Cluster focus

Biology is about unity, interactions and systems, but biologists have always been segregated based on the scale of the organisms they study (microbiologists, botanists, zoologists, etc.). The academic separation of biology into narrow subdisciplines does not mirror the complex symbioses of nature in which organisms of all sizes interact with one another. This segregation also hinders the understanding of unified systems. The Symbiosis Cluster is designed to facilitate research, educational and outreach programs based on the way humans, plants and animals have evolved to live with microbes. The cluster increases collaboration and interaction and is positioned to become a leader in this pioneering field. Faculty work emphasizes the molecular interactions that lead to the establishment of stable symbioses among plants or animals with microbes, as well as symbioses among groups of microbes in well-defined microbial ecological niches and in higher order, organ-like structures, known as biofilms.

Cluster accomplishments

  • The cluster coordinator and a cluster faculty member team-teach a special topics “Medical Microbiology and Immunology” course that covers all the general themes relevant to symbiosis research. In addition to this course, many symbiosis affiliated faculty have introduced the topic of symbiosis into undergraduate and graduate courses, from plant pathology and soil biology to bioenvironmental engineering.
  • The cluster has increased opportunities for faculty and students across five colleges to share their research with each other through monthly symbiosis research meetings.
  • Cluster faculty are prominent in the international symbiosis community. Cluster members spoke at a recent biennial National Health Organization council. The Rockefeller Foundation sponsored this extremely selective conference, inviting only 11 American academics of 22 total academics. Three of those invited were from UW-Madison. Three Symbiosis Cluster faculty also have been involved in planning major conferences on beneficial microbes for the American Society of Microbiology.
  • The cluster is currently working to develop a federally sponsored doctoral symbiosis training program, which would draw students from diverse academic backgrounds.
  • A cluster-affiliated graduate student received a prestigious Thompsen Fellowship from the Bacteriology Department.
  • The cluster is integral in prompting undergraduate research opportunities through its participation in a program at the Bacteriology Department, Research Experience for Undergraduates in Microbiology. A cluster-associated undergraduate was also awarded a Bacteriology travel grant to attend the American Society for Microbiology beneficial microbes conference.
  • The cluster’s outreach efforts include opportunities for promising high schools students to get symbiosis lab experience through the Dane County Youth Apprenticeship Program and McFarland High School. And, the cluster has hosted laboratory tours for girls from ages 6-9 to promote science careers and provide positive female role models.

Cluster structure

More than 74 individuals from five colleges at UW-Madison conduct research in areas with strong symbiosis interests. The cluster provides this interdisciplinary group a nucleus to coalesce around and build upon. The affiliated faculty members meet once a month to discuss and share their research projects. The senior cluster faculty are also a major component of the focus group on microbe-host interactions to design the doctoral training program. This committee meets once a semester to discuss and develop new courses.

Cluster coordinator, faculty and lead dean

Cluster Coordinators

Cluster Faculty

Lead Dean

  • Molly Jahn, Dean, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences