My laboratory is focused on the interaction of anthropogenic disturbances of the environment and microbial process and community response, which can ameliorate environmental effects and potential health risks. Thisrather broad research program has an emphasis on molecular environmental diagnostics, metagenomics, and biotechnical problem solving while maintaining a fundamental ecological perspective on the role and function of microorganism in aquatic, terrestrial and waste treatment systems. Research conducted in my laboratory through the Center for Environmental Biotechnology is highly interdisciplinary and includes aspects of aerobic microbial biodegradation and remediation of organic pollutants, environmental fate studies of microbes and pollutants, bioluminescent reporter gene technology for biosensor applications (ranging from microbes to man) and genetic engineering for xenobiotic degradation, biofuel synthetic biology, nanoscale interfaces, and bio-microelectronics.