Boetius received her biology degree from the University of Hamburg in 1992.[7] Prior to undertaking graduate research, she spent time at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in Southern California, where she drew inspiration from marine microbiologists including Farooq Azam.[8] While at Scripps, Boetius worked with sediments collected from the Clarion-Clipperton fracture zone, examining the small seafloor animals (copepods, nematodes) therein,[8] but ultimately decided to study even smaller organisms: microbes.
Boetius carried out her doctorate research in biology advised by Victor Smetacek, working to create the field she ultimately wanted to study: deep-sea environmental microbiology.[8] While working on her doctoral research, she undertook 14 deep-sea expeditions across the 7 seas.[8] She earned a doctor of philosophy (PhD) from the University of Bremen in 1996,[7] publishing a dissertation titled "Mikrobieller enzymatischer Abbau organischer Substanzen in Tiefseesedimenten" (Microbial enzymatic degradation of organic substances in deep sea sediments).[9]
Boetius joined the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology as a postdoctoral researcher, and became an assistant professor in 2001[7] and an associate professor in 2003.[7] Her research interests are in the marine methane cycle, the ecology of chemosynthetic habitats, microbial processes of early diagenesis in deep-sea sediments, pressure and temperature effects on microbial processes, microbial symbiosis, geomicrobiology and the global carbon cycle.[1][7] In addition to her role as Professor of Geomicrobiology, which she has held since March 2009,[10] she is also leader of the HGF-MPG Bridge Group on Deep Sea Ecology and Technology[10] and leader of the "Microbial Habitat Group" that researches biogeochemistry, transport processes and microbial processes in benthic environments.[10] She took over as director of the Alfred Wegener Institute[3] in November 2017.[11]
Boetius is also engaged in research and conversations around "issues of deep-sea ecosystems, biodiversity, and our vision of how to live with a future ocean".[8] Recent projects examine the interplay between deep-sea mining, ecology, and sustainability.[8][12] Of deep-sea mining research published in the journal Science Advances in April 2020,[13] Boetius has said "our experiment really shows that such physical processes will stop animals and microbes from returning to repopulate that habitat"[12] and has, relatedly, cited the need to "test if there are ways to make deep-sea mining somewhat sustainable, for example, by creating a protected area for each exploited area".[8]
Boetius grew up in Frankfurt, Germany, and took frequent vacations to the seaside as a child.[8] She spend time in Southern California while studying and working at Scripps Institute of Oceanography.[8]
Mission Medico describe her interests as "La bonne cuisine, le bon vin, la bonne compagnie, la bonne musique, la mode et la vie citadine" (in French) "Good food, good wine, good company, good music, fashion and city life").[19]
Her grandfather Eduard Boëtius worked as a navigator on the Hindenburg zeppelin and was one of the few surviving crew members of the Lakehurst disaster.
References
^ abAntje Boetius, profile at the University of Bremen webpage, retrieved 28 May 2010.
^ abcdefghiMarlow, J. (1 May 2018). "Antje Boetius: exploring the living infinite". In Whitaker; Barton (eds.). Women in Microbiology. American Society of Microbiology. pp. 9–18. doi:10.1128/9781555819545. ISBN978-1-55581-953-8.
