Sybren Otto (Groningen, 3 August 1971) is

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

Systems chemistry Systems chemistry is the science of studying networks of interacting molecules, to create new functions from a set (or library) of molecules with different hierarchical levels and emergent properties. Systems chemistry is also related to the origi ...

at the Stratingh Institute for Chemistry,

University of Groningen The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; , abbreviated as RUG) is a Public university#Continental Europe, public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen (city), Groningen, Netherlands. Founded in 1614, th ...

Career

Otto studied

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

at the University of Groningen and in 1994, he received his

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

, focusing on

physical organic chemistry Physical organic chemistry, a term coined by Louis Hammett in 1940, refers to a discipline of organic chemistry that focuses on the relationship between chemical structures and chemical reaction, reactivity, in particular, applying experimental to ...

and

biochemistry Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...

, with the distinction

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

. In 1998, he obtained his

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

, again with the distinction cum laude, from his supervisor Prof. Jan B.F.N. Engberts for his

thesis A thesis (: theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: D ...

entitled Catalysis of Diels-Alder reactions in water. After his subsequent

research Research is creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge. It involves the collection, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to ...

in both the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

(in 1998, with Prof. Steven L. Regen) at

Lehigh University Lehigh University (LU), in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, United States, is a private university, private research university. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer. Lehigh University's undergraduate programs have been mixed ...

and in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

(first with Prof. Jeremy K.M. Sanders and then, from 2001 onwards, as a

Royal Society University Research Fellow __NOTOC__ The Royal Society University Research Fellowship (URF) is a research fellowship awarded to outstanding early career scientists in the United Kingdom who are judged by the Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society ...

, both at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

), he was appointed

assistant professor Assistant professor is an academic rank just below the rank of an associate professor used in universities or colleges, mainly in the United States, Canada, Japan, and South Korea. Overview This position is generally taken after earning a doct ...

at the University of Groningen in 2009. In 2011, he was promoted to

associate professor Associate professor is an academic title with two principal meanings: in the North American system and that of the ''Commonwealth system''. In the ''North American system'', used in the United States and many other countries, it is a position ...

and in 2016, to

full professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors ...

. From 2014 to 2019, he coordinated the master's degree programme in chemistry. Alongside his work at the university, Otto is also one of the six principal investigators of the Dutch ''national gravity programme for functional molecular systems'' (FMS; €26 million, over 10 years, 2013–2023). The ambition of this programme is to gain control over molecular

self-assembly Self-assembly is a process in which a disordered system of pre-existing components forms an organized structure or pattern as a consequence of specific, local interactions among the components themselves, without external direction. When the ...

. With this technology,

nanomotors A nanomotor is a molecular or nanoscale device capable of converting energy into movement. It can typically generate forces on the order of piconewtons. While nanoparticles have been utilized by artists for centuries, such as in the famous Lycur ...

could be made, for example, or

biomaterials A biomaterial is a substance that has been engineered to interact with biological systems for a medical purpose – either a therapeutic (treat, augment, repair, or replace a tissue function of the body) or a diagnostic one. The corresponding f ...

to repair damaged bodily tissues. Otto was the lead applicant and chair of the European Cooperation in Science & Technology (COST) Action CM1304 (Emergence and Evolution of Complex Chemical Systems), which united more than 95 European research groups. He is the chair of the Gordon Research Conference on Systems Chemistry 2020 and is

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The editor-in-chief heads all departments of the organization and is held accoun ...

of the ''Journal of Systems Chemistry''. Otto is a member of the Royal Dutch Chemical Society (KNCV), fellow of the

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society and professional association in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemistry, chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the ...

and member of the

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all ...

. He is member of the steering committee of the Origins Center. The Origins Center is a Dutch research platform for scientists who are involved in the key questions of the Dutch Research Agenda on the origin, evolution and future of life on Earth and in the universe. Otto is active on several fronts in both the Netherlands and abroad. Otto was elected a member of the

Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (, KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed in the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam. In addition to various advisory a ...

in 2020.

Research

The research conducted by Otto and his research group is focused on various fields, varying from the origin of life ( self-replicating systems and the Darwinian evolution thereof), to

materials chemistry Materials science is an interdisciplinary field of researching and discovering materials. Materials engineering is an engineering field of finding uses for materials in other fields and industries. The intellectual origins of materials scien ...

(self- synthesizing

fibres Fiber (spelled fibre in British English; from ) is a natural or artificial substance that is significantly longer than it is wide. Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. The strongest engineering materials often incorp ...

hydrogels A hydrogel is a biphasic material, a mixture of porous and permeable solids and at least 10% of water or other interstitial fluid. The solid phase is a water insoluble three dimensional network of polymers, having absorbed a large amount of ...

and

nanoparticle A nanoparticle or ultrafine particle is a particle of matter 1 to 100 nanometres (nm) in diameter. The term is sometimes used for larger particles, up to 500 nm, or fibers and tubes that are less than 100 nm in only two directions. At ...

surfaces). Specific interests include

self-replicating Self-replication is any behavior of a dynamical system that yields construction of an identical or similar copy of itself. Cell (biology), Biological cells, given suitable environments, reproduce by cell division. During cell division, DNA repli ...

molecules A molecule is a group of two or more atoms that are held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions that satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry ...

, foldamers,

catalysis Catalysis () is the increase in rate of a chemical reaction due to an added substance known as a catalyst (). Catalysts are not consumed by the reaction and remain unchanged after it. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst recycles quick ...

, molecular recognition of biomolecules and self-synthesizing materials (materials of which their self-assembly drives the synthesis of the molecules that assemble). The complex chemical mixtures that are designed, made and researched often display new properties that are relevant to understanding how new traits are able to arise in nature. The final goal of all of this research is the

de novo synthesis In chemistry, ''de novo'' synthesis () is the synthesis of complex molecules from simple molecules such as sugars or amino acids, as opposed to recycling after partial degradation. For example, nucleotides are not needed in the diet as they can ...

of new forms of life via the integration of self-replicating systems with

metabolism Metabolism (, from ''metabolē'', "change") is the set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms. The three main functions of metabolism are: the conversion of the energy in food to energy available to run cellular processes; the co ...

and compartmentalization. His 114 publications have been cited a total of 8,873 times by other scientists. His

h-index The ''h''-index is an author-level metric that measures both the productivity and citation impact of the publications, initially used for an individual scientist or scholar. The ''h''-index correlates with success indicators such as winning t ...

is 51.

Grants and prizes

* 1999 Marie Curie Fellowship,

, United Kingdom. * 2000 Junior Research Fellowship,

Wolfson College, Cambridge Wolfson College () is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The majority of students at the college are postgraduates. The college also admits "mature" undergraduates (aged 21 and above), with around ...

, United Kingdom. * 2001

Royal Society University Research Fellowship __NOTOC__ The Royal Society University Research Fellowship (URF) is a research fellowship awarded to outstanding early career scientists in the United Kingdom who are judged by the Royal Society to have the potential to become leaders in their fie ...

, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom. * 2011

ERC Starting Grant The European Research Council (ERC) is a public body for funding of scientific and technological research conducted within the European Union (EU). Established by the European Commission in 2007, the ERC is composed of an independent Scientific ...

(subsidy) from the

European Research Council The European Research Council (ERC) is a public body for funding of scientific and technological research conducted within the European Union (EU). Established by the European Commission in 2007, the ERC is composed of an independent Scientific ...

for research into: ''Self-replication in dynamic molecular networks'' * 2013 Vici grant from the Dutch Research Council (NWO) for research into: ''the Darwinian evolution of molecules''. (Vici grants are intended for excellent senior researchers who can demonstrably develop their own innovative research lines and who are suitable for coaching early-career researchers. * 2013 Appointed as Fellow of the

. * 2013

Visiting professor In academia, a visiting scholar, visiting scientist, visiting researcher, visiting fellow, visiting lecturer, or visiting professor is a scholar from an institution who visits a host university to teach, lecture, or perform research on a topic fo ...

University of Strasbourg The University of Strasbourg (, Unistra) is a public research university located in Strasbourg, France, with over 52,000 students and 3,300 researchers. Founded in the 16th century by Johannes Sturm, it was a center of intellectual life during ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. * 2017 ERC Advanced Grant (subsidy) from the European Research Council. * 2018 Visiting professor, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany. * 2018 Supramolecular chemistry prize of the Royal Society of Chemistry. * 2020 Member of the Royal Dutch Academy of Science
link
. * 2023 ERC Synergy Grant (subsidy) from the European Research Council.

References

External links

Sijbren Otto's Staff page (University of Groningen website)

An overview of Sijbren Otto's work on making life in the lab

Website of the Otto Research Group

''Can we make life in the lab?'' Presentation by Sijbren Otto (YouTube)
*
''Self Replication: How molecules can make copies of themselves'' (YouTube)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Otto, Sijbren 1971 births Living people 21st-century Dutch chemists Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Organic chemists University of Groningen alumni Academic staff of the University of Groningen Scientists from Groningen (city)