028 - NatSci News October 2021 Transcript

You're listening to NatSci News Rewind a podcast that looks back at the monthly news headlines in the world of NatSci. Let's take a look back at the news for the month of October 2021.

Uncharted waters: extreme environments provide clues to extraterrestrial life
The NASA Astrobiology Institute funded Michigan State University geomicrobiologist Matt Schrenk’s lab to study life in the extreme environment of an aquifer near Lower Lake, Caliornia. Because similar environments occur in space—in the subsurface of Mars and in the oceans of Saturn’s icy moon Enceladus—the microorganisms found in this aquifer, and their behavior, may provide insight into potential extraterrestrial life. Two former MSU earth and environmental sciences graduate students, Lindsay Putman and Mary Sabuda, have just published papers on this research.

MSU's Elise Zipkin receives Fulbright Senior Scholar Fellowship
MSU quantitative ecologist Elise Zipkin has been awarded a Fulbright Senior Scholar Fellowship, which will send her to Israel for four months of research and teaching in 2022. Teaming up with Tel Aviv University (TAU) microclimate prediction scientists, Zipkin developed a research and teaching proposal that bridges their disciplines. She plans to lead a series of four full-day workshops for graduate students at TAU and study how climate change affects ecologically and economically important insect species in the Middle East.

NatSci students, alum nominated for prestigious UK scholarships
Five Michigan State University College of Natural Science students and one recent alum are among the 10 MSU students and four alumni nominated this year for nationally competitive graduate school scholarships in the UK and Ireland that could make these potential honors a reality. In total, MSU has produced 16 Churchill Scholars, 20 Marshall Scholars, five Mitchell Scholars and 20 Rhodes Scholars.

Measuring and predicting soil carbon to offset climate change
MSU ecosystems scientist Bruno Basso has received a $3.4 million grant from the USDA’s Farm Service Agency to help determine how much carbon is in unproductive agricultural lands now and how much carbon the soil can hold. The answers found by Basso and his team will contribute to a carbon storage initiative known as the Conservation Reserve Program, which allows unproductive land to return to native vegetation and hopefully to increase the amount of carbon to be stored in the soil while reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agrochemical applications to mitigate climate change.

Recognizing an 'unstoppable force' in research and outreach
On Oct. 13, MSU’s Artemis Spyrou was selected as a Fellow of the American Physical Society, a distinction recognizing researchers for significant and innovative contributions to physics. Each year, less than one-half of a percent of the APS membership earns fellowship status. Fellows are elected by the APS Council based on nominations from a candidate’s peers. In the materials nominating Spyrou, her colleagues described her as an “unstoppable force” in nuclear physics research and outreach.

Gemma Reguera recognized for advancing women in microbiology
MSU microbiologist Gemma Reguera, is recipient of the 2022 Alice C. Evans Award from the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) for her outstanding contributions toward the full participation and advancement of women in the microbial sciences. This award was established by ASM's Committee on the Status of Women in Microbiology, and is given in memory of Alice C. Evans, the first woman elected ASM President, in 1928.

Beronda Montgomery recognized for mentoring efforts with underrepresented students
MSU's Beronda Montgomery, who has done significant work related to effective mentoring in research environments, is the recipient of the 2021 Mentoring Keynote Lecture Award from the American Society of Cell Biology (ASCB). The award is given to an individual who exemplifies mentoring for their impact on the training of scientists and scholars who belong to underrepresented groups, particularly racial and ethnic 

Recently discovered protein enhances understanding of photosynthesis
Scientists in the Michigan State University-Department of Energy (DOE) Plant Research Laboratory (PRL) have published a new study that furthers our understanding of how plants make membranes in chloroplasts, the photosynthesis powerhouse. The study, which was recently published in The Plant Journal, focuses on RBL10, a rhomboid-like protein found in plant chloroplast membranes. The researchers found that RBL10 interacts with other chloroplast proteins and teases how it might perform some of its functions.

And that will wrap up the rewind for the month of October 2021. To read more about these stories, head on over to our website at natsci.msu.edu/news. You can also stay up to date by following us on social. You can find us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @msunatsci. Thanks for tuning in and be sure to check us out next month.