Randall Jeter

Research Interests

My general area of research is microbial physiology and genetics. I have several particular research interests. One is in metabolic processes that are dependent upon cobalamin (vitamin B-12). Cobalamin is a vitamin with a very complex molecular structure, and it acts as a cofactor in only about 20 different enzymes among the thousands that have been described. Some of these cobalamin-dependent enzymes catalyze molecular rearrangement reactions by an unusual mechanism involving radical intermediates. We have been investigating the fermentation pathway for 1,2-propanediol, the first step of which involves just such a cobalamin-dependent rearrangement, in several different bacteria. A second research interest is how and why genes are transferred between bacteria, particularly in freshwater environments. Such genetic exchange is important for several reasons, including the potential to transfer antibiotic-resistance genes to bacteria that can act as human pathogens. We are using isolates of the bacterial genus Aeromonas as a model system to investigate the molecular and ecological aspects of this sort of gene transfer in local playa lakes, which are unique freshwater ecosystems on the High Plains.

Selected Publications

• Jeter, R. M. 1990. Cobalamin-dependent 1,2-propanediol utilization by Salmonella typhimurium. Journal of General Microbiology 136: 887-896.
• Smith, R. L., J. W. Pelley, and R. M. Jeter. 1991. Characterization of lip expression in Salmonella typhimurium: analysis of lip::lac operon fusions. Journal of General Microbiology 137: 2307-2312.
• Bobik, T. A., Y. Xu, R. M. Jeter, K. E. Otto, and J. R. Roth. 1997. Propanediol utilization genes (pdu) of Salmonella typhimurium: three genes for the propanediol dehydratase. Journal of Bacteriology 179: 6633-6639.
• Warren, W. J., R. M. Jeter, R. C. Kimbrough, and J. C. Zak. 2004. Population patterns and antimicrobial resistance of Aeromonas in urban playa lakes. Canadian Journal of Microbiology, in press.