Jena E. Johnson

Assistant Professor

Principal Investigator [CV]

I have long been fascinated by how the history and evolution of life on Earth are tied to the evolving climate and surface chemistry of our planet. I majored in Geobiology at Brown University and pursued a PhD in Geobiology at Caltech. My PhD investigated the evolution of photosynthesis and rise of atmospheric oxygen through the manganese mineral record. During the course of my thesis, I recognized the importance of performing laboratory experiments and studying field analogues in order to correctly interpret the rock record. I continued gaining expertise in linking aquatic chemistry with geomicrobiology in a postdoctoral position at the University of Colorado in Boulder. I began a faculty position in the Earth and Environmental Sciences department at U-Michigan in January, 2018.

Here at Michigan, I am focused on understanding how the evolution of life and environments are recorded in chemical signals safeguarded in the geologic record. We are working on projects to understand the potential geobiological signals hosted in chemical precipitates in the sedimentary record, and studying microbe-mineral interactions that could lead to the formation of these ancient geobiological signals.

Anisha Ghosh

Graduate Student

Anisha joined the microbe mineral lab in the fall of 2023 after completing her B.S. and Master’s degree in Geological Sciences at Jadavpur University, India. Throughout her life, Anisha has been fascinated by the ancient oceans and early life. Now as part of the Microbe-Mineral Lab, she is investigating the bioavailability of trace metals in ancient oceans. 

Kurt Rueckl

Graduate Student

Kurt joined the lab in the fall of 2024 to better constrain how we can use trace metals in carbonates to constrain past paleoenvironmental conditions. Kurt is co-advised by Udo Becker and approaches the question of carbonate solid solutions through computational mineralogy, i.e., using thermodynamic calculations to determine the favorability of elemental substitution into Ca, Mg, Fe, and Mn carbonates.

Alex Thompson

Undergraduate Student

Alex joined the lab in the fall of 2024 to explore competitive metal binding to metal-binding molecules (ligands) that can represent molecules produced by early life. Alex’s focus has been on whether a cation exchange resin can be used as a new
method to distinguish between bound and unbound metals.