited about the opportunity to move away from the traditional trial-and-error methods toward more rational approaches of engineering metabolic pathways in living cells.
How do you think metabolic engineers just beginning their careers will be able to find solutions to current challenges?
I think it is key to globally understand the bigger picture of bioproduction by considering the real-life environmental, societal, and economic impacts of certain substrates and products and then looking for the most promising options to balance these. Additionally, it is important to explore advances and skills in the fields of genetics and omics data in order to move faster and more smartly toward well-performing cell factories that can hopefully make a positive difference in the world.
As an early career metabolic engineer, what value do you see in attending a conference like Metabolic Engineering 16?
The Metabolic Engineering Conference is a great venue to present your ideas and results, for example in a poster or flash talk, which helps gather input. The conference also provides the chance to get an overview of the latest developments in the field and also provides a unique opportunity to meet a large part of the global community in this field.
Learn more about the ME16 conference and register today.
About IMES
The International Metabolic Engineering Society promotes the use of metabolic engineering — the optimization of the genetic and regulatory processes within cells — as an enabling science for bio-based production of advanced materials, pharmaceuticals, food ingredients, chemicals, and fuels. One of its venues for collaboration and information exchange is the biannual Metabolic Engineering Conference, where practitioners share knowledge and discuss current developments made in the field.