Head of Werner Siemens-Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology
Office hours: by appointment
E-Mail: brueck@tum.de
Phone +49 (89) 289 13253
Secretary: +49 (89) 289 13250
Fax: +49 (89) 289 13255
Address: Technical University of Munich, Department of Chemistry, Werner Siemens-Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology (WSSB), Lichtenbergstraße 4, 85748 Garching
Curriculum vitae
Employment History
| since 2018 | Endowed Full Professor (W3) Werner Siemens-Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology Technical University of Munich, TUM School of Natural Sciences |
| 2016 - 2017 | Associate Professor (W2) Professorship of Industrial Biocatalysis (W2) Technical University of Munich, Department of Chemistry |
| since 2015 | Founder and Director TUM AlgaeTec Center Technische University of Munich, TUM School of Engineering and Design |
2011 – 2016 | Endowed Professor |
2008 – 2010 | Portfolio Manager Technology and Patents |
2006 – 2008 | Department Head Analytics |
| 2006 - 2009 | Visiting Professor Marine Biotechnology group Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, U.S.A. |
| 2004 - 2006 | Assistant Professor Marine Biocatalysis and Proteomics Centre of Excellence in Biomedical and Marine Biotechnology Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, U.S.A. |
| 2003 - 2004 | Postdoctoral Associate |
Educational History
2002 | Doctoral degree in Biochemistry (Ph.D.) |
1998 – 2002 | Research Scientist |
1996 – 1997 | Master of Philosophy in Molecular Medicine |
1992 – 1996 | Dual hon. B.Sc. in Chemistry and Biochemistry |
Elected academic and professional positions
| Since 2023 | Core Member of the Munich Institute of Integrated Materials, Energy and Process Engineering |
| Since 2022 | Board Member Munich Catalysis Alliance (MUNICAT) |
| Since 2021 | Member of the TUM Institute for Food and Health (ZIEL) |
| Since 2020 | Advisory Board Member of Austrian Drug Screening Institute (ADSI) Innsbruck/Vienna, Austria |
| Since 2020 | Vice Dean Research and Innovation Technical University of Munich, TUM School of Natural Sciences Development of a holistic research strategy for the entire School encompassing three research departments (Chemistry, Physics, Bioscience) with >90 Professors and 7,500 employees as well as two interdisciplinary research centers (https://www.nat.tum.de/en/nat/research/) Development of a holistic research and industrial translation strategy with established Venture Labs and UnternehmerTUM |
| Since 2020 | Co-Founder and Head of Advisory Board Global Sustainable Transformation GmbH (GST) Advancing sustainable chemistry by biotechnology innovation |
| 2019 - 2023 | Member of the third German National Bioeconomy Council Advising the German Federal Government on the technology trajectories and implementation strategies of a circular bioeconomy. |
| Since 2018 | Member of the TUM Catalysis Research Center An Interdisciplinary center for catalysis and sustainability research |
| Since 2018 | Vice Chair of the Algae Biotechnology Working Group DECHEMA e.V. |
| 2018 - 2020 | Vice Dean Technical University of Munich Department of Chemistry |
| Since 2016 | Scientific advisory board member Novaton Renewable Energies AG |
| Since 2015 | Board Member of TUM Research Center for Industrial Biotechnology |
| 2012 - 2018 | Scientific advisory board member Aviation Initiative for renewable energy in Germany (aireg e.V.) |
| Since 2007 | Scientific advisory board member Algae-Biotechnology working group DECHEMA e.V. |
Awards and Recognitions
| 2024 | JEC-Award for Green Carbon Fiber: Stone composite housewall together with TechnoCarbon GmbH in the sustainable building category |
| 2022 | Green Award for Sustainable Construction materials during the Green Tech Festival in Singapore |
| 2019 | 1. Sustainability Award of the Technical University of Munich |
| 2018 | E-Ward for development of algae based carbon fibers European Business Council for Sustainable Energy and Materials |
| 2018 | Werner Siemens Endowed Chair in Synthetic Biotechnology |
| 2011 | Süd-Chemie Endowed Professorship in Industrial Biocatalysis |
Academic Memberships
| Since 2018 | Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker (GDCh) |
| Since 2011 | Gesellschaft für chemische Technik und Biotechnologie e.V. (DECHEMA e.V.) |
Publication Impact
Prof. Brück has an h-factor of 35 with 196 scientific publications, >370 invited presentations/named lectures, 26 patent families and 4721 national and international Print-Media reports and TV-Documentaries.
Selected Scientific Publications
Cavelius P, Engelhart-Straub S, Mehlmer N, Lercher J, Awad D, Brück T. The potential of biofuels from first to fourth generation. PLoS Biol 21(3): e3002063. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3002063
Paper M, Jung P, Koch M, Lakatos M, Nilges T and Brück TB. Stripped: contribution of cyanobacterial extracellular polymeric substances to the adsorption of rare earth elements from aqueous solutions; Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology. 2023; 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2023.1299349
Paper M, Koch M, Jung P, Lakatos M, Nilges T and Brück TB. Rare earths stick to rare cyanobacteria: Future potential for bioremediation and recovery of rare earth elements; Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology. 2023; 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2023.1130939
Schädler T, Thurn AL, Brück T, Weuster-Botz D. (2021) Continuous Production of Lipids with Microchloropsis salina in Open Thin-Layer Cascade Photobioreactors on a Pilot Scale, Energies, Volume 14, Issue 500; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14020500
Ringel M, Reinbold M, Hirte M, Haack M, Huber C, Eisenreich W, Masri MA, Schenk G, Guddat LW, Loll B, Kerr R, Garbe D, Brück TB. (2020) Towards a sustainable generation of pseudopterosin-type bioactives, Green Chemistry, Volume 22, pp 6033-6046
Raz K, Driller R, Dimos N, Ringel M, Brück T, Loll B, Major DT. (2020) The Impression of a Nonexisting Catalytic Effect: The Role of CotB2 in Guiding the Complex Biosynthesis of Cyclooctat-9-en-7-ol, Journal of the American Chemical Society, Volume 142, Issue 51, pp 21562-21574
Masri, M. A.; Garbe, D.; Mehlmer, N.; Brück, T. B., A sustainable, high-performance process for the economic production of waste-free microbial oils that can replace plant-based equivalents. Energy & Environmental Science 2019, 12, 2717 – 2732
Driller, R., Janke, S., Fuchs, M., Warner, E., Mhashal, A. R., Major, D. T., Christmann, M., Brück, T., & Loll, B. (2018). Towards a comprehensive understanding of the structural dynamics of a bacterial diterpene synthase during catalysis. Nature Communications, 9(1), 3971. doi:10.1038/s41467-018-06325-8
Arnold, U., Brück, T., De Palmenaer, A., & Kuse, K. (2018). Carbon Capture and Sustainable Utilization by Algal Polyacrylonitrile Fiber Production: Process Design, Techno-Economic Analysis, and Climate Related Aspects. Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 57(23), 7922-7933. doi:10.1021/acs.iecr.7b04828
Masri, M. A., Jurkowski, W., Shaigani, P., Haack, M., Mehlmer, N., & Brück, T. (2018). A waste-free, microbial oil centered cyclic bio-refinery approach based on flexible macroalgae biomass. Applied Energy, 224, 1-12. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2018.04.089
Selected Patents
EP 3933038 Modified terpene synthases and their use for production of pseudopterosin intermediates and/or pseudopterosins. M Ringel, T Brück, M Reinbold, D Garbe
WO2019063718 A process for the cell-free enzymatic production of 10-hydroxystearic acid (10-HSA) from bio-based oils for lubricant formulation. J Lorenzen, T Brück
WO/2008/113585 Generation of chemical building blocks from plant biomass by selective hydrolysis. A Koltermann, M Rarbach, TB Brück, U Kettling
EP3696273 A method for producing microbial lipids, M Masri, T Brück
EP4453195 A method for genetic modification for high CG content microorganisms, P Shaigani, T Brück, N Mehlmer
WO2024023260A1 Production of terpenoids, phenolic compounds, and vitamins from yeast family trichosporonaceae M Masri, T Brück
EP4389905A1 Pretreatment of salt-containing hydrolysate, particularly for use in fermentation processes Z Rerop, N Stellner, M Masri, T Brück
WO2023067081A2 Circular use of food residues by microbial fermentation. M Masri, T Brück, P Graban, L Gerboin, C Dawid, M Pliz
EP3610057A1 Carbon fibers which can be produced regeneratively or part-regeneratively from CO2 using combined production methods, T Brück, K Kuse, U Arnold
EP3610057A1 Carbon fibers which can be produced regeneratively or part-regeneratively from co2 using combined production methods. T Brück, K Kuse, U Arnold
Selected Media Reports
Journal - National Geographic, Bread instead of palm oil
Schilter, D. Palms make way for oleaginous yeast. Nat Rev Chem 3, 464 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41570-019-0118-y
Newspaper - Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung: Waiting for the Algae bloom
Newspaper - Süddeutsche Zeitung: Experiments at the bakers
TV Documentary - ARD Planet Wissen: Algae - how they can save the world
TV Documentary - ARD Phoenix: To protect rain forests - how palm oil is replaced
Entrepreneurial activities
| Since 2021 | Co-founder of Clean Carbon Technologies GmbH (Berlin, Germany) Business: Production of sustainable lightweight materials, such as green carbon fiber and carbon fiber/stone composites as steel and aluminum replacements in automotive and construction sectors |
| Since 2020 | Co-Founder and Head of Advisory Board of Global Sustainable Transformation (GST) GmbH Biotechnology based processes for production of sustainable lipids |
| 2017 - 2022 | Co-founder and Head of Scientific Advisory Board of Mother Earth Dermatics GmbH (München, Germany) Biotechnological production of insect repellents. |
| 2016 - 2020 | Co-founder and Head of Scientific advisory board of BioSpec GmbH Illumination solutions for phototrophic Biotechnology and Photocatalysis. |
| 2016 - 2019 | Co-founder and Vice President of BBSI-Canda Ltd. Biotechnological conversion of marine waste to biopolymers for food and added layer manufacturing applications. |
| 2011 - 2019 | Co-founder and Managing Director of B&B Sustainable Innovations GmbH Business: The Company exploits its patent portfolio in green building materials and provides lifecycle analysis services to commercial entities. |
Academic Initiatives
Editorial Positions
| Since 2024 | Associate Editor and Scientific Board Member Biofuels Research Journal, Alpha Creation Enterprise (IF: 14.4) |
| Since 2024 | Editorial Board Member Microorganisms, MDPI (IF: 4.1) |
| Since 2023 | Editorial Board Member Biotechnology Reports, Elsevier (IF: 6.91) |
| Since 2016 | Associate Editor Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, Frontiers Media (IF: 4.3) |
Reviewer activities
Journals:
Angewandte Chemie, Nature Mol. Biol., EMBO J., Green Chemistry, ChemSusChem, ChemCatChem, J. Mol. Cat.: B Enzymatic, Biochimie, Marine Biotechnology, Microbial Cell Factories, PLOS One, PLOS Biology, BMC Microbiology, BMC Biotechnology, Journal of Bioprocessing & Biotechniques
Grant agencies:
The Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG), Fonds voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek - Vlaanderen (FWO), Belgium, National Research Foundation Singapore, German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU), Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), German Research Society (DFG), US Department of Energy (DOE).
Acquired funding
Since his TUM appointment in 2011 the research group of Prof. Brück has acquired
- > 75 Mio. Euro Total Funding
- in 34 Research Projects
funded by national- and EU granting agencies as well as private foundations.
Planning and construction of an algae technology pilot plant (TUM-AlgaeTec Center)
Building and operation of a 1500 m2 algae pilot plant and fitting with unique solar and climate simulation
Teaching
Lectures and laboratory practical course supervision in two B.Sc. and four M.Sc. courses within the Chemistry, Biochemistry, Industrial Biotechnology and Chemical Engineering (CIW) study tracks.
- Enzyme Technology
- Basics of Enzymatics
- Construction Biotechnology
- Technical Biocatalysis
- Laboratory Course in Technical Chemistry
- Conception of Biocatalytic Systems
- Laboratory Course in Chemical Engineering
- Applied Biotechnological Processes
- Methods of Catalysis
- Fundamentals of Biology and Biochemistry for CIW
- Methods of Catalysis, Seminar
- Material Flows in Industry and Nature
Outreach activity: Founder of the Werner Siemens School Research Center
The research center allows high school students to conduct state of the art research in biotechnology with a focus on sustainability to comply with the German A-level (Abitur) regulations.
Supervision of early career scientists
- Successful supervision of more than 145 Master and 34 Ph.D. students.
- Successful supervision of one four year D.Sc. (Habilitation) process (PD. Dr. habil. Norbert Mehlmer), where the candidate is now heading his own research group.
- Currently, two female candidates (Dr. Marion Ringel and Dr. Dania Awad) and one male (Dr. Daniel Garbe) are enrolled in an ongoing habilitation process.
- Additional supervision of seven Post.Doctoral researchers, who either went on to pursue an independent academic career or went into a leading managerial position in industry.
- Notably, Dr. Mahmoud Masri (German and Syrian citizen), Dr. Elias Kassab and Dr. Samer Younes (both Lebanese citizen) have founded spin-out companies during their doctoral and post.doctoral research phase at the chair of Prof. Brück.
- While Dr. Masri is the acting CEO of Global Sustainable Transformation GmbH, Dr. Kassab is the acting CEO of Mother Earth Dermatics GmbH.