Trinity Hamilton

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Credentials

PhD

Research Summary

Our lab studies the functions and interactions of microorganisms in natural and engineered systems and how microbial communities respond and adapt to environmental change. We are particularly interested in life  at the fringe including redox gradients and temperature extremes.  We  use traditional microbiology and molecular techniques as well as next  generation -omics approaches in combination with high resolution  geochemical and geological data. The integration of these data results  in a multidisciplinary approach to examine the in situ dynamics of microbial interactions and the affect of these interactions on local and global biogeochemical cycles. Ongoing projects in the lab include: 1) microbial primary productivity in the Proterozoic oceans; 2) the limits of chlorophototrophy (from glaciers to hot springs); 3) competitive interactions and microbial community assembly; 4) the Ecology and Physiology of toxin-producing Cyanobacteria. We employ traditional microbiology and molecular techniques as well as next generation -omics approaches in combination with high resolution geochemical data.