• How Fungi Make Nutrients Available to the World

    A recent article by the US Department of Energy reviews research and breakthroughs in biotechnology related to the conversion of woody biomass residues to useful bioproducts and biofuels. Professor Barry Goodell’s research in the UMass Microbiology department is discussed along with that of several other leading researchers in the field. Goodell’s work has led to the discovery on a unique, and highly efficient, non-enzymatic mechanism that fungi use to deconstruct wood. Read more »

  • Morita Lab Studies Glycolipid Biosynthesis as a Potential Drug Target

    The American Lung Association recently awarded Dr. Yasu Morita a grant to advance research to identify a protein involved in the production of glycolipids that can be targeted by new drugs. Read more »

  • Applied and Molecular Biotechnology (AMB) Master's Program in its Fifth Year

    The Applied and Molecular Biotechnology Program welcomed its fifth class in Fall 2017. Read more »

  • Holden Studies Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vents in Northeastern Pacific

    One of the many research projects currently underway in the Holden Laboratory is the study of geomicrobiology of deep-sea hydrothermal vents along the Juan de Fuca Ridge in the northeastern Pacific Ocean. Read more »

  • Derek Lovley

    Lovley Invention Boosts the University's Number of Patents Recorded in One Year

    Derek Lovley, Distinguished University Professor, and Kelly Nevin Lovley, Research Assistant Professor, have developed and licensed a new technology, microbial electrosynthesis, which led the University of Massachusetts to record 62 patents in 2015 which is a record-high for the University. Read more... Read more »

News & Announcements

Jonathan Miller Interviewed by Journal of Cell Science

May 2020: Jonathan Miller, Ph.D., a recent graduate of the Microbiology Graduate Program, was interviewed by First Person. First Person is a series of interviews of first authors of a selection of papers published in the Journal of Cell Science. The series helps to promote early-career researchers and their published research findings. Read more...

Ghoshal Three Minute Thesis Finalist

March 2020: Microbiology Ph.D. candidate, Mrinalini Ghoshal, is a finalist in the UMass Graduate School's Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. Of the 40 preliminary round participants in the competition, 10 were selected as finalists. The 3MT campus final will be held on Friday, February 28th, 1:00-2:30 p.m. in the Old Chapel. Finalists will also present their research to the broader community at the 3MT Community Day at the Amherst Jones Library on Saturday, March 28th, 3-4pm.

Dirty Little Secrets

February 2020:  Western Mass News recently met up with Dr. Erika Hamilton, Director of Microbiology Teaching Services, to discover what bacteria live and grow on every day items that we use such as water bottles, purses and gas pumps. Read more...

In another segment on Western Mass News, Dr. Hamilton tested makeup for bacteria that customers sampled in stores. Read more...

Nevin and Lovley Named Highly Cited Researchers

December 2019: Kelly Nevin and Derek Lovley have been recognized for being among the world’s most highly cited researchers in 2019 by London-based Clarivate Analytics, owner of the Web of Science. The citation analysis identifies influential researchers as determined by their peers around the world. Read more...

 

 

Mrinalini Ghoshal Receives Award for Presentation
Photo of Mrinalini Ghoshal

November 2019: Mrinalini (Mira) Ghoshal, 3rd-year PhD candidate in the Microbiology Department received the 1st Prize Award for the Best Oral Presentation at the 9th Annual Life Sciences Graduate Research Symposium. The Symposium was held at the UMass-Amherst Campus on November 22, 2019.  The title of Mira’s presentation was: “Exploring the role of low molecular weight metabolites in the formation of host brain lesions during Cryptococcus neoformans infection”.  Cryptococcus is an important fungal disease problem that kills 181,000 people each year, and Mira is exploring a new mode for the way the fungus attacks the brain. Her research is conducted in collaboration with her advisor, Professor Barry Goodell in the Microbiology Department.

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