RESEARCH INTERESTSMicroorganisms are responsible for key steps in biogeochemical cycles on Earth, yet the extent of their diversity and metabolic capabilities remains vastly underestimated. By increasing our knowledge of their genetic diversity, evolution and ecology we will learn more about our biosphere and how to better conserve resources and protect the environment. Our research focuses on the processes that allow microorganisms to adapt to their environment and to changing environmental conditions. The approach is to study microorganisms that live in extreme environments, such as deep-sea hydrothermal vents and hypersaline lakes, where insults to the cellular components are intense; organisms that inhabit these ecosystems have evolved robust adaptive mechanisms. We are particularly interested in the microbial diversity of microorganisms in extreme environments, in the evolutionary mechanisms that drive genome alteration in response to environmental changes, and in the molecular mechanisms of DNA repair and stress response. 1- What is the extent of genetic diversity in natural microbial populations and what generates and maintains that diversity? 2- What are the mechanisms for the repair of DNA lesions in Archaea?
REPRESENTATIVE PUBLICATIONSWhite J.R., Escobar-Paramo P., Mongodin E.F., Nelson K.A. and J. DiRuggiero. Kish, A., and J. DiRuggiero. 2008. Rad50 is Not Essential for the Mre11-Dependant Repair of DNA Double Strand Breaks in Halobacterium sp. str. Bonneau R., Facciotti M.T., Reiss D.J., Schmid A.K., Pan M., Kaur A., Thorsson V., Shannon P., Johnson M.H., Bare J.C., Longabaugh W., Vuthoori M., Whitehead K., Madar A., Suzuki L., Mori T., Chang D.E., DiRuggiero J., Johnson C.H., Hood L., Baliga N.S. 2007. A predictive model for transcriptional control of physiology in a free living cell. Cell. Whitehead* K., A. Kish* A., M. Pan, A. Kaur, D.J. Reiss, N. King, L. Escobar-Paramo P., S. Gosh and J. DiRuggiero. 2005. Evidence for genetic drift in the diversification of a geographically isolated population of the hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus. Mol. Biol. Evol. 22:2297–2303. Kottemann M., A. Kish, S. Bjork, C. Iloanusi and J. DiRuggiero. 2005. Kanoksilapatham W., González J.M., Maeder D.L., DiRuggiero J. and F.T. Robb. Baliga N., S. Bjork, R. Bonneau, M. Pan, C. Iloanusi, M. Kottermann, H. Hood. and J. DiRuggiero. 2004. Systems level insights into mechanisms of stress response to UV irradiation in Halobacterium sp. NRC-1. Genome Res. Lab MembersVisiting Student: |
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