Degree Programs Offered:
Master of Science, Doctor of Philosophy
Director of Graduate Program:
Professor Gerben Zylstra, Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Foran
Hall, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (848-932-6298)
Members of the Graduate Faculty:
Tamar Barkay, Professor of Biochemistry and Microbiology,
SEBS; Ph.D., Maryland
Role of microorganisms in transformations of metals in the
environment
William J. Belden, Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and
Microbiology, SEBS; Ph.D., Dartmouth
Chromatin remodeling; circadian rhythms; noncoding RNA
Joan W. Bennett, Professor of Plant Biology and Pathology,
SEBS; Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs; Ph.D., Chicago
Genetics and biosynthesis of fungal natural products; fungal
genomics
Debashish Bhattacharya, Professor of Ecology, Evolution, and
Natural Resources, SEBS/IMCS; Ph.D., Simon Fraser (Canada)
Algal evolution; genomics; endosymbiosis; red tides;
plastids; tree of life
Kay D. Bidle, Associate Professor of Marine Sciences,
SEBS/IMCS; Ph.D., California (San Diego)
Marine microbiology; microbial physiology and mortality,
virology; gene expression; molecular ecology and evolution
Elisabetta Bini, Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and
Microbiology, SEBS; Ph.D., Nebraska (Lincoln)
Microbial genetics; regulation of gene expression and
metabolism of metals in bacteria and archaea; antibiotic resistance in natural
microbial communities
Jeffrey
M. Boyd, Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Microbiology, SEBS; Ph.D.,
Utah State
Microbial biochemistry and molecular genetics; iron-sulfur cluster metabolism and cellular processes
Yana Bromberg, Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Microbiology, SEBS; Ph.D., Columbia
Bioinformatics approaches to protein function prediction and genome variation analysis
George M. Carman, Board of Governors Professor of Food Science, SEBS; Ph.D.,
Massachusetts
Molecular biology of phospholipid biosynthesis in yeast
Michael Chikindas, Associate Professor of Food Science,
SEBS; Ph.D., Institute of Genetics and Selection of Industrial Microorganisms
(Russia)
Microbiology; genetics; biotechnology; probiotics;
antimicrobial peptides
Bruce B. Clarke, Professor of Plant Biology and Pathology,
SEBS; Director, Center for Turfgrass Science; Ph.D., Rutgers
Turfgrass pathology; soilborne
diseases; disease forecasting and control; mycology
John Dighton, Professor of Marine and Coastal Sciences,
SEBS; Professor of Biology, FAS-C; Director of the Pinelands Field Station;
Ph.D., London
Role of fungi in nutrient dynamics in forest soils and
impacts of pollution
G. Charles Dismukes, Professor of Chemistry and Chemical
Biology, SAS/WIM, and of Biochemistry and Microbiology, SEBS; Ph.D., Wisconsin
(Madison)
Microbial metabolism and renewable energy production
Siobain Duffy, Assistant Professor of Ecology, Evolution,
and Natural Resources, SEBS; Ph.D., Yale
Emerging viruses; experimental evolution; bioinformatics
Richard H. Ebright, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Investigator and Professor of Chemistry, SAS/WIM; Ph.D., Harvard
Mechanism and regulation of bacterial transcription;
small-molecule inhibitors of bacterial transcription
Douglas E. Eveleigh, Professor of Biochemistry and
Microbiology and Professor of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources, SEBS;
Ph.D., Exeter (UK)
Microbial ecology; biomass recycling; microbial history
(antibiotics)
Paul G. Falkowski, Professor of Geological Sciences and
Professor of Marine and Coastal Sciences, SAS/SEBS/IMCS; Ph.D., British
Columbia
Evolution of biogeochemical cycles; photosynthesis;
symbiosis and phytoplankton ecology; biological oceanography
Donna E. Fennell, Associate Professor of Environmental
Sciences, SEBS; Ph.D., Cornell
Microbial processes for bioremediation and waste management
Dina Fonseca, Associate Professor of Entomology, SEBS; Ph.D., Pennsylvania
Evolutionary epidemiological ecology
Robert M. Goodman, Professor of Ecology, Evolution, and
Natural Resources; Executive Dean, School of Environmental and Biological
Sciences, SEBS; Ph.D., Cornell
Diversity and function of microorganisms in natural
environments
Max M. Häggblom, Professor of Biochemistry and Microbiology,
SEBS; Ph.D., Helsinki
Environmental microbiology and microbial ecology;
biodegradation and bioremediation
Bradley I. Hillman, Professor of Plant Biology and
Pathology, SEBS; Director for Research and Senior Associate Director, NJAES;
Ph.D., California (Berkeley)
Molecular, population, and evolutionary biology of viruses
and fungi
Peter C. Kahn, Professor of Biochemistry and Microbiology,
SEBS; Ph.D., Columbia
Protein folding and subunit assembly; modeling, ligand
interactions, and hydration in biological systems
Lee Kerkhof, Professor of Marine and Coastal Sciences,
SEBS/IMCS; Ph.D., California (San Diego)
Marine microbiology; molecular ecology; microbial population
dynamics
Donald Y. Kobayashi, Professor of Plant Biology and
Pathology, SEBS; Ph.D., California (Riverside)
Plant bacteriology; host-pathogen interactions; molecular
biology
Jerome J. Kukor, Professor of Environmental Sciences, SEBS;
Ph.D., Michigan
Biochemistry and genetics of microorganisms involved in
biodegradation
Kwangwon Lee, Assistant Professor of Biology, FAS-C; Ph.D.,
Texas A&M
Circadian clock/light regulation, fungal genetics, fungal
ecology, and systems biology
Thomas Leustek, Professor of Plant Biology and Pathology,
SEBS; Ph.D., Rutgers
Molecular biology and biochemistry of sulfur and amino acid
metabolism in microorganisms
Desmond Lun, Associate Professor of Computer Science, FAS-C; Ph.D., Rutgers
Synthetic biology; systems biology; biological signal processing; network science
Gediminas Mainelis, Associate Professor of Environmental
Sciences, SEBS; Ph.D., Cincinnati
Biological aerosols
Karl Matthews, Professor of Food Science, SEBS; Ph.D.,
Kentucky
Genetic understanding of virulence and survival mechanisms
of food-borne pathogens
Joachim W. Messing, University Professor of Molecular
Biology and Director of the Waksman Institute of Microbiology, SAS/WIM; Ph.D.,
Munich
M13 cloning, sequencing, and gene synthesis; molecular
biology of higher plants
Thomas J. Montville, Professor of Food Science, SEBS; Ph.D.,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Metabolic regulation of food-borne microbes; food and
fermentation microbiology; novel antimicrobials
Peter J. Morin, Professor of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural
Resources, SEBS; Ph.D., Duke
Community ecology; microbial ecology
Bryce E. Nickels, Associate Professor of Genetics, SAS/WIM;
Ph.D., Harvard
Mechanisms of transcription; regulation of bacterial gene
expression
Robert A. Niederman, Professor of Molecular Biology and
Biochemistry, SAS; Ph.D., Illinois
Structure, function, and assembly of energy-transducing
membranes
Peter Oudemans, Associate Professor of Plant Biology and
Pathology, SEBS; Ph.D., California (Riverside)
Fungal plant diseases; population biology of fungi
John R. Reinfelder, Professor of Environmental Sciences,
SEBS; Ph.D., SUNY (Stony Brook)
Trace element cycling and bioavailability; inorganic carbon
acquisition in marine phytoplankton
Donald W. Schaffner, Extension Specialist in Food Science,
SEBS; Ph.D., Georgia
Predictive food microbiology; quantitative microbial risk
assessment
Ann M. Stock, Professor of Biochemistry, UMDNJ-RWJMS/CABM/CINJ; Ph.D., California (Berkeley)
Structure and function of signal transduction proteins
Nilgun E. Tumer, Professor of Plant Biology and Pathology,
SEBS; Ph.D., Purdue
Molecular biology of plant viruses; virus replication;
disease resistance; plant transformation
Andrew K. Vershon, Professor of Molecular Biology and
Biochemistry, WIM/SAS; Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Regulation of gene expression in the yeast Saccharomyces
cerevisiae
Constantino
Vetriani, Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Microbiology, SEBS/IMCS;
Ph.D., Rome La Sapienza
Deep-sea microbiology; extremophiles; molecular ecology;
adaptations to extreme environments James White, Professor of Plant Biology and Pathology,
SEBS/NJAES; Ph.D., Texas
Fungal systematics; ecology of fungi; fungal-plant symbioses
Lori A. White, Associate Professor of Biochemistry and
Microbiology; Ph.D., Dartmouth
Molecular mechanisms of xenobiotic-induced pathologies
Nathan Yee, Associate Professor of Environmental Sciences,
SEBS; Ph.D., Notre Dame
Geomicrobiology and geochemistry
Lily Y. Young, Professor of Environmental Sciences, SEBS;
Ph.D., Harvard
Anaerobic microbial metabolism of contaminant chemicals;
microbial biodegradation; bioremediation
Ning Zhang, Assistant Professor of Plant Biology and
Pathology and of Biochemistry and Microbiology, SEBS; Ph.D., Louisiana State
Population; evolutionary biology; molecular detection of
fungi on grasses
Gerben Zylstra, Professor of Biochemistry and Microbiology,
SEBS; Ph.D., Michigan
Metagenomics; molecular and biochemical analysis of
biodegradation pathways