Jillian Banfield

Last updated

Jill Banfield
FRS FAA
Jillian Banfield Royal Society.jpg
Jillian Banfield at the Royal Society admissions day in July 2018
Born
Jillian Fiona Banfield

(1959-08-18) 18 August 1959 (age 65)
Armidale, New South Wales
Alma mater Australian National University (BSc)
Johns Hopkins University (PhD)
Awards Leeuwenhoek Medal (2023)
Fellow of the Royal Society (2018)
V. M. Goldschmidt Award (2017)
American Society for Microbiology Fellow (2015)
Australian Academy of Science (2015)
Dana Medal (2010)
Scientific career
Fields
Institutions University of Melbourne
University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Tokyo
University of California, Berkeley
Thesis HRTEM studies of subsolidus alteration, weathering, and subsequent diagenetic and low-grade metamorphic reactions  (1990)
Doctoral advisor David R. Veblen [2]
Website nanogeoscience.berkeley.edu

Jillian Fiona Banfield FRS FAA (born Armidale, Australia) is professor at the University of California, Berkeley with appointments in the Earth Science, Ecosystem Science and Materials Science and Engineering departments. [3] She is the director of microbiology the Innovative Genomics Institute, is affiliated with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and has a position at the University of Melbourne, Australia. [3] Some of her most noted work includes publications on the structure and functioning of microbial communities and the nature, properties and reactivity (especially crystal growth) of nanomaterials. [1] [4] [5]

Contents

Early life and education

Banfield at the Franklin Award Ceremony with her husband Peregrine (Perry) Smith in April 2011 Screen Shot 2015-12-05 at 7.14.14 AM (1).png
Banfield at the Franklin Award Ceremony with her husband Peregrine (Perry) Smith in April 2011

Banfield was educated at the Australian National University where she completed her bachelor's [6] and master's degrees [7] (1978–1985) both examining granite weathering. She attributes her initial interest in geomicrobiology to Dr Tony Eggleton who drew her attention to processes at the earth's surface, mineral weathering and the regolith. [8]

Banfield graduated with a PhD in Earth and Planetary Sciences from Johns Hopkins University for high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) studies of metamorphic reactions supervised by David R. Veblen. [2] [9]

Career and research

Banfield is an earth scientist who studies the structure, functioning and diversity of microbial communities in natural environments and the human microbiome. [3]

Banfield was a Fulbright Student in Medicine from the Australian National University to Johns Hopkins University in 1988, [10] and a Mac Arthur Fellow in 1999. [11] She has been a professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison from 1990 to 2001 and the University of Tokyo (1996–1998). [9]

Since 2001, she has been a researcher and professor at the University of California Berkeley [12] where she heads the geomicrobiology program and works as a researcher at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Her research as of 2021 spans field sites in Northern California to Australia and covers subjects at the intersection of microbiology and geosciences, including genome-resolved metagenomics, genome editing tool development, astrobiology and microbial carbon capture. [13] [14]

In 2006 Banfield encouraged Jennifer Doudna to study CRISPR after finding the sequences pervasive and rapidly evolving across bacterial genomes. (Doudna went on to receive a Nobel Prize for her resulting groundbreaking CRISPR gene engineering technology). [15]

In 2023, Banfield became the first woman to win the Leeuwenhoek Medal from the Royal Dutch Society for Microbiology, an award that has been given roughly every 10 years since 1875 to honor scientists who have made outstanding contributions to science, society and outreach in the field of microbiology. [16]

Work

Genome-Resolved Metagenomics

Banfield pioneered the development and application of genome-resolved metagenomics, a technique that allows for the reconstruction of individual genomes from complex microbial communities without the need for cultivation. [17] [18] This approach significantly expanded our understanding of microbial diversity and evolution. [19]

Tree of Life Expansion

Through her work in genomics, Banfield's research group has provided insights into previously unknown bacterial and archaeal lineages. [20] This has led to a substantial revision and expansion of the Tree of Life, adding entire new branches known as Candidate Phyla Radiation, reshaping our understanding of microbial evolution: [21] [22]

Within its lineages, evolution has gone to town, producing countless species that we’re almost completely ignorant about. With a single exception, they’ve never been isolated or grown in a lab. In fact, this supergroup and other lineages...clearly comprise the majority of life’s current diversity.

— Jillian Banfield, Most of the Tree of Life is a Complete Mystery, The Atlantic (2016)

Microorganism-Mineral Interactions

Banfield has made significant contributions to understanding how microorganisms interact with minerals. [23] This includes studies on how these interactions can lead to the production of nanomaterials and influence geochemical cycles. [24]

Microbiome Community Editing

Banfield's research has expanded to include innovative approaches for editing microbial communities, with applications in human health and climate change mitigation. In collaboration with Jennifer Doudna, Banfield has developed groundbreaking techniques for precision microbiome editing. Their work combines genome-resolved metagenomics with CRISPR genome editing to enable targeted modifications of specific genes in complex microbial communities. [25] [26] [27] In 2023 they launched a $70 million initiative to apply microbiome editing to address global challenges in human and planetary health. [28] For human health applications, the research focuses on editing the microbiome to prevent childhood asthma and other inflammatory diseases. In climate change mitigation efforts, the team is targeting methane-producing microbes in livestock to reduce agricultural methane emissions. [29]

Honours and awards

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geomicrobiology</span> Intersection of microbiology and geology

Geomicrobiology is the scientific field at the intersection of geology and microbiology and is a major subfield of geobiology. It concerns the role of microbes on geological and geochemical processes and effects of minerals and metals to microbial growth, activity and survival. Such interactions occur in the geosphere, the atmosphere and the hydrosphere. Geomicrobiology studies microorganisms that are driving the Earth's biogeochemical cycles, mediating mineral precipitation and dissolution, and sorbing and concentrating metals. The applications include for example bioremediation, mining, climate change mitigation and public drinking water supplies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geobiology</span> Study of interactions between Earth and the biosphere

Geobiology is a field of scientific research that explores the interactions between the physical Earth and the biosphere. It is a relatively young field, and its borders are fluid. There is considerable overlap with the fields of ecology, evolutionary biology, microbiology, paleontology, and particularly soil science and biogeochemistry. Geobiology applies the principles and methods of biology, geology, and soil science to the study of the ancient history of the co-evolution of life and Earth as well as the role of life in the modern world. Geobiologic studies tend to be focused on microorganisms, and on the role that life plays in altering the chemical and physical environment of the pedosphere, which exists at the intersection of the lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere and/or cryosphere. It differs from biogeochemistry in that the focus is on processes and organisms over space and time rather than on global chemical cycles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CRISPR</span> Family of DNA sequences found in prokaryotic organisms

CRISPR is a family of DNA sequences found in the genomes of prokaryotic organisms such as bacteria and archaea. Each sequence within an individual prokaryotic cell is derived from a DNA fragment of a bacteriophage that had previously infected the prokaryote or one of its ancestors. These sequences are used to detect and destroy DNA from similar bacteriophages during subsequent infections. Hence these sequences play a key role in the antiviral defense system of prokaryotes and provide a form of heritable, acquired immunity. CRISPR is found in approximately 50% of sequenced bacterial genomes and nearly 90% of sequenced archaea.

Bernard (Bernie) Wood is a British geologist, and professor of mineralogy and senior research fellow at the University of Oxford. He specializes in the thermodynamics of geological systems, using experimental techniques. He is a prominent figure in the field of experimental petrology, having received multiple awards throughout his career and taught at several universities worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jennifer Doudna</span> American chemist and Nobel laureate (born 1964)

Jennifer Anne Doudna is an American biochemist who has pioneered work in CRISPR gene editing, and made other fundamental contributions in biochemistry and genetics. She received the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, with Emmanuelle Charpentier, "for the development of a method for genome editing." She is the Li Ka Shing Chancellor's Chair Professor in the department of chemistry and the department of molecular and cell biology at the University of California, Berkeley. She has been an investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute since 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feng Zhang</span> Chinese–American biochemist

Feng Zhang is a Chinese–American biochemist. Zhang currently holds the James and Patricia Poitras Professorship in Neuroscience at the McGovern Institute for Brain Research and in the departments of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and Biological Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He also has appointments with the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. He is most well known for his central role in the development of optogenetics and CRISPR technologies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katrina Edwards</span> American geomicrobiologist

Katrina Jane Edwards was a pioneering geomicrobiologist known for her studies of organisms living below the ocean floor, specifically exploring the interactions between the microbes and their geological surroundings, and how global processes were influenced by these interactions. She spearheaded the Center for Dark Energy Biosphere Investigation (C-DEBI) project at the University of Southern California, which is ongoing. Edwards also helped organize the deep biosphere research community by heading the Fe-Oxidizing Microbial Observatory Project on Loihi Seamount, and serving on several program steering committees involving ocean drilling. Edwards taught at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and later became a professor at the University of Southern California.[1][2]

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microbiome</span> Microbial community assemblage and activity

A microbiome is the community of microorganisms that can usually be found living together in any given habitat. It was defined more precisely in 1988 by Whipps et al. as "a characteristic microbial community occupying a reasonably well-defined habitat which has distinct physio-chemical properties. The term thus not only refers to the microorganisms involved but also encompasses their theatre of activity". In 2020, an international panel of experts published the outcome of their discussions on the definition of the microbiome. They proposed a definition of the microbiome based on a revival of the "compact, clear, and comprehensive description of the term" as originally provided by Whipps et al., but supplemented with two explanatory paragraphs, the first pronouncing the dynamic character of the microbiome, and the second clearly separating the term microbiota from the term microbiome.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emmanuelle Charpentier</span> French microbiologist, biochemist and Nobel laureate

Emmanuelle Marie Charpentier is a French professor and researcher in microbiology, genetics, and biochemistry. As of 2015, she has been a director at the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin. In 2018, she founded an independent research institute, the Max Planck Unit for the Science of Pathogens. In 2020, Charpentier and American biochemist Jennifer Doudna of the University of California, Berkeley, were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry "for the development of a method for genome editing". This was the first science Nobel Prize ever won by two women only.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janne Blichert-Toft</span> Danish geochemist

Janne Blichert-Toft is a geochemist, specializing in the use of isotopes with applications in understanding planetary mantle-crust evolution, as well as the chemical composition of matter in the universe. To further this research, Blichert-Toft has developed techniques for high-precision Isotope-ratio mass spectrometry measurements.

Nikos Kyrpides is a Greek-American bioscientist who has worked on the origins of life, information processing, bioinformatics, microbiology, metagenomics and microbiome data science. He is a senior staff scientist at the Berkeley National Laboratory, head of the Prokaryote Super Program and leads the Microbiome Data Science program at the US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dawn Sumner</span> American geologist, planetary scientist, and astrobiologist

Dawn Yvonne Sumner is an American geologist, planetary scientist, and astrobiologist. She is a professor at the University of California, Davis. Sumner's research includes evaluating microbial communities in Antarctic lakes, exploration of Mars via the Curiosity rover, and characterization of microbial communities in the lab and from ancient geologic samples. She is an investigator on the NASA Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) and was Chair of the UC Davis Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences from 2014 to 2016. She is Fellow of the Geological Society of America.

Liane G. Benning is a biogeochemist studying mineral-fluid-microbe interface processes. She is a Professor of Interface Geochemistry at the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences in Potsdam, Germany. Her team studies various processes that shape the Earth Surface with a special focus on two aspects: the nucleation, growth and crystallisation of mineral phases from solution and the role, effects and interplay between microbes and minerals in extreme environments. She is also interested in the characterisation of these systems, developing in situ and time resolved high resolution imaging and spectroscopic techniques to follow microbe-mineral reactions as they occur.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patricia Dove</span> American geochemist and crystal growth researcher

Patricia Martin Dove is an American geochemist. She is a university distinguished professor and the C.P. Miles Professor of Science at Virginia Tech with appointments in the department of Geosciences, department of Chemistry, and department of Materials Science and Engineering. Her research focuses on the kinetics and thermodynamics of mineral reactions with aqueous solutions in biogeochemical systems. Much of her work is on crystal nucleation and growth during biomineralization and biomaterial interactions with mineralogical systems. She was elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) in 2012, where she currently serves as chair of the Geology Section and is the immediate-past chair of Class I, Physical and Mathematical Sciences.

Microbiology Society Prize Medal is awarded annually by the Microbiology Society to those who have made an impact beyond microbiology and are world leaders in their field.

Fermentibacteria is a bacterial phylum with candidate status. It is part of the FCB group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geoffrey Michael Gadd</span> British-Irish mycologist-microbiologist

Geoffrey Michael Gadd is a British-Irish microbiologist and mycologist specializing in geomicrobiology, geomycology, and bioremediation. He is currently a professor at the University of Dundee, holding the Boyd Baxter Chair of Biology, and is head of the Geomicrobiology Group.

Mammoth Biosciences is a biotechnology company based in Brisbane, California developing diagnostic tests using CRISPR-Cas12a and CRISPR-based therapies using its proprietary ultra-small CRISPR systems. Several CRISPR-Cas systems identified through the company's metagenomics-based protein discovery platform, including members of the Casφ and Cas14 families of CRISPR-associated enzymes, have demonstrated potential for therapeutic genome editing in in vivo settings.

The Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI) is an American nonprofit scientific research institute founded by Nobel laureate and CRISPR gene editing pioneer Jennifer Doudna and biophysicist Jonathan Weissman. The institute is based at the University of California, Berkeley, and also has member researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, UC Davis, UCLA, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Gladstone Institutes, and other collaborating research institutions. The IGI focuses on developing real-world applications of genome editing to address problems in human health, agriculture and climate change.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Jillian Banfield publications indexed by Google Scholar OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  2. 1 2 Banfield, Jillian Fiona (1990). HRTEM studies of subsolidus alteration, weathering, and subsequent diagenetic and low-grade metamorphic reactions (PhD thesis). Johns Hopkins University. OCLC   224273093. ProQuest   303872775.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Anon (2018). "Professor Jillian Banfield FRS". royalsociety.org. London: Royal Society. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from the royalsociety.org website where:
    All text published under the heading 'Biography' on Fellow profile pages is available under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License." --Royal Society Terms, conditions and policies at the Wayback Machine (archived 2016-11-11)
  4. ↑ "Jill F. Banfield". Earth and Planetary Science.
  5. ↑ "Jillian BANFIELD". Our Environment at Berkeley.
  6. ↑ Rickard, Michael John (2010). Geology at ANU (1959–2009): Fifty Years of History and Reminiscences. Canberra: ANU E Press. p. 117. ISBN   9781921666667.
  7. ↑ Banfield, Jillian F. (1985). The mineralogy and chemistry of granite weathering (MSc thesis). Australian National University. Archived from the original on 22 May 2020. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
  8. ↑ "News Interview: Professor Jillian Banfield, Armidale-born international award recipient". ABC Sydney. 10 November 2010. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
  9. 1 2 "Jill F. Banfield | Curriculum Vitae". eps.berkeley.edu. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  10. ↑ "MacArthur Fellowship Recipients | Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs". eca.state.gov. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  11. ↑ "Class of 1999 – MacArthur Foundation". macfound.org. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  12. ↑ "Jill F. Banfield". Earth and Planetary Science. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
  13. ↑ "Jillian Banfield -Departments of Earth and Planetary Science and Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, UC Berkeley". Earth and Environmental Sciences Area. Archived from the original on 2 June 2019. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
  14. ↑ "IGI Launches New Research in Net-Zero Farming & Carbon Capture". Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI). Retrieved 15 September 2021.
  15. ↑ Doudna, Jennifer. "Unravelling CRISPR In The Café". Science Friday. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  16. 1 2 Microbiologie, Koninklijke Nederlandse Vereniging voor. "van Leeuwenhoek Medal 2023". KNVM. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  17. ↑ Tyson, Gene W.; Chapman, Jarrod; Hugenholtz, Philip; Allen, Eric E.; Ram, Rachna J.; Richardson, Paul M.; Solovyev, Victor V.; Rubin, Edward M.; Rokhsar, Daniel S.; Banfield, Jillian F. (March 2004). "Community structure and metabolism through reconstruction of microbial genomes from the environment". Nature. 428 (6978): 37–43. doi:10.1038/nature02340. ISSN   1476-4687.
  18. ↑ Bowers, Robert M.; Kyrpides, Nikos C.; Stepanauskas, Ramunas; Harmon-Smith, Miranda; Doud, Devin; Reddy, T. B. K.; Schulz, Frederik; Jarett, Jessica; Rivers, Adam R.; Eloe-Fadrosh, Emiley A.; Tringe, Susannah G.; Ivanova, Natalia N.; Copeland, Alex; Clum, Alicia; Becraft, Eric D. (August 2017). "Minimum information about a single amplified genome (MISAG) and a metagenome-assembled genome (MIMAG) of bacteria and archaea". Nature Biotechnology. 35 (8): 725–731. doi:10.1038/nbt.3893. ISSN   1546-1696.
  19. ↑ Delong, Edward F. (March 2004). "Reconstructing the wild types". Nature. 428 (6978): 25–26. doi:10.1038/428025a. ISSN   1476-4687.
  20. ↑ Hug, Laura A.; Baker, Brett J.; Anantharaman, Karthik; Brown, Christopher T.; Probst, Alexander J.; Castelle, Cindy J.; Butterfield, Cristina N.; Hernsdorf, Alex W.; Amano, Yuki; Ise, Kotaro; Suzuki, Yohey; Dudek, Natasha; Relman, David A.; Finstad, Kari M.; Amundson, Ronald (11 April 2016). "A new view of the tree of life". Nature Microbiology. 1 (5): 1–6. doi:10.1038/nmicrobiol.2016.48. ISSN   2058-5276.
  21. ↑ Spang, Anja; Ettema, Thijs J. G. (26 April 2016). "Microbial diversity: The tree of life comes of age". Nature Microbiology. 1 (5): 1–2. doi:10.1038/nmicrobiol.2016.56. ISSN   2058-5276.
  22. ↑ Yong, Ed (12 April 2016). "The Tree of Life Just Got a Lot Weirder". The Atlantic. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  23. ↑ "Mineralogical Society of America - Geomicrobiology: Interactions between Microbes and Minerals". www.minsocam.org. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  24. ↑ Banfield, Jillian F.; Welch, Susan A.; Zhang, Hengzhong; Ebert, Tamara Thomsen; Penn, R. Lee (4 August 2000). "Aggregation-Based Crystal Growth and Microstructure Development in Natural Iron Oxyhydroxide Biomineralization Products". Science. 289 (5480): 751–754. doi:10.1126/science.289.5480.751.
  25. ↑ Rubin, Benjamin E.; Diamond, Spencer; Cress, Brady F.; Crits-Christoph, Alexander; Lou, Yue Clare; Borges, Adair L.; Shivram, Haridha; He, Christine; Xu, Michael; Zhou, Zeyi; Smith, Sara J.; Rovinsky, Rachel; Smock, Dylan C. J.; Tang, Kimberly; Owens, Trenton K. (January 2022). "Species- and site-specific genome editing in complex bacterial communities". Nature Microbiology. 7 (1): 34–47. doi:10.1038/s41564-021-01014-7. ISSN   2058-5276.
  26. ↑ Sanders, Robert (6 December 2021). "CRISPRing the microbiome is just around the corner". Berkeley News. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  27. ↑ Mozumdar, Deepto; Csörgő, Bálint; Bondy-Denomy, Joseph (22 February 2022). "Genetic Manipulation of a CAST of Characters in a Microbial Community". The CRISPR Journal. 5 (1): 4–6. doi:10.1089/crispr.2022.29142.dmo. ISSN   2573-1599. PMC   9009589 . PMID   35119310.
  28. ↑ Philippidis, Alex (20 April 2023). "IGI Wins $70 Million to Study Microbiome Engineering for Health, Climate Challenges". GEN - Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  29. ↑ "Can microbes save the planet?". Nature Biotechnology. 41 (6): 735–735. June 2023. doi:10.1038/s41587-023-01837-1. ISSN   1546-1696.
  30. ↑ "Ben-Gurion University of the Negev Bestows Honorary Doctorates on Ground-Breaking Scientists and Supporters". in.bgu.ac.il. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  31. ↑ "Benjamin Franklin Medal in Earth and Environmental Science". Franklin Institute. 2011. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  32. ↑ "Mineralogical Society of America – Dana Medal". minsocam.org. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  33. ↑ "Geochemical Fellows :: Geochemical Society". geochemsoc.org. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  34. ↑ "ASM Members Elected to National Academy of Sciences" (PDF). ASM News. 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 January 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2016.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  35. ↑ "Pioneer in Clay Science Lecturer". The Clay Minerals Society. Archived from the original on 15 May 2016. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  36. ↑ "Gast Lecture Series :: Geochemical Society". geochemsoc.org. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  37. ↑ "John Simon Guggenheim Foundation | Jill Banfield". gf.org. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  38. ↑ "CMS People in the News" (PDF). Elements Magazine. December 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 April 2016. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  39. ↑ "Jillian Banfield – MacArthur Foundation". macfound.org. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  40. ↑ "Professional Honors" (PDF). Department of Geology and Geophysics. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  41. ↑ "Romnes Awards honor 10 rising faculty stars". news.wisc.edu. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  42. ↑ Veblin, David R. (1998). "Presentation of the Mineralogical Society of America Award for 1997 to Jillian Fiona Banfield" (PDF). American Mineralogist. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  43. ↑ "The Johns Hopkins Gazette: July 6, 1999". pages.jh.edu. Retrieved 8 October 2018.

Creative Commons by small.svg  This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.