Becks Prescott

Assistant Professor of Biology

• Faculty
• Instructor

• Email:

  becks@olemiss.edu

• Office Location:

  126 Shoemaker Hall

• Phone:

  662-915-7203

• Research Lab:

  MISA Lab

Research Interests

Dr. Prescott's Lab studies microbial interactions in complex, natural communities in some interesting places, like lava caves, hypersaline ponds, and on extraterrestrial materials like meteorites. In particular, she studies the ecology and evolution of quorum sensing in extreme environments. 

In the MISA lab, she applies this research to understand how life evolves on a planet, and the role quorum sensing plays in the breakdown of rocks and meteorites. She looks at ways to better preserve extraterrestrial materials that are collected on Earth and in off-world missions, as well as design of sustainable farming practices on Earth, the Moon, and Mars, and in the development of biomaterials. Dr. Prescott, the principal investigator of the MISA lab, works in the Hawaiian Islands, her home, as well as other volcanic landscapes like Iceland.

Biography

Dr. Prescott has a long history of working with indigenous communities, fishermen, and farmers throughout her career. The MISA lab, under her direction, will continue to work with these communities to address environmental questions and concerns for those stakeholders.

Publications

Prescott, Rebecca D., Tong, Eric ʻIwakeliʻi, Chan, Yvonne, Handel, Christy, Lo, Chien-Chi, Davenport, Karen, Johnson, Shannon, Flynn, Mark, Saito, Jennifer, Chain, Patrick, S.G., Lee, Herb Jr., Decho, Alan W., Donchie Stuart P. (2023)

Bridging Place-Based Astrobiology Education with Genomics, Including Descriptions of Three Novel Bacterial Species Isolated from Mars Analog Sites of Cultural Relevance

Astrobiology. Vol 23(12):1348-1367.

Democratizing genomic data science, including bioinformatics, can diversify the STEM workforce and may, in turn, bring new perspectives into the space sciences. In this respect, the development of education and research programs that bridge genome science with "place" and world-views specific to a given region are valuable for Indigenous students and educators. Through a multi-institutional collaboration, we developed an ongoing education program and model that includes Illumina and Oxford Nanopore sequencing, free bioinformatic platforms, and teacher training workshops to address our research and education goals through a place-based science education lens. High school students and researchers cultivated, sequenced, assembled, and annotated the genomes of 13 bacteria from Mars analog sites with cultural relevance, 10 of which were novel species. Students, teachers, and community members assisted with the discovery of new, potentially chemolithotrophic bacteria relevant to astrobiology. This joint education-research program also led to the discovery of species from Mars analog sites capable of producing N-acyl homoserine lactones, which are quorum-sensing molecules used in bacterial communication. Whole genome sequencing was completed in high school classrooms, and connected students to funded space research, increased research output, and provided culturally relevant, place-based science education, with participants naming three novel species described here. Students at St. Andrew's School (Honolulu, Hawai'i) proposed the name Bradyrhizobium prioritasuperba for the type strain, BL16A^T, of the new species (DSM 112479^T = NCTC 14602^T). The nonprofit organization Kauluakalana proposed the name Brenneria ulupoensis for the type strain, K61^T, of the new species (DSM 116657^T = LMG = 33184^T), and Hawai'i Baptist Academy students proposed the name Paraflavitalea speifideiaquila for the type strain, BL16E^T, of the new species (DSM 112478^T = NCTC 14603^T).

Balbay MG, Shlafstein M, Cockell C, Cady S, Prescott R, Chain PSG, Donachie SP, Decho, AP Saw JH. (2023). Metabolic potential and phylogenomic placement of novel Aigarchaeota from geothermal features of Hawai‘i and Chile. Front. Microbiol. 14:1216591.

Prescott, Rebecca D., Zamkovaya, Tatyana, Donachie, Stuart. P., Medley, Joesph J., Saw, Jimmy, Northrup, Diana, Decho, Alan W., Chain, Patrick SG., Boston, Penelope. (2022) Islands within islands: phylogenetic structure and consortia in lava caves and fumaroles of Hawai‘i. Front. Microbiol. 13:Article 934708 fmicb.2022.934708/full).

Waajen, Annemiek, Prescott, R., Cockell, Charles S., (2022). Meteorites as Food Source on Early Earth: Growth, Selection, and Inhibition of a Microbial Community on a Carbonaceous Chondrite. Astrobiology 22(6):1-14.

Prescott, R., Decho, AW. (2020) Flexibility and adaptability of quorum sensing in nature. Trends in Microbiology. 28(6), 436-444.

Cockell, Charles, Stevens, Adam, Prescott, R. (2019). Habitability is a binary property. Nature Astronomy. 3:956–957.

Hayashi, Kazukuni, Busse, Hans-Jürgen, Golke, Jan, Anderson, James, Wan, Xuehua, Hou, Shaobin, Chain, Patrick SG., Prescott, Rebecca D., Donachie, Stuart P. Rheinheimera salexigens sp. nov., isolated from a fishing hook, and emended description of the genus Rheingens sp. nov., isolated from a fishing hook, and emended description of the genus Rheinheimera.(2017). Inter J Syst Evol Micro 68(1): 35-41.

Prescott, Rebecca D. (2015). Water quality influences on declining coral settlement from the Great Barrier Reef region: Biofilms as key players. Ph.D dissertation, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.

Prescott, R., Cudney-Bueno R. (2008) Mobile “reefs” in the northeastern Gulf of California: aggregations of Black murex snails (Hexaplex nigritus) as habitat for invertebrates. Marine Ecology Progress Series 367: 185-192.

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