Microbiology fellows named

Four members of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology are among the 65 scientists named fellows of the American Academy of Microbiology earlier this year. The new fellows include Clare Bryant, Isaac Cann, Matthew Chapman and James Keck.

Clare Bryant. Isaac Cann, Matthew Chapman and James Keck

Bryant, a Queens’ College professor at the University of Cambridge, studies the biochemistry of allergens and how hosts detect bacteria with the aid of pattern recognition receptors. She has dual appointments in the departments of medicine and veterinary medicine.

Cann, a professor of animal sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, explores DNA replication in archaea, a form of single-celled organism; host–microbiome impacts on health; and biofuel-related enzymes. He works in the microbiome metabolic engineering and biocomplexity themes at the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology.

Chapman, a professor of molecular, cellular and developmental biology at the University of Michigan, uses curli — extracellular organelles found in certain microbes — to study the formation of amyloid fibers found in disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Creutzfeldt–Jacob disease. His lab examines the role of curli in governing developmental pathways.

Keck, a professor of biomolecular chemistry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, probes the structural mechanisms behind DNA replication, replication restart, recombination and repair reactions. His research melds structural approaches with biochemical and cell biological methods to address basic structure–function issues in genome biology.

This year’s honorees join more than 2,600 AAM fellows. Based in the United States, the academy draws fellows from around the world. This year’s class comes from 11 nations, including Argentina, Australia, China, Germany, India and Israel.