CURRICULUM VITAE
In my experience, the best thing you can do is share what you've learned with others.
Research
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Publications
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Collaborations
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Teaching
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Funding
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Research ✳︎ Publications ✳︎ Collaborations ✳︎ Teaching ✳︎ Funding ✳︎
Nadezhda Rimskaya-Korsakova, PhD
Invertebrate zoology · physiology of symbiosis · annelid evolution and development
Institute of Zoology and Evolutionary Research, Friedrich Schiller University Jena,
Erbertstraße 1, 07743 Jena, Germany · +49 3641 949140
nadezhda.rimskaya-korsakova@uni-jena.de
ORCID 0000-0001-9576-2435 · ResearcherID N-1087-2016 · Google Scholar · ResearchGate
Research interests
Academic training
PhD, Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU). Microscopic anatomy of the giant vestimentiferan tubeworm Riftia pachyptila Jones, 1981 (Annelida: Vestimentifera).
Diploma in Zoology with honours, Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU). Microscopic anatomy of juvenile vestimentiferan Riftia pachyptila.
Academic positions
Postdoctoral researcher, iDiv Flexpool, FSU Jena, Germany
Wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin, FSU Jena, Germany
Research group leader, MSU, Russia (and Scientific Secretary of the Department of Invertebrate Zoology, permanent)
Senior Scientist, MSU
Scientist, MSU
Junior Scientist, MSU
Lab Technician, MSU
International research visits
Jul–Sep: Sars International Centre for Marine Molecular Biology, University of Bergen, Norway — host: Andreas Hejnol; evo-devo and molecular embryology of phoronids
Feb–Mar: Marine Biology Section, University of Copenhagen, Denmark — host: Assoc. Prof. Katrine Worsaae; immunohistochemistry and confocal imaging of the siboglinid nervous system (Siboglinum fiordicum)
Jan and Aug: Marine Biology Section, University of Copenhagen, Denmark — host: Assoc. Prof. Katrine Worsaae; neuroanatomy and CLSM of several species of Osedax
Feb: Department of Integrative Zoology, University of Vienna, Austria — host: Prof. Andreas Wanninger; neuroarchitecture of oweniid annelids (Galathowenia oculata)
Publications
Peer-reviewed articles in journals including Nature Communications, PLOS ONE, BMC Biology, Journal of Morphology, and Frontiers in Zoology. Google Scholar h-index 10; 296 citations (as of 28 Aug 2026).
See the full publication list →
Invited presentations and lectures
Seminar for MSc students, University of Bergen, Norway: The biology of symbiotrophic annelids (Siboglinidae)
Institute seminar, FSU Jena: Trophosome and symbionts in the frenulate siboglinids
Institute seminar, FSU Jena: Siboglinidae and the annelid pattern of segmentation
Conference for young researchers “University on Board – 2022”, Shirshov Institute of Oceanology: What are frenulate pogonophorans?
Workshop “Carbon cycle”, Winogradsky Institute of Microbiology: Can siboglinids serve as indicators of gas and oil deposits?
Seminar during the 86th cruise of RV Akademik Mstislav Keldysh: What are siboglinid tubeworms?
ForBio Course “International Course on Annelid Systematics, Morphology and Evolution”, University of Bergen, Norway: Siboglinidae
Bioseminar, St. Petersburg State University, Russia: Vestimentiferan tubeworms — tubes, palps, hemoglobin, and bacteria
ForBio Course, University of Bergen, Norway: Siboglinidae and 3D modelling in zoology
MARESEDU-2016, Moscow, Russia: Bone-eating worms Osedax — gutless worms, skeletons of vertebrates and sexual dimorphism
II International Scientific Conference “Marine research and education”, Moscow, Russia: Studies of deep-sea hydrothermal habitats
Sars Centre for Marine Molecular Biology, Bergen, Norway: Vestimentifera — gutless worms of the deep sea
Faculty of Biology, MSU, Russia: 3D modelling for zoologists
Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington, USA: Morphology and development of vestimentiferan tubeworms
International workshop “Siboglinidae”, Honolulu, USA: Hydrothermal vestimentiferan tubeworm Riftia pachyptila — morphology from different sites
Fieldwork at marine stations and cruise participation
- KH24-261 cruise of RV Kronprins Haakon to the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge, December 2024
- CDEEPSEA22-107 cruise of RV G.O. Sars to the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge, July 2022
- 86th cruise of RV Akademik Mstislav Keldysh to the Kara Sea, October 2021
- 82nd cruise of RV Akademik Mstislav Keldysh to the methane seeps of the Laptev and East Siberian seas, October 2021
- Espegrend Marine Biological Station, University of Bergen, Norway (North Sea) — annually since 2017
- White Sea Biological Station (WSBS) of MSU, Russia (White Sea) — annually 2000–2023
- Vostok Marine Biological Station, Russia (Sea of Japan) — 2016, 2018, 2019
- Southern Branch of the Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, Gelendzhik (Black Sea) — 2005, 2018
- Sognefjord (North Sea), 4-day cruise on RV Håkon Mosby, University of Bergen — 2016
- Island of Sylt (North Sea), sampling trip — 2015
- Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington, USA — 2009
- Hel Marine Station, University of Gdańsk, Poland (Baltic Sea) — 2007
Organisation of international scientific meetings
International Polychaete Conference, Senckenberg Museum Frankfurt, Germany (~150–200 participants). Co-Organizer.
Invertebrate Zoology sub-section, “Lomonosov” conference (60 participants). Chair.
3rd Summer Course in Embryology of Marine Invertebrates, WSBS, Russia (60 participants). Co-Principal organizer.
Invertebrate Zoology sub-section, “Lomonosov” conference (40 participants). Chair.
Invertebrate Zoology – New Century (160th anniversary of the Department of Invertebrate Zoology, MSU; 150 participants). Co-Principal organizer.
Invertebrate Zoology sub-section, “Lomonosov” conference (40 participants). Chair.
4th International Congress on Invertebrate Morphology (ICIM-4), Moscow, Russia (350 participants). Co-Principal organizer.
International workshop on comparative anatomy of invertebrates (ICIM-4 satellite), Moscow (24 participants). Co-Principal organizer.
Invertebrate Zoology sub-section, “Lomonosov” conference (40 participants). Chair.
2nd Summer Course in Embryology of Marine Invertebrates, WSBS, Russia (30 participants). Co-Principal organizer.
Invertebrate Zoology sub-section, “Lomonosov” conference (30 participants). Chair.
“Lomonosov” conference, Biology Section, MSU (500–700 participants). Responsible Secretary.
Summer/Neuroanatomy/Polychaete courses, WSBS MSU. Assistant.
Academic awards and prizes (selected)
Lomonosov MSU Development Program Award — competitive research-performance award (also 2015, 2016, 2017, 2020)
Scholarship of Moscow State University for a series of studies on the evolution of Siboglinidae
Medal and award of the Russian Academy of Sciences for the paper series “Evolutionary morphology of gutless symbiotrophic annelids Siboglinidae”
Award of the International Academic Publishing Company “Nauka / Interperiodica” for a paper series on microscopic anatomy and evolutionary morphology of Vestimentifera
Carl Zeiss Award for the study of the circulatory system of tubeworms Siboglinidae in extreme environments
Professional development
UNIBUND Mentoring Programme for Postdoctoral Researchers (Universitätsbund Halle–Jena–Leipzig) — competitive two-year programme preparing women postdocs for a professorship, combining one-to-one mentoring by experienced professors with training in career-relevant key qualifications.
Third-party funding
I have led externally funded research as independent Principal Investigator through five competitive grants from the Russian Science Foundation (RSCF) and the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFBR). After moving to Germany I received a ProChanceCareer grant at FSU Jena. I am Co-PI on the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network ZooCELL, the Wellcome Sanger / Moore Aquatic Symbiosis Genomics Project, and several large RSCF and RFBR consortia. Proposals in preparation: DFG Eigene Stelle and Volkswagen Foundation.
All amounts in euros for comparability. Figures marked “≈” are approximate (converted at €1 ≈ 88 RUB, US$1.10, £0.86).
A. Research grants as Principal Investigator
| Period | Funder / grant | Project | Amount (€) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024–2026 | ProChanceCareer, FSU Jena | Impact of chemosymbiosis establishment on the development and immunity of gutless marine siboglinids | 40,000 |
| 2020–2023 | RSCF 20-74-10011, early-career group leader (8 persons) | Structure, development and organogenesis of frenulate pogonophorans upon establishment of the unique symbiosis | ≈ 170,000 |
| 2018–2020 | RFBR 18-34-20140 (mol_a_ved), group leader | Formation of siboglinid segmentation: morphological, cellular and transcriptome aspects of the annelid body plan | ≈ 70,000 |
| 2014–2015 | RFBR 14-04-32176 (mol_a) | Comparative study of the circulatory system of Vestimentifera (Annelida) | ≈ 9,000 |
| 2012 | RFBR 12-04-90854 (mol_rf_nr), ZIN St. Petersburg | Organization of the nervous system of Vestimentifera | ≈ 4,000 |
Subtotal (PI research grants): ≈ €293,000
B. Grants for organizing meetings and courses
| Period | Funder / grant | Purpose | Amount (€) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | The Company of Biologists, UK (EA 1824) | 3rd Summer Course on Embryology of Marine Invertebrates, WSBS MSU | ≈ 2,900 |
| 2017 | RFBR 17-34-10214 | Young-scientists section, ICIM-4 | ≈ 4,000 |
| 2016 | The Company of Biologists, UK (EA 1136) | 2nd Summer Course on Embryology of Marine Invertebrates, WSBS MSU | ≈ 2,900 |
Subtotal (meeting / course grants): ≈ €9,800
C. Travel and training fellowships
| Year | Funder / grant | Purpose | Amount (€) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | MARS — European Network of Marine Research Stations | Collaboration visit (Osedax nervous-system architecture), Univ. Copenhagen | n/a |
| 2009 | RFBR 09-04-09334 | Comparative Embryology Course, Friday Harbor Laboratories, USA | ≈ 1,800 |
| 2009 | Tuition award, Friday Harbor Laboratories, Univ. of Washington | Comparative Embryology Course (tuition) | ≈ 1,800 |
| 2008 | RFBR 08-04-09468 | International Workshop on Siboglinidae, Honolulu, USA | ≈ 1,800 |
| 2008 | ChEss travel grant | International Workshop on Siboglinidae, Honolulu, USA | ≈ 1,800 |
Subtotal (travel / training): ≈ €7,200
Total raised as PI / organiser (A + B + C): ≈ €310,000
D. Participation in externally funded projects (Co-PI)
Amounts refer to the total volume of each project, not to funds raised by me as PI.
| Period | Funder / grant | Project (PI) | Volume (€) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024–2027 | MSCA Doctoral Network «ZooCELL» 101119891 | Doctoral training network | 261,000 |
| 2020–2021 | Grant of the President of the Russian Federation, MK-1164.2020 | Patterns of ontogeny evolution in Ophelia limacina (PI V. Kozin) | ≈ 13,600 |
| 2018–2022 | RSCF 18-14-00141 | Morphology, development, diversity and distribution of Siboglinidae (PI V. Malakhov) | ≈ 205,000 |
| 2019–2021 | RFBR 19-04-00449 | Evolution of the brachiopod life cycle from the early Cambrian to Recent (PI T. Kuzmina) | ≈ 60,000 |
| 2018–2022 | RSCF 18-14-00082 | Organization of tentacles in Trochozoa and Polyzoa: comparative analysis and phylogenetic value (PI E. Temereva) | ≈ 205,000 |
| 2014–2016 | RFBR 14-04-00238а | Phoronid larvae, their catastrophic metamorphosis, and the evolution of the phoronid body plan (PI E. Temereva) | ≈ 60,000 |
| 2013–2014 | MD-1979.2013.4 | Organization and development of the nervous system in Lophotrochozoa (PI E. Temereva) | ≈ 13,600 |
| 2012–2013 | RFBR 12-04-31427 | Taxonomic revision and distribution of vestimentiferans (PI N. Karaseva) | ≈ 60,000 |
| 2011–2013 | RFBR 11-04-00955-а | Organization of the circulatory system of brachiopods (PI T. Kuzmina) | ≈ 60,000 |
E. Research infrastructure access
DESY Photon Science, PETRA III, beamline P07 (I-20240629): “Structure of the sunken-bone microhabitat designed by the siboglinid tubeworm Sclerolinum brattstromi” — synchrotron beamtime allocation.
Moore / Wellcome Sanger Aquatic Symbiosis Genomics Project (PI J. M. Martín-Durán, QMUL): 30 annelid species and their symbionts sequenced at chromosome-level resolution.
Student supervision
PhD (co-supervisor)
- Nina Levin — Evolution of the gravity sense organs (PI Prof. Andreas Hejnol, ZooCELL)
- Francesca Pinton — Responses to infections and environmental stresses in acoels (PI Prof. Andreas Hejnol)
MSc
- Michelle Albrecht, FSU Jena 2024 — Secretion and tube growth in Osedax fenrisi
- Jhanya Baskaran, FSU Jena 2025 — Neural anatomy of frenulate Oligobrachia sp.
- Elena Shushkevich, MIPT 2023 — Microbial sulfur metabolism in frenulate Oligobrachia haakonmosbiensis
- Tim Sharett (formerly Timofei Pimenov), MSU 2022 — Morphology, feeding and tube formation of four sabellid fanworms
- Madina Kanafina, MSU 2022 — Ultrastructure of the trophosome in Siboglinum fiordicum and Oligobrachia haakonmosbiensis
BSc
- Laura Berneke, FSU Jena 2026 — Neural architecture and putative sensory organs of the meiobenthic sea cucumber Labidoplax buski
- Lisa Göttler, FSU Jena 2023 — SEM and histology of Xenacoelomorpha
- Elena Andronova, MSU 2023 — Body-plan formation in annelids with unusual life cycles
- Tim Sharett (formerly Timofei Pimenov), MSU 2020 — Brain structure of the fanworms Euchone analis and Bispira manicata
- Madina Kanafina, KFU 2020 — Ontogenesis of the Arctic pogonophoran Nereilinum murmanicum
- Varvara Krolenko, MSU 2018 — New vestimentiferan tubeworms from the Mid-Cayman Spreading Centre
- Anastasia Naydenkova, MSU 2017 — Development of oligochaetes
Teaching
Sixteen years of practical, field-based, and advanced-level courses across Bachelor, Master, and continuing-education levels, at home universities and international marine biological stations (White Sea, Russia; Roscoff, France; Espegrend, Norway). Portfolio: invertebrate zoology, embryology of marine invertebrates, marine biodiversity, scientific illustration, and 3D visualisation.
Morphology, development and evolution of invertebrates (advanced), BSc — FSU Jena
Developmental Biology of Marine Invertebrates, MSc — Uni Kiel
Marine embryology at the Roscoff Marine Biological Station — FSU Jena
Morphology: questions, methods, application perspectives, MSc — FSU Jena
Zoological Biodiversity, 1st-semester students — FSU Jena
Basic practical course on Zoology, 1st-semester students — FSU Jena
Field course for biochemists: embryology & immunocytochemistry, BSc — WSBS MSU
Current problems in invertebrate zoology, MSc — MSU
Field course on embryology of invertebrates, MSc — WSBS MSU
Scientific illustration and 3D visualization in zoology, BSc — MSU
Advanced practical course in Siboglinidae (Annelida), MSc — MSU
Basic practical course on invertebrate zoology, BSc — MSU
Field summer course on diversity of marine invertebrates, BSc — WSBS MSU
Public outreach
Public engagement has been a continuous part of my work for nearly two decades — most prominently the weekly “ZooClub” workshops for school students, held every Friday since 2007 and reaching more than a thousand young people — complemented by popular-science articles (Elementy.ru, N+1), public lectures at science festivals, and a national-television appearance.
Weekly ZooClub workshops for school students (20–30 participants; 40–50 applications on average, >100 in 2017; online since 2020)
“Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften” and “Lange Nacht der Museen”, Phyletic Museum, FSU Jena
Big-eyed worms (Elementy.ru)
Zombie worms (Elementy.ru)
Evolutionary earthworm downshifting (N+1)
Gutless animals of the deep sea — open lecture, MSU Science Festival; plus Elementy.ru articles
“Dialogues about animals” (TV programme, Russia 1)
Service and professional activities
Editorial boards
- Acta Zoologica (The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences)
- Frontiers in Zoology (Springer Nature)
Commissions of trust
- Review panel for research vessels (GPF), German Research Foundation (DFG) and Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR), 2026–2030
- Grant reviewer (external expert), Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR), France, 2026
- DZG Master’s Prize committee, FSU Jena, 2025–present
- Kovalevsky Medal nominator board, St. Petersburg Imperial Society of Naturalists, 2023
- Organizer, Institute research-seminar series, IZER, FSU Jena, 2024–present
- Advisory Council, International Society for Invertebrate Morphology (ISIM), 2017–2025
Peer review (selected)
Molecular Biology and Evolution, BMC Ecology and Evolution, Journal of Morphology, Cell Biology International, Organisms Diversity & Evolution, Zootaxa, Frontiers in Marine Science, Marine Biology, Neural Development, Zoologichesky Zhurnal, Invertebrate Zoology.
Memberships
- International Society for Invertebrate Morphology (ISIM)
- International Polychaetology Association (IPA)
- Deutsche Zoologische Gesellschaft (DZG)