Our lab studies C1-cycling microbes in Oklahoma wetlands because these ecosystems sit at a critical intersection of carbon storage, greenhouse gas production, and microbial regulation of climate-relevant processes. Wetlands can accumulate large stores of organic carbon, but they are also major natural sources of methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Whether that methane reaches the atmosphere depends in part on microbial communities that both produce and consume one-carbon compounds, especially methanogens, methanotrophs, and other methylotrophs. Hydrology, oxygen availability, vegetation, and nutrient conditions all shape these communities, making wetlands ideal systems for understanding how environmental change alters microbial control of carbon cycling.
 

 

Our current work focuses on cultivating methylotrophs and associated heterotrophic bacteria from Oklahoma wetland soils and sediments such as in Stinchomb Wildlife Refuge. This approach is motivated by the idea that methane cycling in nature is not carried out by single organisms in isolation, but by interacting microbial communities. Previous work, including our own, suggests that non-methanotrophic partners can influence the physiology and performance of methane-oxidizing bacteria through cross-feeding, oxidative stress responses, and other metabolic interactions. By isolating diverse methylotrophs and related partner organisms from local wetlands, we aim to build a culture collection that can be used to test how microbial interactions shape C1 metabolism under environmentally relevant conditions. 
 

This research has both basic and applied significance. At the basic level, it helps reveal how wetland microbial communities process methanol and other one-carbon compounds, how those communities are structured by local environmental conditions, and which organisms are likely to participate in future methane-cycling partnerships. At the applied level, this work generates foundational isolates and genomic resources that can support future studies of methane mitigation, wetland resilience, and microbial strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Because inland waters and wetlands remain major uncertainties in the global methane budget, understanding the biology of these local Oklahoma systems can contribute to broader efforts to predict and manage carbon cycling in a changing climate.