³ÉÈËÊÓƵ

Skip to main content
Site navigation
Two hands hold two colored test tubes
Department of Biology and Microbiology

Biology and Microbiology Department Research

Improved regulation of transpiration through stomatal pore size and aperture would improve yields in severe environments.
Improved regulation of transpiration through stomatal pore size and aperture would improve yields in severe environments.

The Biology and Microbiology Department provides an intellectually vibrant, collegial and interdisciplinary research environment. Here students and faculty seek to further our understanding of biological systems and processes, and contribute to solutions for the challenges facing humankind. Research is focused in seven areas, and faculty work on a range of life forms including mammals, plants, fungi, bacteria and viruses. Research in the various laboratories is supported through grants from various funding agencies, including NSF, NIH and USDA, shared departmental equipment and three core facilities - functional genomics core facility, genomics sequencing facility and mass spec facility. Our graduates find positions in academia, medicine, veterinary and medical research and biotech industry.

Systems Biology Immunology and Microbiology Mammalian Cell & Molecular Biology Biotechnology and Synthetic Biology Plant and Animal Microbiomes Plant Cell & Molecular Biology Discipline-based Education

Biology and Microbiology Department Research News

See All Our News
Wheat

³ÉÈËÊÓƵ researchers to improve heat tolerance in wheat crops

A team of South Dakota State University researchers — led by professor Wanlong Li — have received a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture to modify the genetic code of wheat plants to make them more tolerant to heat stress.

³ÉÈËÊÓƵ tapped to lead NSF-backed, $7 million project to pioneer a new nitrogen bioeconomy era in South Dakota

South Dakota State University has been tapped by the National Science Foundation to lead a statewide project that will build research capacity focused on biological nitrogen fixation and its applications in sustainable agriculture and industry.

Undergraduate fellowship leads Nelson to doctoral work at ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ

This spring, Pine Ridge native Dillon Nelson began doctoral work at ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ after completing his bachelor's degree at Oglala Lakota College. His experience with a USDA-funded fellowship program fueled his interest in research.