Jared R. Leadbetter
Jared R. Leadbetter
Professor of Environmental Microbiology
Option Representative: Geobiology;
B.S., Goucher College, 1991; Ph.D., Michigan State University, 1997. Assistant Professor, Caltech, 2000-06; Associate Professor, 2006-10; Professor, 2010-.
Research Options
Environmental Science and Engineering;
Geobiology;
Profile
Professor Leadbetter's research seeks to clarify the form, function, and spatial distribution of diverse microbes in their environment. His past studies have focused on the cultivation of microbial strains possessing unusual, atypical, or previously unrecognized properties, and have sought to reveal the impact of these organisms on their given environment. He has applied the use of a number of physiological, chemical, and molecular genetic techniques to his studies, underscoring the utility of both classical and newly developed methods in the pursuit of fundamental questions in Environmental Microbiology.
2026-27
ESE/Bi 166. Microbial Physiology.
9 units (3-1-5); first term, 2026-27.
By what mechanisms do microbes conserve energy to drive their growth? What is the elemental composition of the biomass generated well-studied microbes, and what are common limitations challenging the recruitment of these elements? Which organic carbon intermediates are commonly employed when building new biomass? Topics covered in this class include: growth kinetics and different paradigms of in vitro cultivation; the assimilation of varied environmental sources of carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, and phosphate into biomass; the fundamentals of energy conservation via fermentation, respiration, or small molecule transport; and microbial behavior, including flagellar motility and chemotaxis. For a special project, each student will design a growth medium built around a specific organic carbon, or organo-nitrogen, or organo-phosphorous compound of their own choosing, and then attempt to cultivate a microbe from the environment that can utilize that nutrient to drive its growth.
Instructor: Leadbetter
Instructor: Leadbetter
FS/ESE/Ge 18. First-Year Seminar: The Unseen Microbial World in Plain Sight.
6 units (2-0-4); first term, 2026-27.
To paraphrase a Caltech engineering colleague: "In terms of Earth and the Environment, our species had been nothing more than the hood ornament on a really interesting car. We should be studying what's under the hood, the microbial world, if we want to understand the engine". We will spend the term examining striking examples of microbes and microbial activities in the environment. First-year (undergraduates) only; limited enrollment.
Instructor: Leadbetter
Instructor: Leadbetter
2025-26
ESE/Bi 166. Microbial Physiology.
9 units (3-1-5); first term, 2025-26.
Prerequisites: one year of general biology recommended.
A course on growth and functions in the prokaryotic cell. Topics covered: growth, transport of small molecules, protein excretion, membrane bioenergetics, energy metabolism, motility, chemotaxis, global regulators, and metabolic integration.
Instructor: Leadbetter
Instructor: Leadbetter
FS/ESE/Ge 18. First-Year Seminar: The Unseen Microbial World in Plain Sight.
6 units (2-0-4); first term, 2025-26.
To paraphrase a Caltech engineering colleague: "In terms of Earth and the Environment, our species had been nothing more than the hood ornament on a really interesting car. We should be studying what's under the hood, the microbial world, if we want to understand the engine". We will spend the term examining striking examples of microbes and microbial activities in the environment. First-year (undergraduates) only; limited enrollment.
Instructor: Leadbetter
Instructor: Leadbetter
2024-25
ESE/Bi 166. Microbial Physiology.
9 units (3-1-5); first term, 2024-25.
Prerequisites: one year of general biology recommended.
A course on growth and functions in the prokaryotic cell. Topics covered: growth, transport of small molecules, protein excretion, membrane bioenergetics, energy metabolism, motility, chemotaxis, global regulators, and metabolic integration.
Instructor: Leadbetter
Instructor: Leadbetter
FS/ESE/Ge 18. First-Year Seminar: The Unseen Microbial World in Plain Sight.
6 units (2-0-4); first term, 2024-25.
To paraphrase a Caltech engineering colleague: "In terms of Earth and the Environment, our species had been nothing more than the hood ornament on a really interesting car. We should be studying what's under the hood, the microbial world, if we want to understand the engine". We will spend the term examining striking examples of microbes and microbial activities in the environment. First-year (undergraduates) only; limited enrollment.
Instructor: Leadbetter
Instructor: Leadbetter
2023-24
FS/ESE/Ge 18. First-Year Seminar: The Unseen Microbial World in Plain Sight.
6 units (2-0-4); first term, 2023-24.
To paraphrase a Caltech engineering colleague: "In terms of Earth and the Environment, our species had been nothing more than the hood ornament on a really interesting car. We should be studying what's under the hood, the microbial world, if we want to understand the engine". We will spend the term examining striking examples of microbes and microbial activities in the environment. First-year (undergraduates) only; limited enrollment.
Instructor: Leadbetter
Instructor: Leadbetter