Jason Sylvan
  • Associate Professor

Biography

Courses

OCNG 251 - Introduction to Oceanography

OCNG 453 - Hydrothermal Vents and Mid-Ocean Ridges

OCNG 620 - Biological Oceanography

OCNG 650 - Aquatic Microbial Ecology

 

Additional Information

Appointments:

Associate Professor - 2020-present, Dep't of Oceanography, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX

Assistant Professor - 2015-2020, Dep't of Oceanography, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX

Assistant Professor (Research) - 2013-2015, Dep't of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA

Postdoctoral Fellow - 2008-2013, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA

Educational Background

  • Ph. D., January 2008, Rutgers University, Biological Oceanography, New Brunswick
  • M. Sc., 2004, Rutgers University, Biological Oceanography, New Brunswick, NJ
  • B. Sc., 1999, Brandeis University, Biology, Waltham, Massachusetts 

Awards & Honors

  • 2016 KAVLI Fellow
  • 2016-2017 IODP Ocean Discovery Lecturer
  • 2018 Dean's Distinguished Achievement Award: Innovative Educator Award

Selected Publications

  • Postdoctoral research associates/Assistant Research Associates supervised by me are underlined and indicated with a +, graduate students for whom I am their primary advisor are underlined and indicated with a *, and undergraduate students supervised in my lab are underlined and indicated with a **
       
       Hydrothermal Vent & Subseafloor Microbiology
       
       Defforey, D, BJ Tully, JB Sylvan, BJ Cade-Menun, B Kiel Reese, L Zinke, A Paytan (2022) Potential phosphorus uptake mechanisms in the deep sedimentary biosphere. Frontiers in Marine Science 9: 907527.
       
       Wee, SY**, V Edgcomb, D Beaudoin, S Yvon-Lewis & JB Sylvan. 2021. Microbial abundance and diversity in subsurface lower oceanic crust at Atlantis Bank, Southwest Indian Ridge. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 87(22): e01519-21.
       
       Sylvan, JB, ER Estes, K Bogus, FS Colwell, BN Orcutt & DC Smith. 2021. Technical Note 4: Recommendations for microbiological sampling and contamination tracer use aboard the JOIDES Resolution following 20 years of IODP deep biosphere research. International Ocean Discovery Program. https://doi.org/10.14379/iodp.tn.4.2021
       
       Li, J, P Mara, F Schubotz, JB Sylvan, G Burgaud, F Klein, D Beaudoin, S-Y Wee*, H Dick, S Lott, R Cox, LAE Meyer, M Quémener, DK Blackman & VP Edgcomb. 2020. Recycling and metabolic flexibility dictate life in the lower oceanic crust. Nature, 579(7799): 250-255.
       
       Sheik, C., BK Reese, KI Twing, JB Sylvan, SL Grim, MO Schrenk, ML Sogin & F Colwell. 2018. Discovering life in the subsurface: A cautionary tale of identifying and removing common extraction associated microorganisms. 2018. Frontiers in Microbiology, 9: 840.
       
       Monteverde, DR, JB Sylvan, C Suffridge, JJ Baronas, E Fichot, J Fuhrman, W Berelson, SA Sanudo-Wilhelmy. 2018. Distribution of extracellular flavins in a coastal marine basin and their relationship to redox gradients and microbial community members. Environmental Science & Technology, 52: 12265-12274.
       
       Sylvan, JB, SD Wankel, DE Larowe, CN Charoenpong, JA Huber, CL Moyer & KJ Edwards. 2017. Evidence for microbial mediation of subseafloor nitrogen redox processes at Loihi Seamount, Hawaii. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 198: 131-150.
       
       Orcutt, BN, JB Sylvan, D Rogers, J Delaney, RW Lee & PR Girguis. 2015. Carbon fixation by basalt-hosted microbial communities. Frontiers in Microbiology, 6: 904.
       
       Sylvan, JB, CL Hoffman, LM Momper, BM Toner, JP Amend & KJ Edwards. 2015. Bacillus rigiliprofundi, sp. nov., an endospore forming, Mn-oxidizing, halotolerant bacterium isolated from deep subseafloor basaltic crust. International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology, 65(6): 1992-1998.
       
       Jacobson Meyers, ME¹, JB Sylvan¹ and KJ Edwards. 2014. Extracellular enzyme activity and microbial diversity measured on seafloor exposed basalts from Loihi Seamount indicate importance of basalts to global biogeochemical cycling. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 80(16): 4854-4864.
       ¹both authors contributed equally to this work.
       
       Sylvan, JB, TY Sia**, AG Haddad, LJ Briscoe, BM Toner, PR Girguis and KJ Edwards. 2013. Low temperature geomicrobiology follows host rock composition along a geochemical gradient in Lau Basin. Frontiers in Microbiology, 4: 61.
       
       Sylvan, JB, BM Toner & KJ Edwards. 2012. Life and death of deep-sea vents: Bacterial diversity and ecosystem succession on inactive hydrothermal sulfides. mBio 3(1): e00279.
       
       Edwards, KJ, CG Wheat & JB Sylvan. 2011. Under the sea: life in volcanic oceanic crust. Nature Reviews Microbiology, 9: 703-712.
       
       Orcutt, BN, JB Sylvan, N Knab & KJ Edwards. 2011. Microbial ecology of the dark ocean above, at, and below the seafloor. Microbiology and Molecular Biology Reviews, 75(2): 361-422.
       
       
       
       Gulf of Mexico Microbial Ecology and Biogeochemistry
       
       Doyle+, SM, MJ Self**, J Hayes**, KEF Shamberger, AMS Correa, SW Davies, LZ Santiago-Vazquez & JB Sylvan. 2022. Microbial community dynamics provide evidence for hypoxia during a coral reef invertebrate mortality event. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 88(9): e00347-22.
       
       Aljandal, S*, SM Doyle+, G Bera, TL Wade, AH Knap & JB Sylvan. 2022. Mesopelagic microbial community dynamics in response to increasing oil and Corexit 9500 concentrations. PLoS One, 17(2): e0263420.
       
       Achberger, AM+, SM Doyle+, MI Mills**, CP Holmes II**, A Quigg & JB Sylvan. 2021. Bacteria-Oil-Micro-aggregates: An Underestimated Mechanism for Hydrocarbon Degradation in the Marine Water Column. mSystems, 6(5): e01105-21.
       
       Doyle, SM+, G Lin*, M Morales-McDevitt, TL Wade, A Quigg & JB Sylvan. 2020. Niche partitioning between coastal and offshore shelf waters results in differential expression of alkane and PAH catabolic pathways. mSystems, 5(4): e00668-20.
       
       Kamalanathan, M, SM Doyle+, C Xu, AM Achberger+, T Wade, K Schwehr, P Santschi, JB Sylvan, and A Quigg. 2020. Exoenzymes as a signature of microbial response to marine environmental conditions. mSystems, 5(2): e00290-20.
       
       Kealoha, A, SM Doyle+, KEF Shamberger, JB Sylvan, RD Hetland & SF DiMarco. 2020. Localized hypoxia drives coral reef mortality at the Flower Garden Banks. Coral Reefs, 39: 119-132.Sylvan, JB and JW Ammerman. 2013. Seasonal distributions of organic nutrients on the Louisiana and their implications for nutrient limitation and hypoxia formation. Marine Chemistry, 154: 113-123.
       
       Bera, G1, SM Doyle+1, U Passow, M Kamalanathan, TL Wade, JB Sylvan, JL Serciano, G Gold, A Quigg & AH Knap. 2019. Biological response to dissolved versus dispersed oil. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 150: 110713. 1 these authors contributed equally to this paper
       
       Doyle, SM+, EA Whitaker*, V De Pascuale**, TL Wade, AH Knap, PH Santschi, A Quigg & JB Sylvan. 2018. Rapid formation of microbe-oil aggregates and changes in community composition in coastal surface water following exposure to oil and the dispersant Corexit. Frontiers in Microbiology, 9: 689.
       
       Quigg, A, U Passow, W-C Chin, C Xu, S Doyle+, L Bretherton, M Kamalanathan, AK Williams, JB Sylvan, Z Finkel, AH Knap, KA Schwehr, S Zhang, L Sun, TL Wade, W Obeid, PG Hatcher, & PH Santschi. 2016. The role of microbial exopolymers in determining the fate of oil and chemical dispersants in the ocean. Limnology and Oceanography Letters, 1: 3-26.
       
       Quigg, A, JB Sylvan, AB Gustafson, TR Fisher, RL Oliver, S Tozzi and JW Ammerman. 2011. Going west: role of phosphorus limitation in expanding primary production across the Louisiana shelf. Aquatic Geochemistry, 17: 519-544.
       
       Sylvan, JB, Q Dortch, DM Nelson, AF Maier Brown, W Morrison & JW Ammerman. 2006. Phosphorus limits phytoplankton growth on the Louisiana shelf during the period of hypoxia formation. Environmental Science and Technology, 40(24): 7548-7553.