Møbjerg Lab
Currently we focus on tardigrades (water bears) and cryptobiosis, a state of latent life, where metabolism may come to a reversible standstill. We investigate molecular, anatomical and physiological adaptations that enable tardigrades to thrive in extreme and changing environments. The overall aim is to elucidate the mechanisms that underly extreme adaptations, such as cryptobiosis, and to understand how they evolved.
Our research methodology includes advanced microscopy and imaging techniques, experimental physiology, and various molecular methods including genomics/transcriptomics. Fieldwork is an important part of our work.
See profile at Google Scholar.
Current (2024–2025)
- Join us at Europlanet Astrobiology Workshop 2025, Sept. 2025
- "Last Survivors", BLOOM Festival, May 2025. Podcast (In Danish) available here.
- Research Highlight "Decoding tardigrade extreme stress tolerance". Sci. China Life Sci, April 2025.
- Interview - Miryam Naddaf, Nature News, Oct 2024.
- Discussion of tardigrades with Hannah Fry and Dara Ó Briain on BBC Radio 4 series “Curious Cases” (UK), Oct 2024. Podcast available here.
Previous (Selected 2020–2023)
- Debate on Extreme Stress Tolerance in the Animal Kingdom, BLOOM Festival and the Danish Society of Engineers (IDA), Sept 2023. Podcast (In Danish) available here.
- Discussion of tardigrades with Danish radio and TV host, Huxi Bach on DR P1 radio show “Ubegribeligt” (English: “Incomprehensible”), Sept 2023. Podcast (In Danish) available here.
- UCPH Press Release, Aug 2023. Denmark is crawling with the world's most resilient creature.
- Entanglement in a qubit-qubit-tardigrade system, Dec 2022.
- Discussion of tardigrades with Danish radio host Peter Løhde, Radio 4, Oct 2022. Podcast (In Danish) available here.
- Tardigrades on Danish DR P1 radio show “Vildt Naturligt”, Nov 2021. Podcast (In Danish) available here.
- New tardigrade species selected for WoRMS top-ten marine species of 2020, March 2021.
- Interview - The Guardian, March 2021.Tardigrades: nature's great survivors:
- Interview - The Scientist, Jan 2021. Tardigrades’ List of Super Powers Grows Ever Longer.
- Interview - Danish Natur|DR, Jan 2020. Verdens mest hårdføre dyr bliver også ramt af klimaforandringerne.
- Thermotolerance experiments on active and desiccated states of Ramazzottius varieornatus emphasize that tardigrades are sensitive to high temperatures, Jan 2020.
Experimental Animal Models in Research and Industry
PhD courses at the August Krogh Club
Master and Bachelor projects: We offer projects within cryptobiosis and environmental stress tolerance in tardigrades. Please contact Nadja Møbjerg for further information.
International tardigrade symposia represent the greatest scientific forum on tardigrades and give new perspectives on a range of topics related to these enigmatic animals.
16th International Symposium on Tardigrada, Tsuruoka, Japan, June 2025..
15th International Symposium on Tardigrada, Kraków, Poland, Aug. 2022.
14th International Symposium on Tardigrada, Copenhagen, Denmark, July–Aug. 2018.
