Montana State University,
Subsurface Observatory Science Lead
matthew.fields@montana.edu
(406) 994-7340
Matthew Fields is a professor in the Department of Microbiology & Cell Biology and also serves as Director of the Center for Biofilm Engineering at Montana State University. As the Subsurface Observatory Science Lead, his laboratory uses molecular ecology and physiology to study microbial communities associated with different environments that include subsurface environments and groundwater. Laboratory work includes physiology, ecology, and genomics of different organisms relevant to bioremediation, material interactions, and biofuels. Ultimately, a driving question is to understand the relationships between structure and function at different scales of biology and the associated ecological and physiological responses. An improved understanding of structure/function relationships will allow predictive modeling and design for a variety of natural and engineered systems. Research projects are currently funded through the Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense, and private industry.
Relevant Publications
Nuclear Waste Sites Yield Microbial Ecosystem Insights - In a flagship seven-year study, published this January in the journal Nature Microbiology, ENIGMA researchers explored how environmental stresses influence the composition and structure of microbial communities in the groundwater of the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR), a former nuclear waste disposal site. More →
Sampling Down Well In Situ Microbial Colonization Conditions - LJ McKay*, HJ Smith*, E Barnhart, HD Schweitzer, RR Malmstrom, D Goudeau, MW Fields (2021) Activity-based, genome-resolved metagenomics uncovers key populations and pathways involved in subsurface conversions of coal to methane Nature ISME Journal [DOI]:10.1038/s41396-021-01139-x PMID: 34689183 Development of activity-based metagenomics, enabled the identification of translationally active microorganisms and associated functional capacity Demonstration on terrestrial subsurface samples retrieved with a subsurface… More →
An Integrated Conceptual Microbial Ecology Framework - March 24, 2021-AHolistic Modeling Framework Integrating Laboratory and Field Studies for Microbial Ecology. The Science Microbial communities serve critical roles in all ecosystems and have a profound impact on human health, environmental health, and industrial capabilities. As such, it is desirable to have robust, actionable directions for the intervention of microbial community function. However, the multiscale, stochastic, Spatio-temporal and diverse nature… More →