BMSIS Staff Scientist: Dr. Garrett A. Roberts Kingman

Dr. Roberts Kingman is interested in evolutionary genetics, the molecular mechanisms underlying adaptation to environmental challenges, and the use of synthetic biology to solve broader problems.

He completed his Ph.D. at Stanford University using stickleback (a small fish with a unique natural history) as a model system, exploring the genetic changes underlying their remarkable evolution both genome-wide and for a particular trait (armor spine length). He is now working to apply similar techniques and ideas from evolutionary genetics to astrobiology, where questions of adapting to challenging environments abound.

He is keenly interested in how the limited evolutionary pressures found on Earth shape the capabilities and limits of the only life we know, and how we can move beyond this limitation to better understand the potential for life in the solar system and beyond. One approach he is exploring is the creation of synthetic extremophiles through functional metagenomics to at once take advantage of Earth’s tremendous genetic diversity while also sidestepping the limited selection pressures found on Earth. His work also utilizes synthetic biology to explore potential biological solutions to more general problems, such as how we can support human deep space exploration, particularly with regard to Mars and its perchlorates.

You can learn more on his LinkedIn profile.