Environmental and Applied Microbiology

Our overall research interests are in environmental microbiology and biotechnology and in the bioexploration, cultivation and characterization of novel microbes. Research projects in our laboratory span from fundamental projects on the physiology, ecology and taxonomy of bacteria involved in biotransformation and biodegradation of toxic chemicals to more applied research projects that address the environmental problems facing industrialized areas.

Our current research is focused in the areas of:

1. Environmental and applied microbiology (aerobic and anaerobic microbial metabolism of toxic and environmental pollutants, specifically halogenated aromatic compounds; mechanisms of aryl-dehalogenation);
2. Bioexploration (microbiology of natural resources and their applications; isolation, cultivation, characterization and taxonomy of novel bacteria; Arctic microbiology); and
3. Environmental biotechnology (development of bioremediation methods for treatment of contaminated soil, groundwater and sediment).

Our work has focused on examining the diverse catabolic activities of microbes mediating biodegradation of anthropogenic pollutants and how microbial communities can be stimulated to degrade soil, groundwater and sediment contaminants. My laboratory is examining the diversity of aerobic and anaerobic processes in the degradation and transformation of environmental pollutants, including chlorinated and brominated aromatic compounds, polycylic aromatic hydrocarbons, MTBE and selenium oxyanions. Our research is seeking novel bioremediation strategies for degradation of these compounds in soils and sediments. Our long term research objectives involve examining the diverse catabolic activities of microbes and how biotransformation and biodegradation affect the fate of anthropogenic contaminants. A central objective in these studies is the physiological characterization of the microorganisms involved in contaminant degradation and transformation and the identification of degradation mechanisms and pathways. The aims of our work is to provide the fundamental basis for harnessing microbial activities in bioremediation or biocatalytic processes.

We are also exploring the microbial diversity of Arctic soils and sediments. Our aim is to obtain an understanding of the role and function of the microbial communities in these ecosystems and their adaptation to climate fluctuations. The focus of the proposed study is to examine the role of different bacterial groups in carbon and nitrogen cycling in Arctic soil environments and assess the selection mechanisms promoting the dominance of key species in changing temperature regimes. Climate fluctuations in the Arctic are expected have a major impact on the microbial community that is active at different temperatures and this will greatly affect carbon and nitrogen turnover in Arctic soil environments.