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Indiana University biologist Jay-Terrence Lennon has been elected a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology, an honorific leadership group within the American Society for Microbiology.
A professor in the IU Bloomington College of Arts and Sciences' Department of Biology, Lennon focuses his research on the factors that generate and maintain microbial diversity, along with the implications of this diversity for the functioning of ecosystems. This work involves a range of tools, including molecular biology, simulation modeling, laboratory experiments, field surveys and whole ecosystem manipulations, in a wide array of habitats.
His research has been cited for transformative contributions to modern thinking about biodiversity in the environment, including the importance of dormant "seed banks" and the potentially massively unappreciated diversity in the microbial realm. His election to the American Academy of Microbiology recognizes a record of scientific achievement and original contributions advancing microbiology.
Other recent IU electees to the academy include David P. Giedroc and Daniel B. Kearns in 2018, Adam Zlotnick in 2017, and Stephen D. Bell and David M. Kehoe in 2015. As one of the 2019 electees, Lennon joins a total of 109 new fellows, including members from France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Israel, Korea, Taiwan and China.
Before joining IU, Lennon served as a postdoctoral research associate at Brown University. He holds a Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology from Dartmouth College and is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including induction as a fellow of the AAAS in 2018 and his selection as a Kavli Fellow by the National Academy of Sciences in 2012.
The American Academy of Microbiology has over 2,400 fellows representing all subspecialties of the microbial sciences in basic applied research, teaching, public health, industry and government service. Formed in 1955, the American Society for Microbiology is the largest single life science society, composed of more than 50,000 scientists and health professionals. Its mission is to promote and advance the microbial sciences.
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