Researchers

Eric Benbow

Entomology and Osteopathic Medical Specialties

We investigate how complex communities (e.g., aquatic or carrion insects or microbes) contribute to ecological systems, understanding these communities can be used in various applications in medicine, disease and environmental management.

Gregory Bonito

Plant, Soil, and Microbial Sciences

We investigate plant-fungal-bacterial associations. We focus on belowground root-associated fungi (truffles, mushrooms, and molds) because they are important for plant health and nutrient cycling.

James Cole

Plant, Soil, and Microbial Sciences

The Ribosomal Database Project (RDP) provides ribosome related data services to the scientific community, including online data analysis, rRNA derived phylogenetic trees, and aligned and annotated rRNA sequences.

Yann Dufour

Microbiology and Molecular Genetics

We investigate bacterial behavior in complex environments to understand host-microbe interactions. We are also interested in the role of non-genetic phenotypic diversity in clonal populations.

Sarah Evans

Integrative Biology

We investigate how environmental disturbances affects the dynamics and structure of microbial communities. We also investigate the impact of microbes on nutrient cycles and the broad ecosystem.

Sarah Lebeis

Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences

We investigate how plants and microbes each contribute to host microbiome assembly. We use a large collection of plant-associated microbes to test hypotheses generated from surveys of natural environments.

Richard Lenski

Microbiology and Molecular Genetics

Evolution is usually investigated using the comparative method or by studying fossils. Our approach is to watch evolution as it happens, in the context of experiments that are replicated and performed under controlled conditions.

Kevin Liu

Computer Science and Engineering

We develop comparative genomics tools to analyze complex evolutionary scenarios and community functions. Our goal is to generate testable hypotheses for biological and medical discoveries.

Carolyn Malmstrom

Plant Biology

We study plant, microbial, and landscape ecology. Our overarching focus is on the dynamics of ‘working’ landscapes that both support conservation and produce commodities for human consumption.

Robert Quinn

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

We study how metabolites from the microbiome shape our health and disease and specifically how changes in the cystic fibrosis (CF) lung microbiome cause disease in patients.

Frances Trail

Plant Biology

Development in filamentous fungi and host-pathogen interactions using genetics, genomics and physiological approaches.

Matt Schrenk

Geological Sciences

We investigate microbial activity in the deep subsurface biosphere. We focus on high-pH and high-temperature ecosystems to understand their contributions to carbon cycling and develop new biotechnologies.

Ashley Shade

Microbiology and Molecular Genetics

We investigate the dynamics of microbial communities. We aim to understand how member interactions shape the structure of communities and determine their responses to environmental disturbances.

Lisa Tiemann

Plant, Soil, and Microbial Sciences

We investigate the role of microbial communities in soil composition, resilience, and fertility to inform sustainable practices in both natural and agricultural systems in the Great Lake region and Uganda.

Nina Wale

Microbiology and Molecular Genetics

We study the ecology & evolution of pathogenic microbes across a variety of environments and biological scales, from inside the body of a host to the lakes of Michigan. We are particularly interested in how ecological interactions drive pathogen trait evolution and the subsequent impact of those traits on host health and ecosystem dynamics.