Center for Biofilm Engineering

News Update: 

May, 2009

Volume 12, Issue 2

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Industry Highlights

Upcoming Montana Biofilm Science & Technology Meeting

The summer 2009 Montana Biofilm Science & Technology Meeting (formerly TAC) for our Industrial Associate members and invited guests will be held in Bozeman, MT, July 7–9, 2009 (Tuesday–Thursday). The Montana Biofilm Meeting will feature sessions on biofilm mechanics, molecular methods for biofilm ecology, environmental biofilms, industrial biofilms, dental biofilms, and phenotypic heterogeneity.

Please contact Paul Sturman (406) 994-2102 for more information.

See the meeting agenda on our homepage: http://www.biofilm.montana.edu/sBST09_AgendaFormat1.pdf

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Research Highlights

DOE to invest up to $4.4 million in six innovative biofuels projects at U.S. universities

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the selection of six advanced biofuels projects in which DOE plans to invest up to $4.4 million, subject to annual appropriations. These awards to U.S. institutions of higher education will support research and development (R&D) for cost-effective, environmentally friendly biomass conversion technologies for turning non-food feedstocks into advanced biofuels. Combined with the minimum university cost share of 20 percent, more than $5.7 million is slated for investment in these six projects.

One of the six projects was awarded to Montana State University, who will partner with Utah State University to evaluate the oil content of algae cultures available to the universities and identify populations that naturally have higher rates of oil production. In this project, they will test the oil producing microalgae in existing open ponds for growth characteristics and oil production and determine the optimal algae type and most efficient biorefinery design. Brent Peyton is the project’s principal investigator and Matthew Fields will be the co-principal investigator. The title of the project is “Extremophilic algae: Advanced lipid and biomass production for biofuels and bioproducts,” for the period of September 30, 2008 through September 30, 2011. The award to MSU is $720,466 including a substantial subcontract to Utah State University.

Read the full story at: http://www.biofilm.montana.edu/Res-Lib99-SW/newsarchives/HTML/2008/DOE_to_invest.htm

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Biofilm Standard Methods News

Darla Goeres attended the ASTM E35.15 subcommittee meeting held in Vancouver, BC, Canada, on April 20–22, 2009. The purpose of the meeting was to standardize methods used for medical and industrial microbial testing. At this meeting, Darla was appointed to the position of Recording Secretary for the ASTM E35 Main Committee.

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In the Media

Darla Goeres was interviewed by Dr. Barry Dworkin, who hosts a syndicated health show based in Ottawa, Canada (“Sunday House Call with Dr. Barry Dworkin”). The show is aired on a Canadian public radio station (580 CFRA). During the interview, she spoke briefly about the methods work being supported by the EPA contract. The interview is available at: http://www.cfra.com/chum_audio/SHC-Biofilms.Mar.08.09.mp3
 

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Latest CBE Publications

“Microbially enhanced geologic containment of sequestered supercritical CO2,”
Cunningham AB, Gerlach R, Spangler L, Schultz L, Mitchell AC
In: Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Technologies,16-20 November, 2008. Omni Shorehouse Hotel, Washington D.C.
Read the abstract

“Floating Islands as an alternative to constructed wetlands”
Mulholland T, Cunningham AB, Kania BG, Osterlund MT, Stewart FM
Land Contamination and Reclamation 2008;16(1):25-33
Read the abstract

“Evaluation of characterization techniques for iron pipe corrosion products and iron oxide thin films”
Borch T, Camper AK, Biederman JA, Butterfield PW, Gerlach R, Amonette JE
J Environ Eng 2008; 134(10):835-844
Read the abstract

“Permeable reactive biobarriers for in-situ Cr(VI) reduction: Bench scale tests using Cellulomonas sp. strain ES6”
Viamajala S, Gerlach R, Sivaswamy V, Peyton BM, Apel WA, Cunningham AB, Petersen JN
Biotechnol Bioeng 2008; 101(6):1150-1162
Read the abstract

“Resilience of planktonic and biofilm cultures to supercritical CO2”
Mitchell AC, Phillips AJ, Hamilton MA, Gerlach R, Hollis WK, Kaszuba JP, Cunningham AB
Journal of Supercritical Fluids 2008; 47:318-325
Read the abstract

"Bacteria in subglacial environments"
Christner BC, Skidmore ML, Priscu JC, Tranter M, Foreman C
In: Psychrophiles: From Biodiversity to Biotechnology, eds R. Margesin, F. Schinner, J-C Marx and C. Gerday Springer-Verlag. 2008; pp. 51-71
Read the abstract

“Antarctic subglacial water: Origin, evolution and ecology”
Priscu JC, Tulaczyk S, Studinger M, Kennicutt II MC, Christner BC, Foreman C
In: Polar Lakes and Rivers, eds W. Vincent and J. Laybourn-Parry, Oxford Press 2008; pp. 119-136
Read the abstract

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Employee News

Employee Award

Tricia Cook, CBE Fiscal Manager and Carol Leist, CBE Administrative Associate were nominated by CBE colleagues and honored at the 2009 MSU Employee Recognition Awards Reception Monday, April 27, 2009. The Employee Recognition Awards honor outstanding performance and contributions by classified and professional employees. Five top individuals are chosen by a selection committee comprised of students, classified, professional, and faculty representatives. Tricia Cook was one of the five winners selected from 42 nominees and received $500, a 14kt gold, custom designed pin, a certificate of recognition and her name engraved on a special “Employees of the Year” plaque displayed outside the President’s Office.

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Education

Thesis Alert

“Reductive transformation of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene by Yarrowia lipolytica AN-L15 under conditions of different initial pH of the culture medium of in the presence of ferrihydrite,” thesis defense by Andy Pannier, MS Candidate in Microbiology, Montana State University, April 2009.

“Kinetics of calcite precipitation by ureolytic bacteria under aerobic and anaerobic conditions,” thesis defense by Stacy Parks, MS Candidate in Chemical and Biological Engineering, Montana State University, April 2009.

“Quantitative assessment of localized growth rates and gene expression patterns in Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms,” thesis defense by Ailyn Cecilia Perez-Osorio, PhD Candidate in Microbiology, Montana State University,January 2009.

View thesis abstracts

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Doctoral student hopes corrosion research will make the world a bit 'greener'

 

MSU News Service, 04/20/2009
by Michael Becker

Montana State University doctoral student Jennifer Hornemann didn't start her college career with any intention of studying biofilms. Instead, she started out studying physics because, she said, it sounded hard.

"It was the hardest thing I could think of at the time, and I knew it would be a challenge for me," Hornemann said. "Most people who know me at all would not be surprised by that."

Recently, Hornemann accepted a new challenge. After she finishes her doctorate at MSU, the 32-year-old chemical engineer will take what she's learned at MSU's Center for Biofilm Engineering and Magnetic Resonance Transport Phenomena Lab to Houston.

There, she hopes to help Exxon Mobil expand its research into the corrosive havoc that microbes can cause to pipelines and other equipment.

"I want to build a bridge between the Center for Biofilm Engineering here at MSU and Exxon Mobil's research division," she said. "That would be a great win-win scenario for Exxon Mobil and MSU."

Read the full story

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ASM CAP Student Travel Grant Awards

Kristen Brileya and Kelly O'Shea each received $500 travel grants to attend the ASM General Meeting in May. The grant is given to approximately 160 students who will be presenting an abstract at the General Meeting. Congratulations, Kristen and Kelly!
 

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Student Research Celebration

More than 200 Montana State University students who conducted research this school year presented their findings April 14th at the Student Research Celebration at Montana State University, Bozeman, MT. This year's event consisted of 42 graduate presentations and 168 undergraduate presentations. Most of the students presented their work with posters and informal conversations. Event sponsors are the American Indian Research Opportunities Program, Hughes Undergraduate Biology Program, Center for Biofilm Engineering, Montana EPSCoR Program, Montana INBRE Program, Montana Space Grant Consortium and Big Sky Institute.The Undergraduate Scholars Program, Office of the Provost and Office of Graduate Education organized this year's celebration. View more program information

Poster presentations by students mentored by CBE researchers are listed below.

Poster Title: Elucidation of function for a conserved sensory box protein in Desulfovibrio vulgaris
Student Presenter: Erik Beil: Microbiology;
Mentor: Matthew Fields, Microbiology

Poster Title: Characterization of microbial communities from thermoalkaline springs in
Yellowstone National Park
Student Presenter: Philip Gardner: Cell Biology and Neuroscience - Biomedical
Mentor: Matthew Fields, Microbiology

Poster Title: Temporal and spatial organization within a syntrophic bacterial-archaeal biofilm
Student Presenter: Kristen Brileya: Microbiology
Mentor: Matthew Fields, Microbiology

Poster Title: Community analysis of methanogenic archaea within underground coal beds
Student Presenter: Elliott Barnhart: Microbiology
Mentors: Matthew Fields and Alfred Cunningham, Microbiology & Center for Biofilm Engineering

Poster Title: Community based risk assessment on the crow reservation
Student Presenter: Margaret Eggers: Microbiology
Mentors: Anne Camper and Timothy Ford, Microbiology

Poster Title: Biofilm growth impact on homogeneous radial flow
Student Presenter: Robert Fortenberry: Chemical Engineering
Mentor: Robin Gerlach, Center for Biofilm Engineering

Poster Title: Influence of environmentally sensitive AI-2 mediated quorum-sensing behaviors on microbe response to antibiotic challenges
Student Presenter: Trevor Zuroff: Chemical Engineering
Mentor: Ross Carlson, Chemical and Biological Engineering

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Outreach

Visitors

Federica Villa is a visiting graduate student from the University of Milan, Italy, where she is pursuing a doctorate in the Department of Food Science, Technology, and Microbiology. She is studying the anti-fouling properties of a chemical isolated from a marine plant against bacterial and fungal biofilms. She will be working in the control lab through August 2009.

Anna Heinkel from the University of Duisberg-Essen in Germany is pursuing on her Bachelor’s thesis and working with Dr. Anne Camper until August 2009.

Marianna Fittipaldi is a Ph.D. student from the Laboratorio de Microbiologia Sanitaria y Medioambiental, Universitat Politécnica de Catalunya, Spain. She is also working with Dr. Camper and will be here until August 2009.

Gerhard Maale, M.D. of the Dallas-Ft. Worth Sarcoma Group and Bob Pelosi of Biocomposites, Inc. toured the Center and visited with Garth James and Elinor Pulcini March 20, 2009.

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CBE People in Action

Upcoming CBE presentations at the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) General Meeting, Philadelphia, PA, May 20-21, 2009.

Phil Stewart will present “Biofilms as agents of infection.”

Kristen Brileya will present,"Temporal and spatial organization within a syntrophic bacterial-archaeal biofilm.”

Kelly O’Shea will present, “Microbial conversion of biodiesel by-products to biofuel.”

Anitha Sundararajan will present, “Growth effects of oxygen exposure on Desulfovibrio vulgaris planktonic and biofilm cells.”

Kara Bowen De Leon will present, "Bacterial community structure from alkaline springs along a thermal gradient in Yellowstone National Park.” Co-authors: Dowd SE, Wolcott RD, Ramsay BD, Gardner P, Peyton B, Hwang C, Fields MW

Bradley Ramsay will present, “Isolation of a sulfate-reducing bacterium from groundwater stimulated for uranium(VI) bioreduction,” in Session: Microbes from Diverse Environments. Co-authors: Carroll S, (Oak Ridge Natl. Lab., Oak Ridge, TN) Hwang C, Fields M

Recent presentations:

Phil Stewart presented, “Targeting microbial biofilm to heal chronic wounds,” at SAWC/WHS (Symposium on Advanced Wound Care and Wound Healing Society) Meeting, Dallas, TX, April 27-29, 2009.

Mary Cloud Ammons as invited speaker presented, "Lactoferrin, xylitol, and the inhibition of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms," at SAWC/WHS, Dallas, TX, April 26-30, 2009.

Kelly Kirker presented a poster, “Testing wound dressings using a new in vitro wound model,” at SAWC/WHS Meeting, Dallas, TX, April 26-29, 2009. Co-authors: Lipp CJ, Agostinho A, James GA, Stewart PS

Phil Stewart and Garth James presented, “Update on the Center for Wound Biofilm,” at the NIH Meeting, Bethesda, MD, March 25-27, 2009.

Matthew Fields presented “Lipid-derived biofuels: Determination of factors that control triglyceride accumulation in microalgae,” at the Institute for Biological Engineering Conference, Santa Clara, CA, March 20, 2009.

Robin Gerlach presented “Metal and carbon dioxide sequestration through biologically induced mineral precipitation: Influence of hydrodynamics,” Platform Presentation. 237th ACS National Meeting. Division of Geochemistry,” in Session: Coprecipitation of Metals During Chemically and Biologically Induced Mineral Precipitation, Salt Lake City, UT, March 21-26, 2009.

Ross Carlson presented a poster “Laser desorption 7.87 eV post-ionization mass spectrometry of antibiotics in S. epidermidis bacterial biofilms,” at Pittcon 2009, Chicago, IL, March 9–13, 2009. Co-authors: Gasper GL, Akhmetov A, Hanley L, and Moore JF

Ross Carlson presented “The effect of quorum-sensing on Escherichia coli biofilm formation and antibiotic tolerance” at the Pacific Northwest American Institute of Chemical Engineers Regional Meeting, Vancouver, BC, Canada, March 6–7, 2009. Co-authors: Zuroff TR, Lloyd-Randolfi J, Bernstein H

Matthew Fields presented “Ecological and cellular responses of Desulfovibrio to physiological constraints,” at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL, March 6, 2009.

Ross Carlson presented poster “Laser desorption vacuum ultraviolet post-ionization mass spectrometry of small molecule analytes within intact bacterial biofilms,” at the 2009 Gaseous Ions Gordon Research Conference, Galveston, TX, March 1-6, 2009. Co-authors: Gasper GL, Akhmetov A, Moore JF, and Hanley L
 

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