Organisms: We primarily work with "alternative" model systems, i.e. not Escherichia coli or Bacillus subtilis and nothing that is an outright pathogen. All organisms come from somewhere and we should all recognize that fact and acknowledge it. Our main workhorse, Chlorobaculum tepidum, was isolated as Chlorobium tepidum from a hot spring in New Zealand (1,2). I don't know if the samples used to isolate C. tepidum were obtained with permission or not. The area was originally inhabited by the Maori and is viewed as a national natural resource by New Zealand as documented here. I want to express my gratitude to the Maori and current residents of New Zealand for the gift of this system to science.
1-Wahlund TM, Woese CR, Castenholz RW, Madigan MT. 1991. A THERMOPHILIC GREEN SULFUR BACTERIUM FROM NEW-ZEALAND HOT-SPRINGS, CHLOROBIUM-TEPIDUM SP-NOV. Arch Microbiol 156:81–90.
2-Castenholz RW, Bauld J, Jørgenson BB. 1990. Anoxygenic microbial mats of hot springs: thermophilic Chlorobium sp. FEMS Microbiol Lett 74:325–336.
Lab Members and Operation: Google's motto used to be "Don't be evil", though in recent times some founders have their doubts. I think the motto is admirable and I try to run my lab in the same spirit. I view my lab as a place for its members to cultivate the skills that will enable them to pursue their intended career path in a safe and ethical environment. To hold myself accountable for this, I've laid out expectations for lab members and for myself.
