Max Häggblom, Distinguished Professor and chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, was elected Vice President of the International Society for Microbial Ecology.

For Max Häggblom, curiosity about the microbial world began in central Finland, where growing up in an industrial town exposed him early to the environmental consequences of chemical pollution. A fascination with what microorganisms could do with unusual chemicals eventually became a career exploring some of the most remarkable and consequential metabolic capabilities on Earth.

Now, Häggblom is bringing that curiosity and a longstanding commitment to scientific service to a new international leadership role. The Distinguished Professor and chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology at the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS) has been elected vice president of the International Society for Microbial Ecology (ISME), the leading scientific society dedicated to advancing microbial ecology. 

Häggblom will serve two years as vice president, followed by two years as president and two years as past president, giving him a six-year leadership role within the society.

“It is indeed a distinct honor to be elected ISME Vice President and I look forward to serving the society,” Häggblom said.

His connection to ISME stretches back more than three decades. As a young postdoctoral researcher, he attended the society’s fifth meeting in Kyoto in 1989.

“I was hooked,” he said.

Häggblom’s research has been driven in part by a fascination with what he calls the “unusual appetites” of microorganisms—their ability to metabolize and detoxify chemicals, respire metals and metalloids, and survive in extreme environments.

That interest took root during his undergraduate training at the University of Helsinki. In a microbiology journal club, he was assigned a paper on microbial degradation of chlorinated compounds. The subject immediately captured his attention, leading him to join the laboratory of Professor Mirja Salkinoja-Salonen and study the metabolism of chlorinated phenolic compounds, pollutants associated with Finland’s pulp and paper and sawmill industries.

The work became the focus of his master’s and doctoral research. Later, as a postdoctoral researcher with Lily Young, currently Distinguished Professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences, he became fascinated by anaerobic microorganisms and, in particular, anaerobic organohalide respiration—a process in which halogenated organic compounds serve as the terminal electron acceptor for respiration.

“It is a topic that has kept me busy ever since,” he said.

Today, Häggblom’s research group explores, cultivates and characterizes novel microorganisms from diverse habitats, including soils, sediments and marine sponges. The goal is to understand microbial ecosystem processes and connect microbial diversity and function across scales, from genomes to biomes.

Max Häggblom sampling for soil microbes in the Malla Nature Reserve, located at Kilpisjärvi in northwestern Lapland, Finland, one of his research team’s study sites.

His research encompasses the dehalogenation of organochlorine and organobromine pollutants in oxygen-free environments, bacteria associated with marine sponges, selenium- and arsenic-respiring bacteria, and the microbial ecology of Arctic tundra soils.

Häggblom remains especially enthusiastic about a classic approach to microbiology: enrichment culture, pioneered by early microbiologists Martinus Beijerinck and Sergei Winogradsky, combined with modern molecular ecology.

“I am huge fan of the classical enrichment culture technique, combined with molecular ecology,” he said. The approach allows researchers to select for and identify microorganisms with particular metabolic traits and then investigate their physiology and ecological interactions in their natural environments.

“There is always a new chemical pollutant or intriguing habitat to explore,” he said.

Häggblom’s new ISME role builds on a long history of service to the scientific community. Early in his career, he became involved with professional societies through peer review, symposium organization and other activities, first with the American Society for Microbiology and later with the Federation of European Microbiological Societies (FEMS).

He has also served as editor in chief of FEMS Microbiology Ecology since 2011 and has been chair of the Rutgers Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology for more than 15 years.

For Häggblom, scientific societies are about more than professional obligations. They create opportunities for researchers and educators to develop relationships, exchange ideas and build careers.

“While this society service can be time-consuming it is also tremendously rewarding, fostering professional development and cultivating connections with researcher and educators around the globe,” he said.

Max Häggblom, bottom left, pictured with “the Bloomers,” members of the Häggblom lab in 2024.

As he takes on the ISME vice presidency, Häggblom is particularly interested in expanding opportunities for early-career scientists.

“Now as a senior scientist I find delight in mentoring and inspiring the next generation of scholars and educators,” he said. “I am passionate about advancing the reach of our scholarly societies by promoting education and fostering professional development.”

He hopes to help create more opportunities for members to build international networks and friendships, while making it easier for scientists at every career stage to participate in the society. The biennial ISME Symposium remains a central gathering point for the field, but Häggblom sees potential for additional training, mentoring activities and workshops.

“I look forward to ensuring that we provide opportunities for the next generation of scholars to build their network of collaborators, that we foster a belonging and development of friendships across the world, and that we enable everyone to become engaged in our society activities,” he said.

Häggblom also sees microbial ecology as increasingly central to some of society’s most pressing challenges, including climate change, health and biotechnology.

“I think that microbial solutions will be central to solving these challenges – microbes and microbiomes have untapped potential,” he said.

He believes scientific societies have an important role to play in bringing that potential into broader conversations about the future of the planet. Häggblom points to recent efforts to unite microbiology societies around climate action, including the ISME Climate Change Committee and the 2025 Global Strategy Meeting on Microbes and Climate Change in Washington, D.C.

Häggblom considers the challenge is not simply to advance microbial research but also to communicate its importance.

“We need to expand on this commitment to raising awareness and communicating about the importance of microbes for a healthy planet and a sustainable future,” he said.

That emphasis on connection—between disciplines, researchers, communities and generations—runs through his vision for ISME.

Max Häggblom visiting in the lab of the Australian Institute of Marine Science to study dehalogenating bacteria of marine sponges.

With research, department leadership, editorial responsibilities and now an international society leadership role, Häggblom acknowledges that maintaining balance is a work in progress.

“Likely not that well,” he said when asked how he balances research, leadership and personal life.

He currently leads a research group that includes a postdoctoral researcher, approximately half a dozen doctoral students and an equal number of undergraduate researchers. He also continues to serve as department chair and editor in chief while taking on new professional commitments.

“’No’ is not in my vocabulary,” he said, acknowledging that he is frequently drawn into new activities.

But he has found an outlet that takes him far from the laboratory and the university. Every Tuesday evening, Häggblom rehearses with the Greenwich Village Orchestra in New York City, performing in approximately six concerts each year.

For a scientist whose career has been built around exploring the extraordinary capabilities of the microbial world, the music offers a different kind of connection.

As he begins his six-year leadership journey with ISME, Häggblom brings with him a career grounded in scientific curiosity, a commitment to service and mentoring, and a conviction that understanding the microbial world is essential to understanding—and addressing—the challenges facing the planet.

The current ISME Executive Board includes Gabriele Berg, president; Max Häggblom, vice president; Raquel Peixoto, past president; and Joana Falcão Salles, treasurer.

 

Jennifer Sun, assistant professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, will study how microbes influence insect chemosensory behavior. Photo: Luca Mostello/Rutgers University.

Bugs are formidable foes, spreading disease and destroying billions of dollars in crops annually. Conventional controls, such as insecticides, are losing their effectiveness amid growing resistance and environmental concerns.

Novel controls are needed – and a Rutgers-New Brunswick researcher has been awarded $2.1 million in federal funding to find them.

Jennifer Sun, assistant professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology at Rutgers-New Brunswick, has received a Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award (MIRA) from the National Institutes of Health to study how microbes influence insect behavior.

Sun said her research could help identify new ways of controlling insect pests that are safe and effective.

“We want to find insect control strategies that are precise, species-specific and gentle on our environment,” she said.

At the heart of her research are efforts to understand the role of bacteria and fungi in the sensory systems that drive an insect’s instinct to eat, mate and reproduce.

Sun’s past work has demonstrated the importance of bacteria to fly’s ability to find food. Her team also has extended its investigations to mosquitoes, demonstrating that their desire to seek a blood meal may be driven by microbes on the sensory organs rather than in the gut, as was long believed.

The National Institutes of Health award will support Sun’s lab to conduct three connected lines of study over the next five years:

First, her team will raise germ-free fruit flies and mosquitoes to determine how microbes affect olfactory behavior-regulating proteins on the insects’ mouths, antennae, legs and wings.

Second, through field collections throughout New Jersey, they will investigate environmental drivers of insect-microbe interactions, mapping how climate, pollution and habitat shape microbial communities in sensory organs and, in turn, influence insects’ actions. 

Finally, they will test whether certain bacteria and fungi might modulate insect behavior, paving the way for potential alternatives to chemical insecticides.

Jennifer Sun. Photo: Luca Mostello/Rutgers University.

Sun’s work has implications for both health and agriculture. In New Jersey, the Asian tiger mosquito is well established and transmits a range of diseases, including dengue, Zika and chikungunya. At the same time, fruit flies, such as the spotted-wing drosophila, pose threats to the state’s soft-fruit and berry industries.

Globally, the Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that invasive pests cause at least $70 billion in farm losses every year, while a 2016 assessment by French researchers found that associated health losses top $6.9 billion annually. 

But most chemical control strategies are either failing because of insecticide resistance or falling out of favor because of the dangers to human and ecological health.

Sun’s connection to Rutgers is long-standing. She studied Molecular Biology and Biochemistry in the School of Arts and Sciences from 2009 to 2013, returning in 2019 as an adjunct instructor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology. 

In 2022, she received a Rutgers Presidential Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, which supported the first two years of the research program now funded by the MIRA grant.

This article first appeared on Rutgers Today.

 

Geysers erupt at Yellowstone National Park, whose geothermal landscape includes the hot, acidic springs where ancient red algae support diverse microbial communities. Photo: Debashish Bhattacharya

Rutgers researchers reveal how ancient organisms drive microbial communities and may yield tools for biotechnology

Ancient single-celled red algae that thrive in scalding, acidic waters are emerging as far more than specialized survivors.

Research by Rutgers evolutionary biologist Debashish Bhattacharya and his collaborators show that the organisms, known as Cyanidiophyceae, form the foundation of entire microbial ecosystems, providing new insights into how complex life may have evolved and adapted to some of Earth’s harshest environments.

“They are like a work of art,” said Bhattacharya, a Distinguished Professor with the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology in the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. “This is a success story a billion years in the making.” 

The work is reshaping scientists’ understanding of the Cyanidiophyceae, which are an ancient branch of red algae whose ancestors diverged from other red algae about eons years ago.

From left, retired Montana State University professor Timothy McDermott; Julia Van Etten, who earned her doctorate at Rutgers and is now an assistant professor at the University of Maryland; and Gabrielle Panayotakis, a doctoral student in Rutgers’ microbial biology program, search for samples at Nymph Creek in Yellowstone National Park. Photo: Debashish Bhattacharya

Bhattacharya is a coauthor of a review published in New Phytologist that brings together findings from his Rutgers research group and scientists around the world. Cyanidiophyceae arose about 1.2 billion years ago, long after the planet’s first cells evolved, so they are not direct representatives of life on early Earth. But the way these algae sustain microbial communities in hot springs may resemble how much older ecosystems functioned, when bacteria rather than algae likely served as the primary producers. 

Bhattacharya said the algae also may hold practical value. Their enzymes evolved to function under heat, acidity and exposure to toxic metals, conditions that disable many ordinary enzymes. He and other researchers hope those biological tools could eventually be used in pollution cleanup, wastewater treatment and industrial manufacturing.

At the center of Bhattacharya’s research is the algae’s role as primary producers, organisms that use sunlight to create food and energy supporting an ecosystem. Through photosynthesis, they release organic forms of carbon that sustains surrounding bacteria and archaea, the latter are single-celled organisms that resemble bacteria but belong to a separate branch of life.

“The algae are the primary producers in these ecosystems,” Bhattacharya said. “Through photosynthesis, they release pulses of carbon over the day-night cycle, and the bacteria and archaea around them respond.”

Yellowstone National Park is a pivotal site for Rutgers evolutionary biologist Debashish Bhattacharya’s research on ancient red algae, which thrive in the park’s hot, acidic springs and help sustain diverse microbial communities. From left are Bhattacharya and his collaborators Gabrielle Panayotakis, Timothy McDermott and Julia Van Etten. Photo: Debashish Bhattacharya

Bhattacharya’s Rutgers group and its collaborators study the algae at Lemonade Creek and other hot springs in Yellowstone National Park. Water emerging from geothermal springs is initially too hot to support them. As it flows downstream and cools to between about 97 and 122 degrees Fahrenheit, Cyanidiophyceae become the dominant life form.

Despite their name, the algae do not appear red. Their ancestors lost phycoerythrin, the pigment that gives many red algae their color, leaving the green of chlorophyll visible. 

The researchers found that two Cyanidiophyceae species divide the habitat by time of day. Cyanidioschyzon merolae is highly active during daylight, using photosynthesis to produce carbon-rich compounds that feed nearby microbes. Galdieria yellowstonensis conducts less photosynthesis during peak daylight and becomes more active at night, consuming carbon already available in the environment.

In ongoing research, Bhattacharya’s team tracked microbial gene activity throughout the day and night. Some bacteria followed the rise and fall of the algae’s photosynthesis, while others became more active after sunset. “The algae are the true drivers of this ecosystem,” Bhattacharya said. “The microbes around them are responding to their photosynthetic activity.”

The Yellowstone sites also reveal how quickly life can adapt. Temperature, acidity, moisture, sunlight and metal concentrations can vary across only a few centimeters among stream water, nearby soil and spaces inside volcanic rock. Each habitat may support a distinct community of algae, bacteria and viruses.

“You end up with this hidden biodiversity within centimeters of each other,” Bhattacharya said.

Genetic analyses by the team show that even populations of the same algal species can begin to diverge in their DNA sequence when one occupies water and another lives in nearby soil, demonstrating how local conditions can drive adaptation over small distances.

Rutgers researchers also explore the algae’s unusual genetic history.

Studies by Bhattacharya and other scientists have shown that the organisms acquired genes from bacteria and archaea through horizontal gene transfer, a process in which genetic material moves between unrelated organisms. Bhattacharya described it as the algae “stealing” useful genes from neighboring microbes.

Those borrowed genes helped the algae tolerate acidity, use new carbon sources and survive exposure to toxic metals, according to the scientists.

In a separate paper published in Trends in Microbiology, Bhattacharya and his colleagues proposed the Integrated Horizontal Gene Transfer Model, which suggests that sharing resources and survival functions within microbial communities may have influenced how the borrowed genes evolved. It could help explain how cells developed new abilities while maintaining small, efficient genomes.

Bhattacharya and his colleagues used arsenic and mercury to illustrate two different survival strategies. Evidence from Yellowstone suggests that different organisms may perform different steps in response to arsenic.

“Arsenic detoxification is a community affair,” Bhattacharya said.

Mercury presents a different challenge, the researchers found. Because it is extremely toxic, organisms cannot safely depend on neighboring species. Individual bacteria and algae instead maintain their own genes for converting mercury into a less harmful form.

Other studies summarized in the New Phytologist review have overturned another long-standing belief about the algae: For more than a century, scientists thought Cyanidiophyceae reproduced only by making copies of themselves through a process known as mitosis. Researchers now know the algae also have a sexual life cycle and can switch between forms with different numbers of chromosome sets. Scientists are investigating which environmental conditions trigger that change.

These days, Bhattacharya is exploring whether the algae and their microbial partners contain enzymes capable of working under extreme heat, acidity and metal exposure. Such enzymes could eventually prove useful in environmental cleanup and industrial processes.

For Bhattacharya, those possibilities increase directly from fundamental research. Scientists first need to understand how the algae grow, reproduce and interact with surrounding microbes before they can determine which of their unusual abilities can be put to work, he said.

This article first appeared in Rutgers Today.

 

Rutgers President William F. Tate IV and Debashish Bhattacharya, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, who received the 2026 Board of Trustees Award for Excellence in Research.

Debashish Bhattacharya, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, was recognized with the Board of Trustees Award for Excellence in Research, which honors tenured faculty members who have made distinguished research contributions to their discipline and/or society at large.

Bhattacharya was recognized on May 6 as part of the 2025-26 University-wide Faculty Year-End Excellence Awards for members of the community who have made outstanding contributions through teaching, research, and service.

A total of 33 awardees from across the university were recognized in nine categories during the event led by President William F. Tate IV and Executive Vice President Keena Arbuthnot. 

Distinguished Professor Debashish Bhattacharya pictured with Distinguished Professor Max Häggblom, chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology.

President Tate told the group of scholars that their work in the areas of education, discovery, and service fulfilled the model of higher education in the United States established by the Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890, which enabled states to establish public colleges across the nation. 

“You all, the ones who are going to be recognized today, represent the very best of the Morrill Act tradition,’’ Tate said. “This is one of the best groups of scholars and teachers I have ever seen, and I could not be more proud to be Rutgers’ president.’’

The Bhattacharya lab pursues several areas of evolutionary genomics and applied research with a focus on marine species such as corals, seaweeds, and shellfish.

His group generates knowledge about these often-threatened species and then develops tools to diagnose their health and assess their resilience, with the goal of aiding local stakeholders.

“I have loved the ocean since childhood and am thrilled to be at Rutgers in a time when the needed, sophisticated tools are available to better understand and protect marine ecosystems for future generations.”

Read more about Debashish Bhattacharya’s research and impact.

Honored alongside Bhattacharya with the 2025-26 Board of Trustees Award for Excellence in Research were:

Stephen Crystal, Distinguished Research Professor and Board of Governors Professor at the Rutgers School of Social Work and Director of the Rutgers Center for Health Services Research at the Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research.

Michael D. Anestis, Professor, Department of Urban-Global Public Health, School of Public Health, Rutgers Health.

Ashutosh Goel, Professor, Department of Materials Science & Engineering, School of Engineering, Rutgers University–New Brunswick.

Christian S. Hinrichs, Professor, Department of Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Co-Director of the Duncan and Nancy MacMillan Cancer Immunology and Metabolism Center of Excellence and Chief of the Section of Cancer Immunotherapy, Rutgers Cancer Institute, Rutgers Health.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN RESEARCH winners: (left to right) Debashish Bhattacharya, Biochemistry and Microbiology, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences; Michael D. Anestis, Urban-Global Public Health, School of Public Health; Ashutosh Goel, Materials Science and Engineering, School of Engineering;, Stephen Crystal, School of Social Work; and Christian S. Hinrichs, Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Rutgers Cancer Institute.

 

Images of healthy (left) and SCTLD-diseased (right) Montastrea cavernosa corals in waters near the Dominican Republic. Images by divers at the Marine Innovation Center, Punta Cana. Photo credit: Debashish Bhattacharya

A mysterious disease has been quietly destroying coral reefs across the Caribbean for over a decade. Stony coral tissue loss disease, or SCTLD, causes coral tissue to simply fall away, killing entire colonies — and no one has been able to pinpoint exactly what causes it. Now, new research is offering some of the clearest clues yet.

Debashish Bhattacharya, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology and affiliate of the Rutgers Climate and Energy Institute, supervised the work that was led by graduate student Shrinivas Nandi in his lab and published in ISME Communications. The research examined the microscopic communities — bacteria, viruses, and other microbes — living inside diseased and healthy corals collected from reefs in the Dominican Republic.

The authors found that when corals get SCTLD, the rich and diverse community of microbes that normally lives inside a healthy coral essentially collapses. In its place, harmful bacteria move in and take over. The study also found strong evidence that viruses may be setting this collapse in motion — disrupting the healthy microbiome and opening the door for dangerous bacteria to thrive. This phenomenon is referred to as dysbiosis.

Five specific viruses were found in significantly higher amounts in diseased corals. Strikingly, the same viruses turned up in SCTLD-affected corals from Florida — over 1,000 miles away — suggesting these viruses are consistently linked to the disease across the Caribbean.

Perhaps the most surprising finding was the discovery of two coral colonies that appeared healthy for at least nine months after sampling, yet contained the same viruses found in sick corals. These “asymptomatic” corals had a different bacterial community than diseased ones, hinting that the right mix of microbes or a resistant coral genotype might protect some colonies from getting sick — even when the virus is present.

“Finding corals that appear resistant to this disease is genuinely exciting. It opens the door to the possibility of identifying beneficial microbial communities (natural probiotics) or resistant genotypes that could be used for coral conservation. Given how rapidly SCTLD is spreading across the Caribbean, there is also a need for SCTLD diagnostic tools to screen wild and nursery populations for signs of the disease (virus DNA), an area we are actively working on with our partners in the region,” said Bhattacharya.

As climate change warms and stresses the ocean, coral diseases like SCTLD are expected to become more severe and widespread. These findings offer a potential path forward: by identifying the molecular “fingerprints” of disease — and resistance — scientists may be able to develop early warning tools to flag at-risk reefs and guide targeted conservation efforts before it’s too late.

You can read the full study here.

This article was written with assistance from Artificial Intelligence, was reviewed and edited by Oliver Stringham, and was reviewed and editted by Debashish Bhattacharya, senior author of the study.

 

New research has shown a way to easily differentiate healthy guts from unhealthy guts headed toward disease.

Scientists have identified a new way to distinguish healthy guts from diseased ones and track how some illnesses progress by measuring how gut bacteria interact with one another.

According to a study published in Science, a Rutgers-led team of scientists found that healthy and diseased digestive systems behave like two distinct ecological states, driven not by individual microbes but by how entire bacterial communities compete and cooperate.

“Instead of asking which bacteria are there, we started asking how they are related to other bacteria,” said Juan Bonachela, an assistant professor with the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources at the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences and a senior author of the study. “That change in perspective allowed us to see health and disease as two fundamentally different states of the gut microbiome.”

To measure how bacterial communities shift between health and disease, the team developed a new metric called the Ecological Network Balance Index, or ENBI, which captures whether microbial communities are dominated by competitive or cooperative interactions.

Applied to stool samples, ENBI consistently separated healthy individuals from patients across multiple diseases. In colorectal cancer, the index rose as the disease progressed.

“This new measure captures this shift using stool samples and can distinguish healthy people from diseased people,” said Maria Gloria Dominguez-Bello, the Henry Rutgers Professor of Microbiome and Health in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology at the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences and an author of the study. 

Rod-shaped bacteria and spherical cocci, shown here in contrasting colors, represent different microbes that share the gut’s complex ecosystem. Scientists have found that shifts in how these microbes compete and cooperate can signal the difference between health and disease. Graphic: Xuesong Zhang/Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine

Dominguez-Bello said the findings show how disease emerges when microbial communities reorganize themselves.

“This work shows that gut health is not just about which bacteria are present, but how they interact with one another,” she said. “In diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, C. difficile infection, irritable bowel syndrome and colorectal cancer, bacteria form more cooperative, tightly connected groups that can dominate and disrupt normal function.”

Martin Blaser, an author of the study and director of Rutgers Health’s Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine, said the findings help explain why so many gut-related diseases have been difficult to predict and treat.

“This gives us a new way to think about what goes wrong in the microbiome,” Blaser said. “Instead of focusing on individual microbes, it shows that disease emerges when the entire system shifts. That opens the door to earlier detection and more targeted interventions.”

The team started their research by building computer models that simulate how gut bacteria compete for nutrients and exchange metabolic byproducts.

“At first we were just testing whether the model could reproduce basic features of real microbiomes,” said Roberto Corral Lopez, the study’s lead author, who conducted the research as a Fulbright doctoral scholar at Rutgers and now is a postdoctoral associate at the Universidad de Granada and the Instituto Carlos I de Física Teórica y Computacional in Spain. “But very early on, we saw that it naturally produced two distinct patterns, one that looked like health and one that looked like disease.”

That prompted the researchers to compare their simulations with stool DNA data from patients.

“When we checked the data, we saw the same pattern,” Corral Lopez said. “That’s when we realized we were capturing something fundamental about how these communities reorganize in disease.”

The gut microbiome consistently settled into one of two configurations: a diverse, competitive state associated with health, and a second state dominated by small, tightly connected groups of cooperating bacteria linked to disease.

Bonachela said the insights and the tool could eventually help doctors identify problems earlier.

“In theory, it should be possible to measure it from just stool samples, which is a very non-invasive way to monitor gut health,” he said.

The findings also may help explain why gut therapies such as probiotics and fecal microbiota transplants sometimes succeed and sometimes fail.

“Treatments are typically based on the idea that you need particular bacteria to be there,” Bonachela said. “But if that is not the issue, if the issue is the relationships, then it does not matter that you give the bacteria.”

With fecal transplants, he said, the benefit may come not from introducing individual species, but from restoring entire microbial communities.

“The interesting aspect is not that you introduce the species,” Bonachela said. “It is that you introduce a whole community, and therefore you are keeping the interactions that allow that community to be healthy. It is not that bacteria need to be there. They need to be there with the right partners.”

Corral Lopez said the work eventually could make microbiome-based therapies more predictable.

“Right now, donor selection is largely based on availability and basic health screening,” said Corral Lopez, referring to the process preceding fecal transplants. “What this opens up is the possibility of matching microbial communities based on how their interaction networks fit together, rather than just which species are present. That could help us design treatments that are tailored to each patient’s microbiome instead of relying on trial and error.”

Bonachela said the team hopes their work will eventually lead to earlier detection and more personalized care.

“We are trying to understand how these systems work so we can make a real difference in people’s lives,” he said.

Michael Manhart of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School contributed to the study. Other contributors include Simon Levin of Princeton University and Miguel Munoz of the Universidad de Granada.

This article originally appeared in Rutgers Today.

 

Max Haggblom, chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, speaking on the history of beer at the Flounder Brewing Co.

On October 7, 2025, SEBS alumni gathered in the loft at Flounder Brewing Co., a brewery in Hillsborough, NJ, for an event called “Brewology: The Science Behind the Suds.” The brewery, a converted 18th century barn, is owned by Cook College alumnus, Jeremy Lees CC’99, Landscape Architecture.

Guests who participated in the event were treated to a light dinner of sandwiches and chips and received tickets for two free drinks to be used for any of the beers on the brewery menu.

Max Haggblom, chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, gave an enlightening and interactive talk about the history of beer and the process of fermentation from a scientific perspective. Lees also shared the background on his entry into the brewing business before giving guests a tour of the facilities and explaining the brewery process.

In addition to the unique ‘Brewology’ program, alumni really enjoyed connecting with each other over a few pilseners, ales, IPA’s and the like.

Lee was very happy to host the event at Flounder and to interact with fellow Rutgers alumni.

“Everyone who attended learned all about the brewing process from Prof. Haggblom, and to be able to show attendees the brewery where all of that happens is always a treat for us. Paired with delicious beer, it was a wonderful evening talking about brewing.”

 

2025 Governor’s STEM Scholars visited the Ludwig Global Village Learning Center on the Douglass campus. Photo credit: John O’Boyle

Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS) recently welcomed students from the prestigious Governor’s STEM Scholars program for an immersive day of scientific exploration and sustainability-focused learning. The program was hosted at the Ludwig Global Village Living Learning Center and featured a full day of activities focused on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Karla Esquilín-Lebrón, teaching instructor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology and research advisor for the Governor’s STEM Scholars program, engages the students in STEM learning. Photo credit: John O’Boyle

The Governor’s STEM Scholars program is designed to engage the next generation of STEM leaders, high school and college students, in the state’s innovation economy. Since its launch in 2013, it has supported more than 1,000 students from all 21 New Jersey counties. The program provides these scholars with connections, mentors and relationships within the state’s research community to help set them on an academic and career path to become New Jersey’s future STEM professionals and secures our state’s talent pipeline.”

Karla Esquilín-Lebrón, teaching instructor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, is the research advisor for the program. She provides scientific and technical leadership to the program, while guiding scholars as they design and carry out their team research projects. She mentors students by offering subject-matter expertise and helps to ensure projects are both rigorous and impactful.

Esquilín-Lebrón and program director Alise Roderer, worked with the SEBS Office of Research, and the Associate Dean of Research Impact, Janice McDonnell, to provide the scholars with four dynamic tours led by Rutgers experts, each supporting the students in learning about Rutgers research.

AJ Both, extension specialist in the Department of Environmental Sciences, discussed agrivoltaics with the STEM scholars. Photo credit: John O’Boyle

A.J. Both, extension specialist in the Department of Environmental Sciences and a leading horticultural engineer, guided students through the Rutgers Agrivoltaics Program installation, showcasing the innovative research that integrates solar energy production with sustainable agriculture. Both’s work focuses on designing energy-efficient greenhouses and hydroponic systems that conserve natural resources while enhancing food production. Scholars traveled by bus to the farm and engaged in discussions about the future of farming and land stewardship.

The scholars also visited the Rutgers Center for Ocean Observing Leadership (RUCOOL) in the Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences. The tour was led by Michael Crowley, RUCOOL technical manager, who highlighted the lab’s underwater robots or gliders used to study ocean dynamics, storm impacts and climate change. The scholars learned how Rutgers researchers are helping protect marine ecosystems and coastal communities.

RUCOOL Technical Manager, Michael Crowley, shows the scholars the ocean gliders. Photo credit: John O’Boyle

The Waksman Museum, located in Martin Hall on the Cook campus, was also a stop on the tour. SEBS student Angel Robinson showcased the antibiotic research history at Rutgers and the impact of the NJ State Microbe Streptomyces griseus while sharing her current research as a G.H. Cook scholar in the laboratory of Distinguished Professor Max Häggblom in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology.

Sue Shapses, professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences, led a tour of Foran Hall and the Institute for Food, Nutrition, and Health (IFNH). Her research focuses on nutrition, metabolism, and bone health. Shapses shared insights into how diet and science intersect to combat obesity and promote healthy aging. Reflecting on the visit, she remarked that “my students had a few “I can’t believe” and “I didn’t know” statements about the topic of nutrition and the research!  I hope we made a difference and to see them at Rutgers in the near future.” 

The visit offered the scholars a glimpse into Rutgers’ commitment to sustainability, innovation, and global impact—planting seeds for future scientists and changemakers.

 

Abbey Isaac graduated with an undergraduate degree in Biochemistry in May 2025 and is now enrolled in the 4+1 Microbial Biology graduate program at Rutgers.

Transferring to Rutgers University from a New Jersey community college is a common and successful pathway for many students, aided by statewide articulation agreements that are designed to streamline the process. Abbey Isaac SEBS’25 has made that transition and feels she has a lot to offer other students contemplating that transfer journey.

Right out of Howell High School, Abbey always planned to first get an associate’s degree, then matriculate to a four-year institution to complete a bachelor’s degree. She was awarded a scholarship under NJ STARS—a state scholarship program that provides high-achieving high school graduates with a scholarship to cover tuition costs at any of the NJ’s 19 community colleges.

True to her goals, she earned an associate’s degree in biology and transferred from Brookdale Community College in May 2023 to Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences in fall 2023. Abbey graduated with an undergraduate degree in Biochemistry in May 2025 and is now enrolled in the 4+1 Microbial Biology graduate program.

Abbey brings a lot of energy to organizing and communicating information to help students transfer to Rutgers from community colleges across New Jersey.

She’s been purposeful in her efforts to help, often returning to Brookdale Community College, knowing that advice and assistance from someone who knows firsthand what it’s like to transfer from a New Jersey community college to Rutgers would benefit her peers.

L-R: Sharron Crane, assistant teaching professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, and Abbey Isaac in front of Lipman Hall on the George H. Cook campus.

“I’ve gone back to my community college plenty of times to talk about my experiences transferring and completing my studies at Rutgers. I feel like having someone who’s done it provides relief to students, and allows them to begin to plan the steps of transferring for themselves.”

Her efforts have extended to collaborating with Sharron Crane, assistant teaching professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, to launch a program to assist transfer students in their transition to academic and college life at Rutgers–New Brunswick.

Aptly named “Transferring to SEBS?” Here’s what you need to know,” the program is designed to foster a network of support by providing incoming transfer students with information about transferring to SEBS, the NJ Statewide Transfer Agreement, and NJTRANSFER.org through a straight-to-the-point Zoom webinar. 

Held once a semester, community college students also get a chance to hear testimonials from current SEBS transfer students who share their transfer experience, including the ups and downs. Students are encouraged to drop questions in the chat and there’s an open Q&A immediately after the presentation.

“Many of our students transfer from community college and/or are first generation college students,” says Crane, whose interaction with students allows her to see firsthand some of the common challenges they face. “Navigating a large school like Rutgers can be intimidating and challenging. Students often have trouble choosing their courses when they first get here as well because they’re not always sure what the graduation requirements are.”

Gary Panetta is an assistant dean for transfer students in the SEBS Office of Academic Programs. “New transfers often cite time management as a challenge. There are so many clubs, organizations, classes, research opportunities, etc. for our students to explore that their time becomes a precious commodity. Balancing commuting, class, and extracurriculars takes a few weeks to figure out,” he says.

“In addition, Rutgers is an academically rigorous school, and students are quickly introduced to the expectations in a research institution’s classroom setting. Further, many students expect Rutgers to be like their last school and assume they can study or work the same way they used to in their previous institution. Things are different here and successful students often learn to approach class content, exams and projects in more methodical ways. Learning centers, tutoring and office hours are key to success!”

Once a transfer student herself, Abbey understands these challenges, explaining that “a majority of community college students upon matriculation don’t finish their bachelor’s degree in the expected timeframe of two years.”

“With “Transferring to SEBS?”, the idea is to help streamline the transferring process by spreading needed information to community college students so while they’re at their community college, they can ensure they are taking the proper courses to transfer,” she adds.

Panetta highlights a SEBS course called Academic Mentoring, which supports new students’ transition to college by engaging them in learning about the processes by which individuals learn in college and, ultimately, achieve academic success in a small class setting. “I teach a separate section of that course for new transfers only in which we connect transfer peers, facilitate adjustment to the Rutgers community, recognize school resources and academically integrate students into our broad network of distinguished faculty conducting top-tier research,” says Panetta.

For anyone exploring Rutgers SEBS specifically, Panetta suggests that “prospective transfers should research our majors, minors, courses and outcomes, then look to contact our transfer team or even undergrad program directors to ensure SEBS is good fit. We are happy to chat with prospective students and explain the transfer process. In addition, I highly recommend the RU New? Podcast where our office of Orientation and Transition Programs interview current students/staff regarding common Rutgers questions.”

Abbey Isaac in the laboratory at Edgebrook Animal Hospital. A part time vet, Abbey’s favorite spot at the animal hospital is the microscope.

Abbey was motivated to assist her community college peers because of her own challenges. She recalls the help she received as she herself adjusted to Rutgers and SEBS, leading to her collaboration with Crane to help other transfer students.

“Faculty and staff members do not get enough credit for their influence in providing a safe and welcoming space for students, especially faculty/staff at SEBS. One instructor in particular, Dr. Sharron Crane, truly had an important impact in my undergraduate experience at Rutgers,” says Abbey.

“During an advising meeting with Dr. Crane, I shared my experiences with some of my credits not transferring properly, as well as other problems with credits faced by my transfer student friends. This sparked a whole conversation where Sharron agreed—she validated my concerns by acknowledging the problem and empowered me to work with her to help fix it. This is the conversation that built “Transferring to SEBS.” 

Crane is truly inspired by Abbey’s passion for transfer outreach. “She spearheaded the mission to develop the “Transferring to SEBS?” information session initiative. This semester is our third information session, and Abbey has been instrumental, not only in deciding what information to share during the session, but also in fielding questions and sharing her story about what it’s really like to transfer to Rutgers.” 

As to what advice Abbey would offer to students transferring from community colleges to Rutgers-New Brunswick?

“Remember that you were good enough to get into Rutgers—so you’re more than good enough to get through the rough parts! And reiterating a million times that we often are our own worst critics.” 

From personal experience, Abbey adds that “I also really recommend talking to your professors—they’re people too, and are more than often ecstatic to help students understand the topics they talk about. Establishing yourself as a student to your professor helps benefit you in the long run, especially when asking for letters of recommendations or professional/academic/research advice.” 

And “most importantly—have fun! It goes by so quickly, so don’t be afraid to live in the moment. You can’t enjoy college if you spend every second studying! You need balance.”

 

Snow-covered field in Lapland, Finland. Image by Alex Stemmer, licensed via Adobe Stock (Education License).

In a recent study published in ISME Communications, researchers discovered five brand-new species of cold-loving bacteria in the Arctic tundra of northern Finland. Lee Kerkhof, professor in the Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences, and Max Häggblom, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology—both affiliates of the Rutgers Climate and Energy Institute—are co-authors on the study done in collaboration with Minna Männistö, senior scientist at the Natural Resources Institute Finland. Anil Kumar, postdoctoral associate with Häggblom and Kerkhof led the genome analysis of the novel species. You can read the full study here.

The team focused on bacteria from the genus Mucilaginibacter, known for breaking down complex plant materials. These microbes live in the tundra’s frozen soils, where they endure extreme cold, seasonal freeze–thaw cycles, and limited nutrients. The five newly identified species are well adapted to survive and thrive in these harsh conditions.

Why does this matter for climate change? Arctic soils store massive amounts of carbon locked in frozen plant matter. As the Arctic warms, microbes like these become more active, breaking down organic material and releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Understanding which microbes are present and what they can do helps scientists better predict how much carbon could be released in a warming world.

The study revealed that these new species have genes for breaking down tough plant compounds, handling cold stress, and even producing natural antimicrobial chemicals. They can also take in nitrogen in multiple forms, a valuable skill in nutrient-poor tundra soils. These traits make them important players in the Arctic’s carbon and nutrient cycles.

“By identifying these new bacteria, we can better understand the hidden processes controlling carbon release in the Arctic. This knowledge can guide climate models and help policymakers plan for the impacts of a warming climate,” said Häggblom.

Beyond climate science, the work adds to our understanding of microbial diversity and adaptation. Insights from these bacteria might one day inspire new biotechnologies, from waste treatment to natural product development.

This article was written with assistance from Artificial Intelligence, was reviewed and edited by Oliver Stringham, and was reviewed and edited by Max Häggblom, co-author on the study.