Assoc.-Prof. Dr. Michael Zumstein

Associate Professor for Biotransformation
Head of the Christian Doppler Laboratory for Biodegradation of Water-Soluble Polymers

☎ +43 1 4277 53372
✉ michael.zumstein(at)univie.ac.at
⚲ Josef-Holaubek-Platz 2 (UZA II), Room 2C477, 1090 Vienna

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Our group investigates the biotransformation and biodegradation of anthropogenic organic chemicals in natural and engineered environments. We combine techniques from environmental analytical chemistry and molecular biology to obtain a fundamental understanding of the activity, specificity, and identity of key enzymes and microorganisms involved in these processes.

A current research focus lies on the biodegradation of polymeric components in home and personal care products in wastewater and freshwater environments. Other chemical classes of interest are pharmaceuticals and pesticides. Generally, we investigate how chemical structure and environmental biotic and abiotic factors affect biodegradation. These process-level insights guide the development and selection of biodegradable alternatives to conventional chemicals.

Research Projects

Christian Doppler Laboratory for Biodegradation of Water-Soluble Polymers

Current Projects EDGE

Research in the Christian Doppler Laboratory for Biodegradation of Water-Soluble Polymers, which was started in 2025, focuses on the chemical and…

Exploring Extracellular Enzymes from Wastewater Microbial Communities to Mitigate Environmental Pollution

Past Projects EDGE

The input of anthropogenic chemicals into environmental systems is a major concern. For example, the presence of antibiotics in wastewater and…

Biotransformation of Biopesticides in Agricultural Soils

Current Projects EDGE

Biopesticides are promising alternatives to synthetic pesticides – among other reasons also because they are expected to be biodegraded and thus of…

Public Outreach

Biologisch abbaubare Shampoos und Polymerforschung (2025)

Warum Shampoos so schwer biologisch abbaubar sind (2026)

Group Members

Marko Kojic

Postdoc

Patrick Schacksen

Postdoc

Maximilian Eiser

PhD Student

Richard Gruseck

PhD Student

Siraz Kader

PhD Student

Anika Mikes

PhD Student

Madeline O'Connor

PhD Student

Felix Machold

Master's Student

Publications

Rich SL, Zumstein MT, Helbling DE. Identifying Functional Groups that Determine Rates of Micropollutant Biotransformations Performed by Wastewater Microbial Communities. Environmental Science & Technology. 2022 Jan 18;56(2):984-994. Epub 2021 Dec 23. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.1c06429

Zumstein M, Fenner K. Towards more Sustainable Peptide- based Antibiotics: Stable in Human Blood, Enzymatically Hydrolyzed in Wastewater? Chimia. 2021 Apr 1;75(4):267-271. doi: 10.2533/chimia.2021.267

Microbiomes Drive Planetary Health

Michael Zumstein is part of the FWF-funded Cluster of Excellence (CoE)