RNDr. Lenka Procházková, Ph.D.

My research

I work on a topic focused on ecophysiology and biodiversity of snow and glacial algae in a lab as well as in field. Investigation areas are in the High Tatra Mountains (Slovakia, Poland), European Alps (Austria, Switzerland, Slovenia), Scandinavia (Finnland, Norway, Sweden), Svalbard (Norway), Iceland, Colombia, and Krkonoše, Šumava and Jeseníky (Czech Republic). These algae are very interesting microorganisms which reproduce massively in extreme conditions of melting snow or surface glacial ice in the polar and (sub)alpine regions and cause thus remarkable blooms here. Furthermore, since the dominant algae thriving on glaciers are members of Zygnematophyceae, relatives to the land plants, I heave broaden my interest in ecophysiology of further Zygnematophyceae in general, e.g. those living in peatbogs and different surfaces like wet rocks, tree barks etc.

My old interest includes also phytoplankton research. My diploma thesis dealed with biodiversity and biomass of phytoplankton in a large variability of lakes in the High Tatra Mountains (Slovakia, Poland). I participated at the study about an eutrophic pond in Scotland. We were curious how the species composition and biomass of phytoplnakton is affected by application of an powder which should have locked phosphorus in pond sediments. What is more, I was involved in a study about dynamic change of life in water dams in Jizera Mountains in relation to recovery from acidification.

• Research ID
• Google Scholar
• Publons/Web od Science
• Research Gate

Currently running projects

• HORIZON MSCA 2024 SE-01 Technologies for Extreme Environment Observation and Research (akronym Explorer) (2025-2029) 
• Snow algae blooms under climate change: unravelling the diversity patterns and seasonal dynamics to understand their current and future distribution (2024-2026)
• Ecology of microalgae on tropic glaciers and in slushy snow (2021-2025)
• EUROPLANET: Phototrophic microorganisms in cold deserts of Iceland - diversity and ecology of potential Analogues (2023-2024)

Finished projects

• Polyphasic assessment of diversity of phototrophic microorganisms from cold environments and their bioprospection potential (2020-2022)
• Metabolomics and Biodiversity of Snow and Ice Phototrophs (2017-2020) 

• Ecophysiological diversity of snow algae – a combined field and laboratory study (2018-2020)

Teaching

• Ecophysiology of algae (MB120P185)
• Ecology of aquatic organisms ((MB162P34)
• Field course in ecology (MB162T02)
• Microscopic technique (MB160C45)

Science communication

• A contribution at a blog about cryoscience about our research of melting snow -EGU blogs: https://blogs.egu.eu/divisions/cr/2019/04/26/image-of-the-week-life-in-blooming-melting-snow/
• In 2019, it was 200 years after the important expedition far North to the Arctic and the first scientific sampling of red snow here – an article in the Czech journal Vesmír: https://vesmir.cz/cz/casopis/archiv-casopisu/2019/cislo-1/nedopsany-pribeh-cerveneho-snehu.html?fbclid=IwAR1ZjQQCpWmJ6eS0KE7X3oLBis7BexH-NdzsO6oeRjuFQjGRFS8RnQdZTW0#.XDcKLFeG6tk.facebook
• About an importance of glacier ice algae - how they darken the glacier ice - in an Czech journal Vesmír:  https://vesmir.cz/cz/casopis/archiv-casopisu/2026/cislo-2/temni-architekti-tani-2.html
• Charles University journal - an article about snow algal blooms in forested sites - based on our current GAČR project (April 2026):  prirodovedci-2026-01-web-03.pdf 

Publications with the IF

Remias, D., Procházková, L., Nedbalová, L., Benning, L.G. & Lutz, S. (2023): Novel insights in cryptic diversity of snow and glacier ice algae communities combining 18S rRNA gene and ITS2 amplicon sequencing. FEMS Microbiology Ecology. doi: 10.1093/femsec/fiad134

Němečková, K., Mareš, J., Procházková, L., Culka, A., Košek, F., Wierzchos, J., Nedbalová, L., Dudák, J., Tymlová, V., Žemlička, J., Kust, A., Zima, J., Nováková, E. & Jehlička, J. (2023). Gypsum endolithic phototrophs under moderate climate (Southern Sicily): their diversity and pigment composition. Front. Microbiol. 14:1175066. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1175066

Remias, D., & Procházková, L. (2023). The first cultivation of the glacier ice alga Ancylonema alaskanum (Zygnematophyceae, Streptophyta): differences in morphology and photophysiology of field vs laboratory strain cells. Journal of Glaciology , 1-5. DOI: doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2023.22

Suzuki, H., Détain, A., Park, Y, Viswanath, K., Wijffels, R.H., Leborgne-Castel N., Prochazkova, L. & Hulat, C. (2023): Phylogeny and lipid profiles of snow-algae isolated from Norwegian red-snow microbiomes. FEMS Microbiology Ecology , 1574-6941. DOI: doi: 10.1093/femsec/fiad057

Procházková, L. , Matsuzaki, R., Řezanka, T.,  Nedbalová, L. & Remias, D. (2023): The snow alga Chloromonas kaweckae sp. nov. (Volvocales, Chlorophyta) causes green surface blooms in the High Tatras (Slovakia) and tolerates high irradiance. Journal of Phycology. DOI: doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/jpy.13307

Lukavský, J., Kopecký, J., Kvíderová, J., Procházková, L. & Řezanka, T. (2023): The alga Bracteacoccus bullatus (Chlorophyceae) isolated from snow, as a source of oil comprising essential unsaturated fatty acids and carotenoids. Journal of Applied Phycology 35:649–660. DOI:10.1007/s10811-023-02916-1

Přibyl, P. & Procházková, L. (2022): Trebonskia zoosporica, gen. et sp. nov., a new member of the Goniochloridales (Eustigmatophyceae, Stramenopiles) with an unusual mode of reproduction European Journal of Phycology 58 (2), 199-213.DOI:10.1080/09670262.2022.2089913

Nakashima, T., Uetake, J., Segawa, T., Procházková, L., Tsushima, A. & Takeuchi, N. (2021): Spatial and Temporal Variations in Pigment and Species Compositions of Snow Algae on Mt. Tateyama in Toyama Prefecture, Japan. Front Plant Sci. 12: 689119.DOI: doi: 10.3389/fpls.2021.689119

Nicoletti, C., Procházková, L., Nedbalová, L., Mócsai, R., Altmann, F., Holzinger, A. & Remias, D. (2021): Thorsmoerkia curvula gen. et spec. nov. (Trebouxiophyceae, Chlorophyta), a semi-terrestrial microalga from Iceland exhibits high levels of unsaturated fatty acids. Journal of Applied Phycology  33, 3671–3682. DOI: 10.1007/s10811-021-02577-y

Procházková, L., Řezanka, T., Nedbalová, L. & Remias, D. (2021): Unicellular versus Filamentous: The Glacial Alga Ancylonema alaskana comb. et stat. nov. and Its Ecophysiological Relatedness to Ancylonema nordenskioeldii (Zygnematophyceae, Streptophyta). Microorganisms 9(5), 1103. DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms9051103

Procházková, L., Remias, D., Holzinger, A., Řezanka, T. & Nedbalová, L. (2021): Ecophysiological and ultrastructural characterisation of the circumpolar orange snow alga Sanguina aurantia compared to the cosmopolitan red snow alga Sanguina nivaloides (Chlorophyta). Polar Biology 44, 105–117. DOI: 10.1007/s00300-020-02778-0

Procházková, L., Remias, D., Bilger, W., Křížková, H., Řezanka, T. & Nedbalová, L. (2020): Cysts of the Snow Alga Chloromonas krienitzii (Chlorophyceae) Show Increased Tolerance to Ultraviolet Radiation and Elevated Visible Light. Frontiers in Plant Science 11: 617250. DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2020.617250

Remias, D., Nicoletti, C., Krennhuber, K., Möderndorfer, B., Nedbalová, L. & Procházková, L. (2020): Growth, fatty, and amino acid profiles of the soil alga Vischeria sp. E71. 10 (Eustigmatophyceae) under different cultivation conditions. Folia Microbiologica, 65, 1017–1023. DOI: 10.1007/s12223-020-00810-8

Remias, D., Procházková, L., Nedbalová, L. & Andersen, R.A. (2020): Two new Kremastochrysopsis species, K. austriaca sp. nov. and K. americana sp. nov. (Chrysophyceae). Journal of Phycology, 56, 135–145. DOI: 10.1111/jpy.12937

Procházková, L., Remias, D., Řezanka, T. & Nedbalová, L. (2019): Ecophysiology of Chloromonas hindakii, sp. nov. (Chlorophyceae), causing orange snow blooms at different light conditions. Microorganisms , 7(10), 434. DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms7100434

Lutz, S., Procházková, L., Benning, L.G., Nedbalová, L. & Remias, D. (2019): Evaluating amplicon high–throughput sequencing data of microalgae living in melting snow: improvements and limitations. Fottea , 19(2), 115-131. DOI: 10.5507/fot.2019.003

Procházková, L., Leya, T., Křížková, H. & Nedbalová, L. (2019): Sanguina nivaloides and Sanguina aurantia gen. et spp. nov. (Chlorophyta): the taxonomy, phylogeny, biogeography and ecology of two newly recognised algae causing red and orange snow. FEMS Microbiology Ecology 95 (6) fiz064. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/femsec/fiz064

Osterrothová, K.,  Culka, A., Němečková, K., Kaftan, D., Nedbalová, L., Procházková, L. & Jan Jehlička (2019): Analyzing carotenoids of snow algae by Raman microspectroscopy and high-performance liquid chromatography. Spectrochimica Acta Part A: Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy 212: 262-271 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.saa.2019.01.013

Remias, D., Procházková, L., Holzinger, A. & Nedbalová, L. (2018): Ecology, cytology and phylogeny of the snow alga Scotiella cryophila K-1 (Chlamydomonadales, Chlorophyta) from the Austrian Alps. Phycologia. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2216/18-45.1

Procházková,L., Remias, D., Řezanka, T. & Nedbalová, L. (2018): Chloromonas nivalis subsp. tatrae, subsp. nov. (Chlamydomonadales, Chlorophyta): re–examination of a snow alga from the High Tatra Mountains (Slovakia). Fottea 18 (1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.5507/fot.2017.010

Procházková, L., Remias, D., Holzinger, A., Řezanka, T. & Nedbalová, L. (2018): Ecophysiological and morphological comparison of two populations of Chlainomonas sp. (Chlorophyta) causing red snow on ice-covered lakes in the High Tatras and Austrian Alps. European Journal of Phycology 53(2) 230-243. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09670262.2018.1426789

Nedbalová, L., Mihál, M., Kvíderová, J., Procházková, L., Řezanka, T. & Elster, J. (2017): Identity, ecology and ecophysiology of planktic green algae dominating in ice-covered lakes on James Ross Island (northeastern Antarctic Peninsula). Extremophiles 21: 187-200. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00792-016-0894-y

Řezanka, T., Nedbalová, L., Lukavský, J., Procházková, L. & Sigler, K. (2017): Lipidomic analysis of two closely related strains of the microalga Parietochloris (Trebouxiophyceae, Chlorophyta). Algal Research 25: 473-482. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.algal.2017.06.005

Lang, P., Meis, S., Procházková, L., Carvalho, L., Mackay, E.B., Woods, H.J., Pottie, J.,  Milne, I., Taylor, C., Maberly, S.C. & Spears, B.M. (2016): Phytoplankton community responses in a shallow lake following lanthanum-bentonite application. Water Research 97(15):55-68. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2016.03.018

Řezanka, T., Nedbalová, L., Procházková, L. & Sigler, K. (2014): Lipidomic profiling of snow algae by ESI-MS and silver-LC/APCI-MS. Phytochemistry 100:34-42. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.2014.01.017

Lukeš, M., Procházková, L., Shmidt, V.,  Nedbalová, L. & Kaftan, D. (2014): Temperature dependence of photosynthesis and thylakoid lipid composition in the red snow alga Chlamydomonas cf. nivalis (Chlorophyceae). FEMS Microbiology Ecology 89 (2):303-315. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1574-6941.12299

Procházková, L., Houk, V.  & Nedbalová, L. (2012): Discostella tatrica sp. nov. (Bacillariophyceae) - a small centric diatom from the Tatra Mountain lakes (Slovakia/Poland). Fottea 12(1): 1–12. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5507/fot.2012.001

My free time activities include : ČSOP (Czech Union for nature protection)  and Lynx and wolf patrols under Friends of the Earth Czech Republic