James Holden

My laboratory studies high-temperature anaerobic microorganisms that grow primarily in deep-sea hydrothermal vents. Specifically, I am interested in microbial life in the subsurface biosphere, the search for life on Earth and elsewhere, numerical modeling of microbial metabolism, microbe-mineral interactions, biomarkers, and the application of thermophiles in bioremediation and bioenergy. We employ modern biological tools to link genotypes, phenotypes, and functional responses to integrate cellular behavior within and among organisms. We employ experimental and mathematical methods to investigate the underlying principles of metabolic pathways that then lead to emerging behaviors. Ultimately, we study how individual species and microbial communities respond and adapt to environmental shifts to predict biological diversity and ecosystem dynamics.

 

Students in my lab gain experience in microbiology, cell culturing of anaerobic bacteria and archaea, bioprocessing, analytical chemistry related to cell growth, genomics, proteomics, bioinformatics, modeling, ecology, and scientific writing.