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Publications

Filter Total Items: 46

Comparative assessment of a restored and natural wetland using 13C-DNA SIP reveals a higher potential for methane production in the restored wetland

Wetlands are the largest natural source of methane (CH4), a potent greenhouse gas produced by methanogens. Methanogenesis rates are controlled by environmental factors such as redox potential, temperature, and carbon and electron acceptor availability and are presumably dependent on the composition of the active methanogen community. We collected intact soil cores from a restored and...
Authors
Nora Hamovit, Taniya RoyChowdhury, Denise M. Akob, Xuesong Zhang, Gregory T. McCarty, Stephanie A. Yarwood

Perspectives on the future of ecology, evolution, and biodiversity from the Council on Microbial Sciences of the American Society for Microbiology

The field of microbial ecology, evolution, and biodiversity (EEB) is at the leading edge of understanding how microbes shape our biosphere and influence the well-being of humankind. To that end, EEB is developing new tools to analyze the massive, complex, transdisciplinary datasets that result from such studies. The American Society for Microbiology’s Council on Microbial Sciences hosted...
Authors
Denise M. Akob, A. Elizabeth Oates, Peter R. Girguis, Brian Badgley, Vaughn Cooper, Rachel Poretsky, Braden T. Tierney, Elena Litchman, Rachel J. Whitaker, Katrine L. Whiteson, C. Jessica E. Metcalf, Ecology Evolutionary and Biodiversity Retreat Participants

Perspectives on the future of host-microbe biology from the Council on Microbial Sciences of the American Society for Microbiology

Host-microbe biology (HMB) stands on the cusp of redefinition, challenging conventional paradigms to instead embrace a more holistic understanding of the microbial sciences. The American Society for Microbiology (ASM) Council on Microbial Sciences hosted a virtual retreat in 2023 to identify the future of the HMB field and innovations needed to advance the microbial sciences. The retreat...
Authors
Monica Gestal, A. Elizabeth Oates, Denise M. Akob, Alison Criss, Host-Microbe Retreat Planning Committee, Host-Microbe Retreat Speakers

Anaerobic biodegradation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and microbial community composition in soil amended with a dechlorinating culture and chlorinated solvents

Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), one of the most frequently detected per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) occurring in soil, surface water, and groundwater near sites contaminated with aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), has proven to be recalcitrant to many destructive remedies, including chemical oxidation. We investigated the potential to utilize microbially mediated reduction...
Authors
Michelle Lorah, Ke He, Lee Blaney, Denise M. Akob, Cassandra Rashan Harris, Andrea K. Tokranov, Zachary Ryan Hopkins, Brian Shedd

Illegal dumping of oil and gas wastewater alters arid soil microbial communities

The Permian Basin, underlying southeast New Mexico and west Texas, is one of the most productive oil and gas (OG) provinces in the United States. Oil and gas production yields large volumes of wastewater with complex chemistries, and the environmental health risks posed by these OG wastewaters on sensitive desert ecosystems are poorly understood. Starting in November 2017, 39 illegal...
Authors
Mitra Kashani, Mark A Engle, Douglas B. Kent, Terry G. Gregston, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Adam Mumford, Matthew S. Varonka, Cassandra Rashan Harris, Denise M. Akob

Nitrifying microorganisms linked to biotransformation of perfluoroalkyl sulfonamido precursors from legacy aqueous film forming foams

Drinking water supplies across the United States have been contaminated by firefighting and fire-training activities that use aqueous film-forming foams (AFFF) containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Much of the AFFF is manufactured using electrochemical fluorination by 3M. Precursors with six perfluorinated carbons (C6) and non-fluorinated amine substituents make up...
Authors
Bridger J. Ruyle, Lara Schultes, Denise M. Akob, Cassandra Rashan Harris, Michelle Lorah, Simon Vojta, Jitka Becanova, Shelly McCann, Heidi M. Pickard, Ann Pearson, Rainer Lohmann, Chad D. Vecitis, Elsie M. Sunderland

Impact of the dimethyl sulfoxide reductase superfamily on the evolution of biogeochemical cycles

The dimethyl sulfoxide reductase (or MopB) family is a diverse assemblage of enzymes found throughout Bacteria and Archaea. Many of these enzymes are believed to have been present in the last universal common ancestor (LUCA) of all cellular lineages. However, gaps in knowledge remain about how MopB enzymes evolved and how this diversification of functions impacted global biogeochemical...
Authors
Michael L. Wells, Minjae Kim, Denise M. Akob, Partha Basu, John F. Stolz

Acetylenotrophic and diazotrophic Bradyrhizobium sp. strain I71 from TCE-contaminated soils

AbstractAcetylene (C2H2) is a molecule rarely found in nature, with very few known natural sources, but acetylenotrophic microorganisms can use acetylene as their primary carbon and energy source. As of 2018 there were 15 known strains of aerobic and anaerobic acetylenotrophs; however, we hypothesize there may yet be unrecognized diversity of acetylenotrophs in nature. This study expands...
Authors
Denise M. Akob, John M. Sutton, Timothy J. Bushman, Shaun Baesman, Edina Klein, Yesha Shrestha, Robert Andrews, Janna L. Fierst, Max Kolton, Sara Gushgari-Doyle, Ronald Oremland, John Freeman

Using biological responses to monitor freshwater post-spill conditions over 3 years in Blacktail Creek, North Dakota, USA

A pipeline carrying unconventional oil and gas (OG) wastewater spilled approximately 11 million liters of wastewater into Blacktail Creek, North Dakota, USA. Flow of the mix of stream water and wastewater down the channel resulted in storage of contaminants in the hyporheic zone and along the banks, providing a long-term source of wastewater constituents to the stream. A multi-level...
Authors
Aida Farag, David Harper, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Douglas B. Kent, Adam Mumford, Denise M. Akob, Travis W. Schaeffer, Luke R. Iwanowicz

Microbial community response to a bioaugmentation test to degrade trichloroethylene in a fractured rock aquifer, Trenton, N.J

Bioaugmentation is a promising strategy for enhancing trichloroethylene (TCE) degradation in fractured rock. However, slow or incomplete biodegradation can lead to stalling at degradation byproducts such as 1,2-dichloroethene (cis-DCE) and vinyl chloride (VC). Over the course of 7 years, we examined the response of groundwater microbial populations in a bioaugmentation test where an...
Authors
Jennifer C. Underwood, Denise M. Akob, Michelle Lorah, Thomas E. Imbrigiotta, Ronald W. Harvey, Claire R. Tiedeman

Complete genome sequence of Rhodococcus opacus strain MoAcy1 (DSM 44186), an aerobic acetylenotroph isolated from soil

We report the genome of Rhodococcus opacus strain MoAcy1 (DSM 44186), an aerobic soil isolate capable of using acetylene as its primary carbon and energy source (acetylenotrophy). The genome is composed of a single circular chromosome of ∼8 Mbp and two closed plasmids, with a G+C content of 67.3%.
Authors
John M. Sutton, Timothy J. Bushman, Denise M. Akob, Janna L. Fierst

Oil and gas wastewater components alter streambed microbial community structure and function

The widespread application of directional drilling and hydraulic fracturing technologies expanded oil and gas (OG) development to previously inaccessible resources. A single OG well can generate millions of liters of wastewater, which is a mixture of brine produced from the fractured formations and injected hydraulic fracturing fluids (HFFs). With thousands of wells completed each year...
Authors
Denise M. Akob, Adam Mumford, Andrea Fraser, Cassandra Rashan Harris, William H. Orem, Matthew S. Varonka, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli
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