CHAMPAIGN,Ill. – University of Illinois professor William Metcalf has been elected to Fellowship in the American Academy of Microbiology, a distinction awarded to microbiologists who have made original contributions to their field, the American Society for Microbiology announced this month.
Microbial geneticist William Metcalf
Metcalf, a microbial geneticist in the department of microbiology and the Institute for Genomic Biology, studies unusual microbial metabolic processes that may lead to the development of new antibiotic drugs. In 2007, he and his colleagues in chemistry, biochemistry and chemical and biomolecular engineering, along with researchers at the University of Wisconsin, received a five-year, $7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study the medical potential of these compounds, which are called phosphonates.
Phosphonates are already seen as promising treatments for infectious diseases such as malaria, and also may be useful in managing some chronic medical conditions. They work by inhibiting cellular processes that involve naturally occurring phosphorylated compounds. Because phosphorylation is so widespread in biology, they offer a wide selection of potential drug targets.
Metcalf also has been a pioneer in developing methods for genetic analysis of organisms that produce methane. These microbes play a major role in the global carbon cycle.
“Each year an estimated 2 billion tons of biologically produced methane is released into the atmosphere,” Metcalf said. “Depending on your viewpoint, this represents a staggering untapped renewable energy source and/or a frightening contribution to global warming, as methane is a potent greenhouse gas.”
Research conducted in the Metcalf lab will broaden understanding of the keystone role these organisms play in the environment, he said, while at the same time helping harness their great potential as producers of a clean and renewable fuel.
Fellows of the American Academy of Microbiology “are elected annually through a highly selective peer-reviewed process based on their records of scientific achievement,” according to a news release from the organization.
Editor’s note: To contact William Metcalf, call 217-244-1943; e-mail metcalf@illinois.edu.
