Today, Dr. Valerie DeAnda Torres, Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Cell Science at the University of Florida (and National Geographic Explorer), joins the #QualityQuorum to tell us about the research her team does, studying the evolution of metabolic pathways in extreme environments . . . and why these are important to geochemical cycling.
Host: Mark O. Martin
Guest: Valerie DeAnda Torres
Download MM092 (39 MB MP3, 64 mins)
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Links for this episode
- The Etsy vendor making the beautiful microbial pins I have mentioned.
- A link to Sebastian Cocobia’s site where the beautiful E. coli strains I referenced can be obtained.
- The beauty and mystery of Paenibacillus colonies.
- A video showing a colony of Myxococcus consuming a colony of E. coli.
- A fun video of tardigrades singing “Happy birthday” by a former undergraduate student of mine, Dr. Jake Shaffer.
- The National Geographic Explorer program, which includes Dr. DeAnda Torres.
- The deep sea submersible Alvin, in which Dr. DeAnda Torres has dived!
- An overview of methanogenesis, one of the pathways that Dr. DeAnda Torres’ research group studies.
- A review of biogeochemical cycles in the deep ocean.
- The work of my former undergraduate research student, Dr. Paula Welander, on membrane biosignatures in ancient rocks.
- A recent review of the Asgard archaea, that may be our ancient ancestors.
- Some recent work by Dr. DeAnda Torres and collaborators on the Asgard archaea.
- One of the research cruises in which Dr. DeAnda Torres participated.
- During one cruise that included an Alvin dive to a hydrothermal vent, Dr. DeAnda Torres and scientists working with her described their work in this livestream partially in Spanish.
- Dr. DeAnda Torres will be part of some upcoming collaborative research cruises, seen here.
- Here is an article and video describing some of the collaborative work Dr. DeAnda Torres carries out, studying microbial breakdown of PFAS chemicals in marine sediment.
- A link to the faculty website of Dr. DeAnda Torres.
- A link to the research website of the DeAnda Torres group.
Intro music is by Reber Clark
Send your questions and comments to [email protected]
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