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Cyanobium PCC 7001 Genomics

My interest in Cyanobium arose from my interests in RubisCO (see below).  This organism appears to be the first in a line of unique marine cyanobacteria to have an unusal proteobacterial form of RubisCO.  Interestingly, this genus is equally at home in fresh water habitats!  The George and Betty Moore Foundation teamed with the Venter Institute are sequencing the genomes of unique and important marine microorganisms, and have selected Cyanobium PCC 7001 as one of the strains for the second portion of thier Microbial Genome Sequencing Project.  The Venter Institute will provide the draft genome and autoannotation, and my lab will be responsible for closing the genome, conducting the manual annotation review, and comparitive genomic analyses between this organism and other marine and freshwater cyanobacteria.



RubisCO Evolution

RubisCO is a carbon fixation enzyme found in many diverse autotrophs including Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukaryotes.   The enzyme is found in several differnt forms, each with unique properties relating to enzymatic function, oxygen tolerance, and carbon isotope discrimination.  This enzyme has a complex evolutionary history, including multiple events of gene duplication, gene loss, and horizontal gene transfer within and among organisms of the three Domains of Life.  My work with RubisCO evolution began with Dr. Colleen Cavanaugh at Harvard University, and currently focuses on the evolution of this enzyme in dinoflagellates, proteobacteria, and cyanobacteria.





Alexandrium Evolution and Biogeography

Alexandrium is a genus of dinoflagellates distributed throughout the global oceans.  Many species of Alexandrium are toxic and are responsible for paralytic shellfish poisoning.  My dissertation research was conducted with Dr. Donald Anderson of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and focused on defining species, assessing biogeography, and determining the relationships between morphology, toxin profile, and phylogeny.  Currently, I have no active research projects in this area although several publications are still forthcoming.