Bethany Jenkins

Asst. Professor of Oceanography

279 CBLS, Kingston

bjenkins@uri.edu

401-874-7551

Educational Background

Ph.D., Chemistry
B.A., Biochemistry

University of Oregon
Mount Holyoke College

2000
1990

Areas of Specialization

Research

The research in the Jenkins lab is focused on understanding the interplay between the genetically encoded biochemical potential of marine microbes, the physicochemical properties of the environment and how these factors come together to ultimately determine community composition. Specific research questions address the molecular diversity of nutrient aquisition strategies in bacteria and phytoplankton and the comparative physiology of trace metal uptake systems in diatoms. We address these questions in both field and laboratory experiments using molecular biological and comparative genomics techniques.

Publications:

Jenkins, B.D., Zehr, J.P. Gibson, A. H., Campbell L. (in press). Cyanobacterial assimilatory nitrate reductase gene diversity in coastal and oligotrophic marine environments. Environmental Microbiology.

Moisander, P.H., Shuie, L., Steward G.F., Jenkins, B.D., Bebout, B.M., and Zehr, J.P. (in press). Development and utility of an oligonucleotide microarray for profiling nifH diversity in marine microbial mats. Applied and Environmental microbiology.

Jenkins, B.D., and Zehr, J.P. (in press). Molecular Approaches to the Nitrogen Cycle. Nitrogen in the Marine Environment (Capone, D., Bronk D., eds.).

Armbrust, E.V., Berges, J A., Bowler, C., Green, B.R., Martinez, D., Putnam, N.H., Zhou, S., Allen, A. E., Apt, K. E., Bechner, M., Brzezinski, M. A., Chaal B. K., Chiovitti, A., Davis, A. K., Demarest, M. S. Detter J. C., Glavina, T., Goodstein, D., Hadi, M. Z.,Hellsten, U., Hildebrand, M., Jenkins, B. D., Jurka, J., Kapitonov, V. V., Kr√É¬∂ger, N., Lau, W. W. Y., Lane, T. W., Larimer, F. W., Lippmeier, J. C., Lucas, S., Medina, M., Montsant, A., Obornik, M., Parker, M. S., Palenik, B., Pazour, G.J., Richardson, P. M., Rynearson, T. A., Saito, M. A., Schwartz,D. C., Thamatrakoln, K., Valentin, K., Vardi, A. Wilkerson, F.P., Rokhsar, D. S. 2004. The genome of the diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana: Ecology, evolution, and metabolism. Science, 306 (5693): 79-86.

Jenkins, B.D., Steward, G. F, Short S.M., Ward, B.B. and Zehr, J. P. (2004). Shifts in Diazotroph Community Composition in the Chesapeake Bay Estuary Revealed by a DNA Macroarray Approach. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 70 (3) 1767-1776 .

Presentations:

Oct. 2005 Molecular Approaches to Microbial Nitrogen Assimilation The Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island.

Sept 2005 Jenkins, B.D., Kudela, R.M., Armbrust, E.V., Zehr, J.P., Smith, G.J., Ostlund, E., Rodriques, H., Roberts, A. (2004). Identifying genetic signatures of toxin production and nutrient stress in Pseudo-nitzschia spp. The Eleventh International Conference on Harmful Algae, Cape town, South Africa.

May 2004 Linking Biochemistry and Biogeochemistry: Molecular insights into Microbially Mediated Processes. Department of Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute.

Jenkins, B.D., Gibson, A.,Campbell, L., Wilkerson, F.P., and J.P. Zehr (2004). Diversity of nitrogen assimilation genes in natural cyanobacterial populations. ASLO/TOS Ocean Research conference, Honolulu HI.