The objective of the Biosciences Division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is to advance science and technology to better understand complex biological systems and their relationship with the environment. The division has expertise and special facilities in genomics, computational biology, microbiology, microbial ecology, biophysics and structural biology, and plant sciences. This collective expertise includes collaborations within and outside ORNL and focuses on scientific challenges in biology for Department of Energy (DOE) missions in energy and the environment. The division continues a 50-year legacy of important discoveries in biology and environmental studies and has captured 26 R&D 100 awards. Its programs are supported by a number of federal and nonfederal agencies and institutions, such as DOE, the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defense, the Environmental Protection Agency, and several industrial partners. The division also houses unique communication resources to promote the dissemination of information about important scientific research conducted under, for example, DOE’s Biological and Environmental Research Program.
Research Groups
- Biological and Nanoscale Systems: contact Mitch Doktycz
- Bioconversion Science and Technology: contact Jonathan Mielenz
- Biological and Environmental Research Information System: contact Betty Mansfield
- Computational Biology and Bioinformatics: contact Robert Cottingham
- Metabolomics: contact Tim Tschaplinski
- Microbial Ecology and Physiology: contact David Graham
- Plant Systems Biology: contact Jerry Tuskan
- Systems Genetics: contact Mircea Podar
Featured Programs
- BioEnergy Science Center: contact: Paul Gilna
- Plant-Microbe Interfaces Science Focus Area: contact Mitch Doktycz
- Mercury Science Focus Area: contact Liyuan Liang
- Center for Molecular Biophysics: contact Jeremy Smith
- Integrative Field-Scale Subsurface Research Challenge: contact Scott Brooks
- Center for Structural Molecular Biology: contact Dean Myles
- UT/ORNL Graduate School of Genome Science and Technology: contact Albrecht Von Arnim
- We are proud to be co-sponsors of the ongoing Symposium on Biotechnology for Fuels and Chemicals, which is held annually in May.