Faculty
Joy Doran Peterson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Microbiology
Ph.D. (1994) University of Florida
Address: Department of Microbiology
204 Biological Sciences
Athens, GA 30602-2605
Phone: (706)
542-4115
E-mail: jpeterso@uga.edu
COS CV: http://myprofile.cos.com/jpeterso
Research Interests:
Insect Microbe Interactions: Microbial fermentation
in insect guts is an important component of the global carbon
cycle and insects consuming lignocellulose rich diets have developed
numerous mechanisms for surviving on a nutrient poor resource.
Although interesting data have been generated for some terrestrial
insect-microbe interactions, relatively few insect species have
been examined for microbial interactions. Our project will provide
information on the microbial community residing in the gut of
an important aquatic insect, Tipula abdominalis (cranefly). In
aquatic systems, the ecological importance of the larvae involves
shredding leaf matter (detritus) entering stream systems. Larvae
and adults are also an important food source for other animals.
Our goal is to discover novel microorganisms in the insect hindgut
and on the leaf litter substrates, to describe the microbial
community within these systems, and to probe these environments
for enzymatic activities that may be useful outside the insect
gut (i.e., enzymes for green chemistry from renewable resources).
We have isolated microorganisms capable of degrading multiple
components of biomass and/or producing antimicrobials. In addition
to characterizing isolates in pure culture, we are examining
the hindgut community using 16S rRNA gene clone libraries, microarray
genomic technology, BAC libraries, fluorescence in situ hybridization,
and various microscopic techniques.
Biomass Conversions for Production of
Fuel Ethanol: Environmental
concerns and unease with our dependence on foreign oil have renewed
interest in converting biomass into fuel ethanol. We are interested
in using microorganisms (or enzymes) for biomass conversions.
One current project uses pectin-rich processing residues from
citrus, apples, and sugar beets with engineered bacteria as the
biocatalysts. We are using the environment (processing plant
sites, insect gut, fermenting wastes, etc.) as a source of novel
microorganisms and enzymes. Related projects involve using chemical
pretreatments to help decrease the amount of enzymes required
for degradation of biomass.
