Rocky de Nys is Emertius Professor at James Cook University and Chief Scientist at Sea Forest. He has extensive research experience in aquaculture and marine and environmental biotechnology, algal biomass and bio-products, and marine natural products. He has a focus on applied research with an emphasis on commercialisation where there are direct and foreseeable outcomes for industry. He has engaged in strong industry collaborations in the development and implementation of technologies for sustainable aquaculture, with a focus on the production of macroalgal biomass for bioremediation and bio-products. Applications for these technologies range from algal bioremediation of wastewaters from aquaculture and municipal water treatment through to algal biomass for human foods and bioenergy.

Sea Forest is an Australian environmental technology company delivering world-leading production methods and products from the native seaweed Asparagopsis to materially reduce methane emissions in ruminant livestock and decarbonise the agriculture sector. 

Interests

Professional

• Innovative applications for macroalgal resources and biotechnologies

Research

• Macroalgal biomass and bioproducts
• Bioremediation of aquatic waste waters
• Bioremediation of industrial waste waters and carbon capture

Experience

• 2021 to 2030 - Chief Scientist, Sea Forest (Tasmania)
• 2011 to 2021 - Professor and Research Leader, James Cook University (Townsville, Australia)
• 2005 to 2011 - Professor and Head of Discipline - Aquaculture, James Cook University (Townsville, Australia)
• 2002 to 2005 - Associate Professor, James Cook University (Townsville, Australia)
• 1994 to 2002 - ARC Research Fellow and Postdoctoral Fellow, University of New South Wales (Sydney, Australia)
• 2000 - Graduate Diploma of Technical Management, Deakin University (Melbourne, Australia)
• 1993 to 1994 - Postdoctoral Fellow, Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (Zurich, Switzerland)
• 1992 - PhD, James Cook University (Townsville, Australia)
• 1988 - MSc, University of Otago (Dunedin, New Zealand)
• 1985 - BSc, University of Waikato (Hamilton, New Zealand)

Research Disciplines

• Fisheries sciences (3005)
• Plant biology (3108)

Socio-Economic Objectives

• plant production and plant primary products (2699)

Awards

• 2006 - CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship Fellowship
• 2002 - JCU Vice-Chancellor's Award for Entrepreneurial Research
• 2001 - Young Tall Poppy NSW (Australian Institute of Political Science), Recognising the achievements of Australia's outstanding younf researchers

Fellowships

• 2017 - Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering (ATSE)

These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.

Journal Articles

• Li J, Weinberger F, de Nys R, Thomas T and Egan S (2023) A pathway to improve seaweed aquaculture through microbiota manipulation. Trends in Biotechnology, 41 (4). pp. 545-556
• Glasson C, Luiten C, Carnachan S, Daines A, Kidgell J, Hinkley S, Praeger C, Andrade Martinez M, Sargison L, Magnusson M, de Nys R and Sims I (2022) Structural characterization of ulvans extracted from blade (Ulva ohnoi) and filamentous (Ulva tepida and Ulva prolifera) species of cultivated Ulva. International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 194. pp. 571-579
• Glasson C, Kinley R, de Nys R, King N, Adams S, Packer M, Svenson J, Eason C and Magnusson M (2022) Benefits and risks of including the bromoform containing seaweed Asparagopsis in feed for the reduction of methane production from ruminants. Algal Research, 64.
• Pratap K, Majzoub M, Taki A, Miranda Hernandez S, Magnusson M, Glasson C, de Nys R, Thomas T, Lopata A and Kamath S (2022) The Algal Polysaccharide Ulvan and Carotenoid Astaxanthin Both Positively Modulate Gut Microbiota in Mice. Foods, 11 (4).
• Wright J, Kennedy E, de Nys R and Tatsumi M (2022) Asexual propagation of Asparagopsis armata gametophytes: fragmentation, regrowth and attachment mechanisms for sea-based cultivation. Journal of Applied Phycology, 34. pp. 2135-2144
• Kidgell J, Carnachan S, Magnusson M, Lawton R, Sims I, Hinkley S, de Nys R and Glasson C (2021) Are all ulvans equal? A comparative assessment of the chemical and gelling properties of ulvan from blade and filamentous Ulva. Carbohydrate Polymers, 264.
• Roque B, Venegas M, Kinley R, de Nys R, Duarte T, Yang X and Kebreab E (2021) Red seaweed (Asparagopsis taxiformis) supplementation reduces enteric methane by over 80 percent in beef steers. PLoS ONE, 16 (3).
• Vucko M, de Nys R and Cole A (2021) Plant growth-promoting properties of extracts produced by fermenting the freshwater macroalga, Oedogonium intermedium. Algal Research, 58.
• He Z, Saw W, Lane D, van Eyk P, de Nys R, Nathan G and Ashman P (2020) The ash-quartz sand interaction behaviours during steam gasification or combustion of a freshwater and a marine species of macroalgae. Fuel, 263.
• Kidgell J, Glasson C, Magnusson M, Vamvounis G, Sims I, Carnachan S, Hinkley S, Lopata A, de Nys R and Taki A (2020) Themolecular weight of ulvan affects the in vitro inflammatory response of a murine macrophage. International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 150. pp. 839-848
• Kinley R, Martinez-Fernandez G, Matthews M, de Nys R, Magnusson M and Tomkins N (2020) Mitigating the carbon footprint and improving productivity of ruminant livestock agriculture using a red seaweed. Journal of Cleaner Production, 259.
• Magnusson M, Vucko M, Neoh T and de Nys R (2020) Using oil immersion to deliver a naturally-derived, stable bromoform product from the red seaweed Asparagopsis taxiformis. Algal Research, 51.

More

ResearchOnline@JCU stores 216+ research outputs authored by Prof Rocky de Nys from 2000 onwards.

Current and recent Research Funding to JCU is shown by funding source and project.

Advisory Accreditation: I can be on your Advisory Panel as a Primary or Secondary Advisor.

These Higher Degree Research projects are either current or by students who have completed their studies within the past 5 years at JCU. Linked titles show theses available within ResearchOnline@JCU.

Current

• A strategic roadmap for the selection of high-performance strains of Asparagopsis taxiformis in an aquaculture setting (PhD , External Advisor)

Completed

• The structure and bioactivity of ulvan, a sulfated polysaccharide from Ulva (chlorophyta) (2021, PhD , Advisor Mentor)

These are the most recent metadata records associated with this researcher. To see a detailed description of all dataset records, visit Research Data Australia.

• Angell, A. (2015) The nitrogen, protein and amino acid content of seaweeds. James Cook University
• Bird, M. (2012) Algal biochar: effects and applications data. James Cook University

The map shows research collaborations by institution from the past 7 years.
Note: Map points are indicative of the countries or states that institutions are associated with.