George Bullerjahn

Research Interests:

Our work has traditionally focused on enumeration and the physiological performance of phototrophs and ecologically important chemolithotrophs in aquatic systems. Specifically, we currently examine the composition and dynamics of cyanobacterial and microbial communities in freshwater environments, focusing primarily on the N and P cycles in the Laurentian Great Lakes. These studies have assisted in the assessment of factors contributing to toxic cyanobacterial bloom events in regional lakes.

Selected Publications

Brown, K.M., C.S. Ward and G.S. Bullerjahn. 2024. Draft genome sequences of two cyanobacterial isolates from Homa Bay County, Kenya. ASM Microbiol. Resource Ann. 13: doi.org/10.1128/mra.01205-23.

Wagner, R.S., M.J. Neudeck, A.E. Heath, K.B. Barker, K.M. Brown, S.D. Buchholz, C.S. Ward and G.S. Bullerjahn. 2024. The recent disappearance of a persistent Planktothrix bloom: characterization of a regime shift in the phytoplankton of Sandusky Bay (USA). Harmful Algae 136: 102656, doi: 10.1016/j.hal.2024.102656.

Zepernick, B.N., L.N. Hart, E.E. Chase, K.E. Natwora, J.A. Obuya, M. Olokotum, K.A. Houghton, E.A. Kiledal, NSF-IRES 2022 Lake Victoria Research Consortium, C.S. Sheik, D.H. Sherman, G.J. Dick, S.W.Wilhelm, L. Sitoki, K.M. Otiso, R.M.L. McKay and G.S. Bullerjahn. 2024. Molecular investigation of harmful cyanobacteria reveals hidden risks and niche partitioning in Kenyan Lakes. Harmful Algae 140: 102757, doi: 10.1016/j.hal.2024.102757.

Brown, K.M., B. Beall, G.S. Bullerjahn, J. Finlay, T. Glavina del Rio, G. Small, R.W. Sterner, and R.M McKay. 2025. Depth-resolved paired metagenomes and metatranscriptomes from the Lake Erie ‘dead zone’. ASM Microbiol. Resource Ann. 14: e0101325, doi: 10.1128/mra.01013-25.

Brown, K.M., D.I. Greenfield and G.S. Bullerjahn. 2026. A novel sandwich hybridization assay and probe sets for sensitive bloom-forming cyanobacteria detection. Analytical Biochem. 709: 116002, doi: 10.1016/j.ab.2025.116002.

High Impact Publications:

McKindles, K.M., A.N. Jorge, R.M. McKay, T.W. Davis and G.S. Bullerjahn. 2021. Isolation and characterization of Rhizophydiales sp. (Chytridiomycota), an obligate parasite of Planktothrix agardhii in a Laurentian Great Lakes embayment. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 87(4): e02308-20. https://doi.org/10.1128/AEM.02308-20.

McKindles, K.M., R.M. McKay and G.S. Bullerjahn. 2022. Genomic comparison of Planktothrix agardhii isolates from a Lake Erie embayment. PLoS ONE 17(8): e0273454, doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0273454.

Zepernick, B.N., S.W. Wilhelm, G.S. Bullerjahn and H.W. Paerl. 2023. Climate change and the aquatic continuum: a cyanobacterial comeback story. Environ. Microbiol. Rep. 15: 3-12 (minireview), doi: 10.1111/1758-2229.13122.

Chang, X., H.J. MacIsaac, I. Chorus, G.S. Bullerjahn, R. Kurmayer, C.-Y. Ahn, X. Kong, S.W. Wilhelm, S.A. Wood, X. Tang, H.W. Paerl, S. Hilt, E. Jeppesen, D.P. Hamilton, S. Nakano, P. Visser, J. Huisman, H. Wang, L. Song, R.M. McKay, B. Qin, L. Sitoki and R. Xu. 2026. Scanning the horizon for harmful cyanobacterial blooms. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, in press.