RBNC Lecture Series
Wed, Mar 23
Bacteria in the Environment: Recycling at the Elemental Level
Monday, March 28th 7pm-8pm
Presented by Dr. James Masuoka
Dr. Masuoka will be discussing bacteria in various environments, such as salt spoils, salt springs, marshes, fish tanks, monuments etc., around Wichita Falls and discovering how microbes make their living there.
Dr. Masuoka received his B.S. from Montana State University, with a Microbiology major and Chemistry minor. He received his Ph.D. in Biology from the University of California, San Diego where he studied how micronutrient metals, such as iron and copper, interacted with proteins in the blood. He conducted post-doctoral research at the University of Virginia Health System, looking at how fungal pathogens interact with their human host. He joined the faculty in the Department of Biology at Midwestern State University in 2007 where he holds the position of Assistant Professor. His teaching responsibilities include Microbiology, Bacteriology, Immunology, and Anatomy & Physiology. His research lab efforts continue to focus on how fungi, in specific Candida albicans, adapt to living in a human host. More generally, he is interested in how microbes adapt to their environment and how they are involved in cycling nutrients through the ecosystem.
