Annette Summers Engel

Ph.D. The University of Texas at Austin, 2004

Geomicrobiology, molecular- and culture-based approaches to understand microbial diversity and ecology, geochemistry and biogeochemical cycling, karst studies 

aengel@lsu.edu

My geomicrobiology research is summarized into two basic themes: 1) understanding the microbial diversity, ecology, and nutrient cycling of the terrestrial subsurface, and 2) characterizing the geological and geochemical consequences of microbes living in their habitats. As a geomicrobiologist, being able to weave together aspects of many different disciplines is important and my research is strongly interdisciplinary, involving both field and laboratory work where cutting-edge geochemical, isotopic, and genetic techniques are used.

I focus my research primarily in karst settings because caves are accessible analogs to the deeper subsurface. I also have research projects in surface environments, such as thermal and non-thermal surface-discharging springs and symbiotic systems (including bacteria and clams). Current field sites include: the Lower Kane Cave and other cave systems in the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming; the Edwards Aquifer near San Antonio and Austin, Texas; Lassen Volcanic National Park, California; anywhere there is a sulfur spring, such as Louisiana, Utah, New York, Colorado, Wyoming, California, Texas, Kentucky, and Indiana; the travertine and karst regions near Viterbo and Genga (Frasassi Caves), Italy; several caves in Romania, including Movile Cave; the Caves and Karst of Slovenia, and El Tatio geyser field in the Atacama Desert, Chile.

Selected Publications

Campbell, B.J., ENGEL, A.S., Porter, M.L., and Takai, K. (2006) The versatile Epsilon-proteobacteria: Key players in sulphidic habitats. Nature Reviews Microbiology. 4:458-468.

Phoenix, V.R., Bennett, P.C., ENGEL, A. S., Tyler, S.W., and Ferris F.G. (2006) Chilean high-altitude hot spring sinters: a model system for UV screening mechanisms by early Precambrian cyanobacteria. Geobiology. 4: 15-28.

ENGEL, A.S. (2005) Chemoautotrophy, in Culver, D. and W. White, (eds.) Encyclopedia of Caves. p. 90-102.

ENGEL, A.S., Porter, M.L., Stern, L.A., Quinlan, S., Bennett, P.C. (2004) Bacterial diversity and ecosystem function of filamentous microbial mats from aphotic (cave) sulfidic springs dominated by chemolithoautotrophic “Epsilonproteobacteria”. FEMS Microbiology Ecology. 51:31-53.

ENGEL, A.S., Stern, L.A., and Bennett, P.C. (2004) Microbial contributions to cave formation: new insights into sulfuric acid speleogenesis. Geology. 32(5): 369-372.


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