CURRICULUM VITAE
Harry D. Kurtz, Jr.
Associate Professor ph: 864-656-6915
Dept. of Biological Sciences FAX: 864-656-0435
132 Long Hall E-mail:
Clemson University www.clemson.edu/~hkurtz
Clemson, SC 29634
EDUCATION AND TRAINING:
P.Ph.D. 1991-1994, Dept. of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
Advisor: Mary Lou Guerinot
P.Ph.D. 1989-1991, Dept. of Microbiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada Advisor: John Smit
Ph.D. 1989, Bacteriology, Dept. of Bacteriology, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID.
Advisor: Richard C. Heimsch
B.S. 1984, Microbiology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA.
PROFESSIONAL POSITIONS:
2013-Present: Associate Professor, Biological Sciences, Clemson University
2012-2013: Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences, Clemson University
2004-2011: Assistant Professor, Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University
2002-2003: Research Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences, Clemson University
2001-2002: Research Associate, Biological Sciences, Clemson University
2000-2001: Associate Professor of Biology, Sam Houston State University
1994-2000: Assistant Professor of Biology, Sam Houston State University
REFEREED PUBLICATIONS:
In Preparation or Revision:
1. Sukhpreet Kaur and Harry D. Kurtz, Jr. (In preparation). Microbial diversity within a
cryptoendolithic habitat and role of cyanobacteria in producing a ferrous iron binding EPS.
Target Journal: Journal of Arid Environments
2. Harrison B. Taylor, James A. Taylor, Catherine D. Tollman, Barbara J. Campbell, and Harry D. Kurtz, Jr. (Under Revision for resubmission). Bacterial Community Structure and Presence of Ammonium Oxidizers on a Marine Beach Sand Ecosystem. Target journal: Applied and Environmental Microbiology
3. Harrison B. Taylor and Harry D. Kurtz, Jr. (in preparation). Ammonium oxidation kinetics
and the effects of excess carbon on nitrite formation.
In Print:
1. Erik Hammes, Matthew Floyd, and Harry D. Kurtz, Jr. (2013). An Iron(II) Binding EPS and an Assessment of Microbial Diversity in Association with the EPS: Implications for Iron Cycling in the Jurassic Navajo Sandstone. Journal of Arid Environments 97:49-55.
2. Vijai Elango, Harry D. Kurtz, Jr., Christina Anderson and David L. Freedman (2011). Use of γ-hexachlorocyclohexane as a terminal electron acceptor by an anaerobic enrichment culture. Journal of Hazardous Materials 197:204-210.
3. Vijai Elango, Harry D. Kurtz, Jr., David L. Freedman (2011). Aerobic cometabolism of trichloroethene and cis-dichloroethene with benzene and chlorinated benzenes as growth substrates. Chemosphere 84:247-253
4. Shan, Huifeng, Harry D. Kurtz, Jr., Nadia Mykytczuk Jack T. Trevors and David L.
Freedman. (2010) Anaerobic Biotransformation of High Concentrations of Chloroform in Groundwater by an Enrichment Culture and Two Isolates, Applied and Environmental Microbiology 76:6463-6469
5. Kurtz, Jr., H. D. and Rosemary Cox. (2010). Microbial Biofilm Effects on Local
Microconditions (cm scale) in Arid Environments and Their Potential Involvement in Iron Geochemistry, Proceedings of the Learning from the Land: Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Science Symposium, September 12-14, 2006, Cedar City, Utah. Published by Grand Staircase-Escalante Partners, UT
6. Shan, Huifeng, H.D. Kurtz, Jr., and D. L. Freedman. (2009). Evaluation of
strategies for anaerobic bioremediation of high concentrations of halomethanes. Water Research 44:1317-1328.
7. Haddadin, Fu’ad T., Harry Kurtz, and Sarah W. Harcum. (2009). Serine
hydroxamate and the transcriptome of high cell density recombinant Escherichia coli
MG1655. Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology 157:124-139
8. Toh, E, H. D. Kurtz, Jr., and Y. V. Brun. (2008). Characterization of the
Caulobacter crescentus Holdfast Polysaccharide Biosynthesis Pathway Reveals Significant
Redundancy in the Initiating Glycosyltransferase and Polymerase steps. Journal of
Bacteriology 190(21):7219-7231
9. Kurtz, Jr., H. D., Christopher Reisch, and Rosemary Cox (2005). Development of a microcosm system suitable for the study of desert endolithic microbial ecosystems. Biofilms 2(2):145-152
10. Kurtz, Jr., H. D. and D. I. Netoff. (2001). Stabilization of friable sandstone surfaces in a desiccating, wind-abraded environment of south-central Utah by rock surface microorganisms. Journal of Arid Environments 48:89-100.
11. Charrey, K., and H. D. Kurtz, Jr. (1998). Use of diaminobenzidine to stain for cytochrome c oxidase activity in Caulobacter crescentus and Escherichia coli. Biotechnic and Histochemistry 73:255-262.
12. Charrey, K., T. Hoage, and H. D. Kurtz, Jr. (1995). Enzymatic localization of cytochrome c oxidase in Caulobacter crescentus. Texas Society for Electron Microscopy Journal 26:23
13. Kurtz, Jr., H. D., and J. Smit. (1994). The Caulobacter crescentus holdfast: Identification of holdfast attachment genes. FEMS Microbiology Letters 116:175-182
14. Bingle, W. H., H. D. Kurtz, Jr., and J. Smit. (1993). An "all-purpose" cellulase reporter for gene fusion studies and application to the paracrystalline surface (S)-layer protein of Caulobacter crescentus. Canadian Journal of Microbiology 39:70-80
15. Kurtz, Jr., H. D., and J. Smit. (1992). Analysis of a Caulobacter crescentus gene cluster involved in attachment of the holdfast to the cell. Journal of Bacteriology 174:687-694
BOOK CHAPTERS
Kurtz, Jr., H. D. 2002. Endolithic microbial communities as bacterial biofilms: The role of EPS. Molecular Ecology of Biofilms, Ed. R. J. C. McLean and A. W. Decho, Horizon Press, UK.
PATENTS
Patent Pending: Development Of A Fermentative Enrichment Culture And Two Pure Isolates That Biotransform High Concentrations Of Chloroform And Other Halomethanes. Huifeng Shan, Harry D. Kurtz, Jr., and David L. Freedman. Application Number: 12/688,324 [Withdrawn Spring 2015]
INVITED TALKS:
1. Microbial Diversity and Iron Cycling in the Cryptoendolithic Habitats in the Desert Southwest. Presented at the School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC on November 4, 2015
2. The Microbiology of Desert Ecosystems: Can We Use these Ecosystems to Model Mars? Presented at Tri-County Technical College, October 9, 2013.
3. Microbes in Unusual Places: Their Effects on the Landscape. Presented at the 2012 Fall Meeting of the SC Branch of the American Society for Microbiology.
4. Rock Surface Biofilms Reduce Water Infiltration into Porous Stone, Geological Society of America Abstracts, 2005 vol 37(7).
5. Cryptoendolithic Microbial Communities: Interactions and Implications. (2005) Science
Forum during Opening of Escalante Interagency Visitor Center, Escalante, UT
6. Ecology of Desert Microbial Ecosystems: Tracking Iron. (2005) Presented at the SC Branch of ASM Spring Meeting at USC School of Medicine.
7. The Living Sandstone of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. (2002) The Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Summer Lecture Series
8. Microbes of the Colorado Plateau: Life within the sandstone. (1999) Fall Meeting of the Texas Branch of the American Society for Microbiology.Session on Biofilms and Environmental Microbiology.
9. Microbial Life in the Sandstone Shaping the Landscape of the Colorado Plateau. (1999) General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Chicago. Session 83: Life in Extreme Environments.
10. Life on a Grain of Sand: Bacteria Shaping the Colorado Plateau. (1999) Annual Meeting for Undergraduate Research sponsored by the Texas Branch of the American Society for Microbiology.
11. Life on a Grain of Sand: Bacteria Shaping Our Environment. (1998) Sigma Xi Faculty Research Forum, Sam Houston State University.
INTERNATIONAL POSTERS AND PRESENTATIONS
1. Kurtz, Jr., H. D. and R. Cox. (2006) Surface Communities of Friable Sandstones in Southeastern Utah, USA: Their Effects and Diversity. Presented at the 11th Meeting of the International Society for Microbial Ecology, Vienna, Austria
2. Kurtz, Jr. H. D. (2004) Microcosm System for Growth of Temperate Desert Endolithic Biofilm Communities. Presented at the 10th Meeting of the International Society for Microbial Ecology, Cancun, Mexico.
3. Kurtz, Jr., H.D., and M.L. Guerinot. (1992) Identification of an iron regulated gene in Bradyrhizobium japonicum using TnphoA mutagenesis. Proceedings of the 1992 Meeting of the International Society for Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions, Seattle, WA.
NATIONAL POSTERS/ABSTRACTS:
1. Harrison B. Taylor, Sukhpreet Kaur, and Harry D. Kurtz, Jr. (2014). Community Structure and Nutrient Cycling in Two South Carolina Barrier Island Beaches. Presented at the 2014 General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Boston, MA.
2. Analysis of Iron(II) Binding Factors Produced by Cryptoendolithic Bacteria from an Arid Habitat. Presented at the 2013 General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Denver, CO, May 18-21.
3. Williamson, L. E., and H. D. Kurtz, Jr. (2008) Identification and Characterization of Iron Regulated TonB-dependent Receptors in Caulobacter crescentus. Presented at the 108th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Boston.
4. D. L. Miles, A. E. Neal, and H. D. Kurtz, Jr. (2004) Characterization of Seven Bacteria Isolated from a Desert Endolithic Microbial Ecosystem Representing Two Genera. Presented at the 104th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, New Orleans.
5. Kurtz, Jr., H. D. (2004) Biogeography of Methylotrophic Bacteria on the Colorado Plateau in Southcentral Utah. Presented at the 104th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, New Orleans.
6. Kurtz, Jr., H. D. (2003) Use of the Holdfast genes as Tools to examine the Evolutionary History of the Caulobacters. Abstract submitted for the 103rd General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Washington DC.
7. Kurtz, Jr., H. D. (2002) Heterotrophic Diversity within Endolithic Communities of the Colorado Plateau. Abstracts of the 102nd General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Salt Lake City, UT., p 467.
8. Kurtz, H. D., L. A. Battaglia, and C. L. Enloe. (2001) Endolithic Microbial Communities of the Colorado Plateau as Modern Analogs to Precambrian Terrestrial Ecosystems. Abstracts of the 101th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Orlando, FL., p. 436.
9. Kurtz, Jr., H. D. (2002) Heterotrophic Diversity within Endolithic Communities of the Colorado Plateau. Abstracts of the 102nd General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Salt Lake City, UT., p 467.
10. Ward, R. C., and H. D. Kurtz. (1999) The impact of solar irradiation on the diversity of primary producers in an endolithic community. Abstracts of the 99th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Chicago. p.481.
11. Netoff, Dennis I., and H. D. Kurtz, Jr. (1998) Rock Surface Microorganisms as a Stabilizing factor in a Wind-Abraded Sandstone Surface in a Groove Near Harris Wash, Utah. Abstracts of the 98th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Atlanta. p. 378.
12. F. T. Cooke, III and H. D. Kurtz, Jr. (1997) Isolation of bacteria capable of using several different phosphonate and phosphonite compounds as a source of phosphate. Presented at the 1997 Annual Meeting of the Society for Industrial Microbiology in Reno, NV
13. Robert L. Ritter, III and H. D. Kurtz, Jr. (1996) Identification and Characterization of manganese-resistant mutants of Caulobacter crescentus: Possible mutations in fur. Abstracts of the 96th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, New Orleans, LA, p. 529.
14. Page, K., K. LeVier, H. Kurtz, and M.L. Guerinot. (1993) Iron uptake, storage and regulation in Bradyrhizobium japonicum. Presented at the 14th North American Conference on Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation, University of Minnesota.
STATE AND REGIONAL POSTERS:
Thirty-seven presentations by graduate and undergraduate students.
GRANT SUPPORT:
Current:
1. SC Peach Council, $7000, Microbial Diversity and Community Dynamics in a Peach Orchard Soil, Co-PI with Mike Henson as PI (50-50). Duration: 1/1/2015 - 12/31/2015
Pending:
1. Creative Inquiry award for four member team: $200 for Fall 2016 and $2000 for Spring 2017
In Preparation:
1. Preproposal to NSF DEB or OCE to study sandy beach community dynamics and function.
Completed:
1. SC Peach Council, $5000, Determination of Xanthomonas resistance to current control treatments. February, 2002-November, 2002
2. Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award from HHMI for Melissa Palmer, $400, 2004-2005 Academic Year
3. URGC Award, Clemson University, $3000, January –June 2005, Title: Method Development for Acquiring 3D Organization of Microbial Communities in Soil
4. NSF ADVANCE Fellow: $375,000, Start: May 1, 2002, End April 30, 2006 (Extended 1 year)
5. Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award from HHMI for Stacey Sannem, $550, 2006-2007 Academic Year
6. Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award from HHMI for Tammy Schwalm, $550, 2006-2007 Academic Year
7. Calhoun Honors College Grant to support Tammy Schwalm, 2006-2007. $1000.
8. Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award from HHMI for J. W. Kelly, $550, 2007-2008 Academic Year
9. Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award from HHMI for Nora Livengood, Brittany Jenkins, Alyson Somers, Krutika Mediwa and Brennan Jenkins, $2750, 2009-2010 Academic Year
10. Creative Inquiry Award for five member team. $1000 Fall 2009 with subsequent $1000 award for Spring 2010
11. Creative Inquiry Award for four member team. $1000 Fall 2010 with subsequent $1500 award for five member team Spring 2011.
12. 21st Century Microbiology. Sponsored by CAFLS. Faculty Team: Tamara McNealy, Harry Kurtz, Michael Henson, and John Abercrombie. Start date: July 1, 2012. Budget $20,000.
13. Creative Inquiry Award for four-member team. $1500 Fall 2011 with subsequent $1500 award for Spring 2012
14. Creative inquiry Award for four-member team. $1200 Fall 2013 and $1200 for Spring 2014.
15. Microbial Ecology of a South Carolina Beach, SC Sea Grant Consortium, $8,560.00, 11/11/13-9/10/2014.
16. Creative Inquiry Award for 4-5 member team, $2,400-$3,000 expected for 2014-2015 academic year
17. Honors College Research Award for Catherine Tollman's Honor's project. $500, Spring 2015.
Completed at Previous Institutions:
1. SHSU Faculty Research Enhancement Grant. $5,000. Expansion of culture collection and description of isolated bacteria. Summer 2000
2. SHSU Faculty Research Enhancement Grant. $5,000 Bacterial Diversity in the Sandstones of Southeastern Utah. Summer 1999
3. 1998 Undergraduate Research Fellowship to Robin Ward (student) and Harry Kurtz (mentor) from the American Society for Microbiology, $4,000.00
4. SHSU Faculty Research Enhancement Grant, $5,000, The effects of iron and oxygen on the Caulobacter crescentus hemA gene. Summer 1997
5. USDA Postdoctoral Fellowship, USDA grant number 92-37305-7812, Use of TnphoA to identify two important classes of genes in B. japonicum, 1992-1994. Dartmouth College.
PROFESSIONAL SOCIETY MEMBERSHIPS
American Society for Microbiology, 1984 to present
Geological Society of America 2005-present
South Carolina Branch of American Society for Microbiology 2006-2008, 2012-Present.
International Society for Microbial Ecology, 2003-2010, 2016-Present
Sigma Xi 2004-2008
Texas Branch of American Society for Microbiology 1995-2001
Society for General Microbiology 2002-2003
Society for Industrial Microbiology 1997-1999
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE/ACTIVITIES
Education in Microbiology Symposium, Organizer, TX Branch ASM Spring Meeting 1999
Careers in Microbiology Symposium, TX Branch ASM Spring Meeting Organizer, 1999
President-Elect, TX Branch ASM, 1999-2001
Declined Office of President, TX Branch ASM due to relocation
Organized Fall 2000 TX Branch ASM Meeting in Corpus Christi, TX
Vice-President of Clemson Chapter of Sigma Xi, 2006-2007
President of Clemson Chapter of Sigma Xi, 2007-2008
Vice President South Carolina Branch of American Society for Microbiology, 2015-2017
TEACHING (Recent Teaching Assignments in Bold)
Courses Taught, Clemson University
MICRO205, Introductory Microbiology, Fall 2001, 2002
MICR 4100, Soil Microbiology, Fall 2003, 2004, 2012 to present