Wageningen, The Netherlands, might not be the first place you think of when you imagine spending a semester abroad during your college years. Most people imagine eating baguettes and Brie in Paris, enjoying the pub-life in London, or eating tapas with sangria in El Plaza Mayor in Madrid. When I wanted to do research in molecular ecology, there was only one place that was perfect for me. Wageningen University was the ultimate combination of stimulating research in a foreign laboratory and the cultural experience of a lifetime.

Through the University of Arizona BRAVO! Program, I was able to spend the fall semester of 2004 in Wageningen, The Netherlands. I participated in independent research in the Molecular Ecology and Microbial Physiology groups in the Laboratory of Microbiology at Wageningen University. Before my BRAVO! experience, my research background was strictly in the field of environmental engineering, so the prospect of microbiology research was at first intimidating and exciting. I was very interested in my topic, but was originally unsure of my abilities in the lab with new techniques. Through the patient supervision of Mahmut Altinbas, my mentor for the duration of my project, I was able to complete my research and to learn a great deal about microbiology in the process. In addition to Mahmut, Prof. Dr. Alfons Stams, leader of the Microbial Physiology group, and Dr. Hauke Smidt, leader of the Molecular Ecology group, also supervised me and guided me through the project.

My project in Wageningen was a molecular characterization of meso- and thermophilic anaerobic sulfate reducing biofilms from bioreactors operated in Dr. Jim Field and Dr. Reyes Sierra’s environmental engineering lab at the UA. The bioreactors investigated the use of sulfate-reducing biofilms to remove semiconductor industrial wastewater contamination, such as heavy metals and surfactants. In these reactors, ethanol was used as the electron donor for sufate reduction. Through this microbial process, sulfide is produced from the reduction of sulfate and precipitates with aqueous heavy metals to produce highly insoluble metal sulfide complexes. During the reactor operations, biofilm samples were periodically taken and preserved, and these were the focus of my study.

Through the course of my project, I made great strides on the characterization of my samples through genetic sequencing and Fluorescent in-situ Hybridization (FISH). Sequencing provided genetic information on the species present and active in the reactor at various sampling times. FISH was used to analyse the population dynamics between bacteria and archaea metabolic groups. Specific probes were used to look at the relationship between the overall bacteria and sulfate-reducing bacteria populations as well. Further analysis is required of the sequencing data to fully understand the physiology of the dominant species and to compare the difference between the meso- and thermophilic reactors. One interesting initial result is the presence of Desulfovibrio Mexicanus in the thermophilic reactor in high abundance. This gram-negative, non-spore forming deltaproteobacteria is described as being mesophilic with a highly reduced growth above 45°C. The thermophilic reactor was consistently operated at 55°C, so the presence of this species was not expected. Further research into this occurrence will now be conducted to analyse the implications.

Even though I was in Wageningen for my research project, the memories I made outside of the lab will be what I remember for the longest time. The Netherlands is a beautiful country with extremely diverse inhabitants and unique culture. Amsterdam is a city filled with wonderful museums, The Van Gogh Museum being my favorite, amazing architecture, beautiful canals, and a bizarre social scene. Utrecht, east of Amsterdam, was my favorite city with its beautiful streets and canals combined with a wonderful Saturday market and shopping. The Netherlands has other amazing cities that visited; such as, Maastricht, ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Delft, Den Haag, Eindhoven, and Arnhem. Beautiful architecture and canals, cobblestone roads, great cheese, wooden shoes, and windmills define the major cities and Dutch countryside to me.

Having never travelled to Europe before, I wanted to use my convenient location in Western Europe to see as much of Europe as possible. In total, I was able to see six other countries while I was there and enjoyed every minute of it. Weekends were spent in both Paris and Madrid, where the cities scream with culture, history, amazing food, and beautiful sightseeing. I spent a longer holiday exploring England and Scotland with my family, while a few Belgium and German cities were weekend day trips for me. To me, everywhere I went in Europe was new and exciting as I was able to see some of the most famous sites in Europe.

In the end, my research project was more of a challenge than I expected. I had a lot to learn in this new field and at times my lack of prior experience was frustrating. It was definitely a learning experience that opened my eyes to fields outside the world of chemical and environmental engineering. I come out of this project with a desire to pursue additional research opportunities that combine environmental engineering with molecular ecology or microbial physiology work.

Working in a research laboratory is something that I had prior experience with, but solely in the topics of chemical and environmental engineering. For me, the unique part about my BRAVO! research experience was being able to step outside my box and explore a completely different topic in a new lab with new techniques and supervision. The entire experience was a lesson in adapting to new situations and being able to make the best of my situation to ensure that I can get as much as possible out of it. In the end, I was able to do the research that interested me, while expanding my cultural and educational horizons in a foreign country.

I would like to thank Mahmut Altinbas, Prof. Dr. Fons Stams, and Dr. Hauke Smidt for hosting me in Wageningen and making my experience outstanding. Also, I would like to thank Carol Bender, Genevieve Kenney, and Christine Duddleston from the BRAVO! program for making my trip possible. Finally, I would like to thank the National Institutes of Health (Grant #TW00036) and the Wageningen University Laboratory of Microbiology for providing the financial support for my research.


Stephanie Freeman, undergraduate in Dr. Reyes Sierra’s lab, Chemical & Environmental Engineering