Rate My Professor Tim McDermott

McDermott's research focuses on microbe-metalloid interactions involving arsenic, selenium, and antimony; microbial ecophysiology and population genetics in geothermal habitats; and Yellowstone Lake picoplankton structure and function. His decade-long study of methane dynamics in Yellowstone Lake revealed a novel biological process for aerobic methane production, distinct from traditional methanogenic pathways and estimated to account for 15% of global biological methane emissions. Additionally, his work on arsenic biochemistry in microorganisms ranks among the most cited internationally over the past two decades. Key publications include "Aerobic bacterial methane synthesis" (2021), "Introducing the ArsR-Regulated Arsenic Stimulon" (2021), "The gut microbiome is required for full protection against acute arsenic toxicity in mouse models" (2018), "Methylphosphonate Metabolism by Pseudomonas sp. Populations Contributes to the Methane Oversaturation Paradox in an Oxic Freshwater Lake" (2017), and "Arsenite oxidation regulator AioR regulates bacterial chemotaxis towards arsenite in Agrobacterium tumefaciens GW4" (2017). With over 9,400 citations, his contributions have profoundly influenced environmental microbiology. In 2023, McDermott received the Charles and Nora L. Wiley Award for Meritorious Research and Creativity from Montana State University for these achievements.