Prof Rick Cavicchioli
	BSc Hons, MSc, PhD
	Professor
	Room No:	309
	Office:	3rd Flr, Biological Sciences Building
	Phone:	9385 3516
	Fax:	9385 2742
	Email:	r.cavicchioli@unsw.edu.au

Teaching Responsibilities:

MICR 3021/MICR 3621  Course Coordinator
MICR 3611  Course Coordinator
BIOS 2021/BIOS 2621  Course Lecturer
MICR 2011  Course Lecturer

Laborator Website:

Extremophiles

Research Description:

The broad theme is extremophiles and adaptation to extreme environments; including cold adaptation in Antarctic archaea and low nutrient adaptation in marine oligotrophic ultramicrobacteria. The research strategy is based on genomics and phenomics, involving extensive national and overseas collaborations. Genome sequencing projects include the cold adapted archaea, Methanogenium frigidum and Methanococcoides burtonii. Microbial oligotrophy is studied through molecular and physiological studies of the marine ultramicrobacterium, Sphingopyxis alaskensis (formerly Sphingomonas). Genomics underpins programs of bioinformatics leading to global proteomic, microarray and metabolomic analyses and targeted studies of gene structure, function and regulation. A commerical arm of the work exploits the unique properties of extremozymes, and utilises novel methods for improving the thermal properties of enzymes that are important in industrial, agricultural and medical applications.

Selected Publications:

Other Professional Activities:

Editor of Extremophiles, Associate Editor of Microbes and Environments, Founder and Head of the Microbial Physiology Special Interest Group in the Australian Society for Microbiology, Australian Research Council OzReader