Research in the Department of Microbiology is conducted by graduate students, postdoctorals, undergraduate students, research assistants, and professors, often working side-by-side in laboratories.

Research relating to human and animal health is often conducted in collaboration with our colleagues in Biomedical Sciences (College of Veterinary Medicine) http://oregonstate.edu/vetmed/biomed/biomed.htm and other OSU Departments (see Adjunct Faculty).

RESEARCH AREAS

Microbes in the environment and their contributions to ecosystems

Jerri Bartholomew Salmon diseases, fish parasites

Peter Bottomley Soil microbiology

Katharine G. Field Environmental contamination by pathogenic bacteria

Stephen Giovannoni Systems biology of a small ocean bacterium

Michael L. Kent Fish disease, parasitology

Janine E. Trempy Monitoring pathogenic bacterial contamination in fish

hatcheries

Microbes as pathogens

Research programs in the department investigate viral, bacterial, and parasitic pathogens afflicting a wide variety of hosts, including fish, plants, insects, mammals, and humans.

Jerri Bartholomew Salmon diseases, fish parasites

Luiz E. Bermudez Tuberculosis and related infections

Theo W. Dreher RNA viruses: plant viruses and flaviviruses

Katharine G. Field Environmental contamination by pathogenic bacteria

Bruce L. Geller Antisense inhibition of bacteria; bacterial vectors for vaccines

Dennis Hruby Vaccinia virus and anti-smallpox drugs

Michael L. Kent Fish disease, parasitology, pathogens of zebra fish

Malcolm B. Lowry Innate immunology

Walt Ream Agrobacterium as a plant pathogenic bacterium

George F. Rohrmann Insect virology, baculoviruses and retroviruses

Mahfuzur R. Sarker Clostridium perfringens toxins and spores

Martin Schuster Biofilms and pathogenesis by Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Janine E. Trempy Bacillus cereus, Clostridium, and Salmonella interactions with living sensors

College of Veterinary Medicine Faculty 

Morrie Craig – plant toxins

Ling Jin - virology, herpes viruses

Claudia Hase - bacteriology, vibriosis

Manoj Pastey - immunology, virology

Dan Rockey - bacteriology chlamydia 

Molecular mechanisms of microbial action

Research programs that utilize biochemical, molecular biological or cell biological approaches include:

Luiz E. Bermudez Tuberculosis and related infections; immunopathology

Peter Bottomley Genes and enzymes involved in nitrogen and organopollutant metabolism

Theo W. Dreher Roles of viral genomic RNAs in translation and replication

Bruce L. Geller Antisense inhibition of bacteria

Stephen Giovannoni Systems biology of a small ocean bacterium

Dennis Hruby Vaccinia virus proteinases and proteomics

Walt Ream Agrobacterium and DNA delivery into plant cells

George F. Rohrmann DNA replication of baculoviruses; viral fusion proteins

Mahfuzur R. Sarker Clostridium sporulation and toxin genes

Martin Schuster Quorum sensing and transcriptional regulation in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Janine E. Trempy Regulatory proteases and bacterial crisis management systems

Physiology, ecology and environmental microbiology

Research programs that study microbial communities and ecology include:

Peter Bottomley Soil microbiology

Katharine Field Environmental contamination by enteric bacteria, host-microbe coevolution

Stephen Giovannoni Ecology and physiology of open ocean bacteria

Adjunct faculty

Daniel J. Arp Dept of Botany & Plant Pathology, Bacterial N metabolism and bioremediation

Frederick Colwell:  College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, Microbial Ecology 

A. Morrie Craig Dept of Env. & Molec. Toxicology, Rumen microbiology

Claudia C. Hase Dept. of Biomedical Sciences, Pathogenesis of Vibrio cholerae

Nancy I. Kerkvliet Dept of Env. & Molec. Toxicology, Chemical challenges to the immune system

Daniel D. Rockey Dept. of Biomedical Sciences, Pathogenesis by Chlamydia

For questions regarding applications and the application process, contact the Graduate Program Administrator: