Rita R. Colwell

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Distinguished University Professor
3103 Biomolecular Sciences Building
(301) 405-9550
Education: 
Ph.D., University of Washington (Oceanography)
Special Awards/Honors: 
2006 National Medal of Science (given by President George W. Bush), the 2006 "Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star," Japan Society for Promotion of Science, 2010 Stockholm Water Prize Laureate, 2016 Malaysian Academy of Science Mahthir Science Award for Scientific Excellence in Work in the Tropical Regions, 2016 Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water, Creativity Prize, Saudi Arabia, 2017 Vannevar Bush Award, National Science Board and National Science Foundation, 2017 International Prize for Biology, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Tokyo, Japan, 2017 Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur ("Knight of the Legion of Honor"), France, 2018 Lee Kuan Yew (Singapore) Water Prize. Dr. Colwell has served as President, American Society for Microbiology (ASM), President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), President, American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS), President, American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS), and is Chair of the Research Board for the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative through 2020.
Biography: 

Rita Colwell is a Distinguished University Professor with an appointment in the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies.

Colwell is one of the world’s leading researchers of cholera—a waterborne disease estimated by the World Health Organization to strike three to five million people annually, many of them young children. Her efforts to track and predict cholera outbreaks are multi-faceted, combining bioinformatics with the pioneering use of satellite imaging. She was one of the first scientists to employ remote sensing for disease prediction, as well as recognize the impact of climate change on the waterborne microbial world.

Go here to view Colwell's most recent academic publications.

Publications

2008


Mohapatra H, Mohapatra SS, Mantri CK, Colwell RR, Singh DV.  2008.  Vibrio cholerae non‐O1, non‐O139 strains isolated before 1992 from Varanasi, India are multiple drug resistant, contain intSXT, dfr18 and aadA5 genes. Environmental Microbiology. 10(4):866-873.

Grim CJ, Taviani E, Alam M, Huq A, Sack BR, Colwell RR.  2008.  Occurrence and Expression of Luminescence in Vibrio Cholerae. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 74(3):708-715.

Zo Y-G, Colwell RR.  2008.  A simple binomial test for estimating sequencing errors in public repository 16S rRNA sequences. Journal of Microbiological Methods. 72(2):166-179.

Snellman EA, Colwell RR.  2008.  Transesterification activity of a novel lipase from Acinetobacter venetianus RAG-1. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek. 94(4):621-625.

Khondker M, Bhuiyan R A, Yeasmin J, Alam M, Sack BR, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2008.  New records of phytoplankton for Bangladesh. 8. Trachelomonas Ehr. (Euglenophyceae). Bangladesh Journal of Botany. 37(2)

Constantin de Magny G, Murtugudde R, Sapiano MRP, Nizam A, Brown CW, Busalacchi AJ, Yunus M, Nair GB, Gil AI, Lanata CF et al..  2008.  Environmental signatures associated with cholera epidemics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 105(46):17676-17676.

Lee H S, Kang S G, Bae S S, Lim J K, Cho Y, Kim Y J, Jeon J H, Cha S-S, Kwon K K, Kim H-T et al..  2008.  The Complete Genome Sequence of Thermococcus Onnurineus NA1 Reveals a Mixed Heterotrophic and Carboxydotrophic Metabolism. Journal of BacteriologyJ. Bacteriol.. 190(22):7491-7499.

Colwell RR.  2008.  Silent Sputnik. BioScience. 58(1):3-3.

Khondker M, Bhuiyan R A, Yeasmin J, Alam M, Sack BR, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2008.  New records of phytoplankton for Bangladesh. 7. Phacus spp.. Bangladesh Journal of Botany. 37(1)

Colwell RR.  2008.  The marine environment and human health: the cholera model. Global Climate Change and Extreme Weather Events: Understanding the Contributions to Infectious Disease EmergenceGlobal Climate Change and Extreme Weather Events: Understanding the Contributions to Infectious Disease Emergence.

Khondker M, Bhuiyan R A, Yeasmin J, Alam M, Sack BR, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2008.  New records of phytoplankton for Bangladesh. 2. Cryptophyceae and Synurophyceae. Bangladesh Journal of Botany. 36(1)

2007


Khondker M, Bhuiyan R A, Yeasim J, Alam M, Sack BR, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2007.  New records of phytoplankton for Bangladesh. 4. Chlorococcales. Bangladesh Journal of Plant Taxonomy. 14(2)

Khondker M, Bhuiyan R A, Yeasmin J, Alam M, Sack BR, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2007.  New records of phytoplankton for Bangladesh. 3. Volvocales. Bangladesh Journal of Plant Taxonomy. 14(1)

Coutard F|[ccedil]|ois, Crassous P, Droguet M|[euml]|l, Gobin E, Colwell RR, Pommepuy M, Hervio-Heath D.  2007.  Recovery in culture of viable but nonculturable Vibrio parahaemolyticus: regrowth or resuscitation? The ISME Journal. 1(2):111-120.

Chaiyanan S, Chaiyanan S, Grim C, Maugel T, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2007.  Ultrastructure of coccoid viable but non‐culturable Vibrio cholerae. Environmental Microbiology. 9(2):393-402.

Shneiderman B, Colwell RR, Diamond S, Greenhalgh P, Wulf W.  2007.  Bridging art and science with creativity support tools. Proceedings of the 6th ACM SIGCHI conference on Creativity & cognition. :309-309.

Colwell RR, Peeters J.  2007.  Creating a nationwide wireless detection sensor network for chemical, biological and radiological threats. Gentag White Paper.

Alam M, Sultana M, Nair GB, Siddique AK, Hasan NA, Sack RB, Sack DA, Ahmed KU, Sadique A, Watanabe H et al..  2007.  Viable but nonculturable Vibrio cholerae O1 in biofilms in the aquatic environment and their role in cholera transmission. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 104(45):17801-17801.

Rawlings TK, Ruiz GM, Colwell RR.  2007.  Association of Vibrio Cholerae O1 El Tor and O139 Bengal with the Copepods Acartia Tonsa and Eurytemora Affinis. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 73(24):7926-7933.

2006


Mantri CK, Mohapatra SS, Ramamurthy T, Ghosh R, Colwell RR, Singh DV.  2006.  Septaplex PCR assay for rapid identification of Vibrio cholerae including detection of virulence and int SXT genes. FEMS Microbiology Letters. 265(2):208-214.

Huq A, Grim C, Colwell RR, Nair BG.  2006.  Detection, Isolation, and Identification of Vibrio cholerae from the Environment. Current Protocols in MicrobiologyCurrent Protocols in Microbiology. :6A.5.1-6A.5.38-6A.5.1-6A.5.38.

Alam M, Hasan NA, Sadique A, Bhuiyan NA, Ahmed KU, Nusrin S, Nair BG, Siddique AK, Sack BR, Sack DA et al..  2006.  Seasonal Cholera Caused by Vibrio Cholerae Serogroups O1 and O139 in the Coastal Aquatic Environment of Bangladesh. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 72(6):4096-4104.

Alam M, Sultana M, Nair BG, Sack BR, Sack DA, Siddique AK, Ali A, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2006.  Toxigenic Vibrio Cholerae in the Aquatic Environment of Mathbaria, Bangladesh. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 72(4):2849-2855.

Colwell RR.  2006.  Microbial diversity in the era of genomics. SYMPOSIA-SOCIETY FOR GENERAL MICROBIOLOGY. 66:1-1.

Belkin S, Colwell RR.  2006.  Oceans And Health: Pathogens In The Marine Environment.

Alam M, Sadique A, Bhuiyan NA, Nair GB, Siddique AK, Sack DA, Ahsan S, Huq A, Sack RB, Colwell RR et al..  2006.  Effect of transport at ambient temperature on detection and isolation of Vibrio cholerae from environmental samples. Applied and environmental microbiology. 72(3):2185-2190.

2005


Pruzzo C, Huq A, Colwell RR, Donelli G.  2005.  Pathogenic Vibrio species in the marine and estuarine environment. Oceans and health: pathogens in the marine environment. :217-252.

Colwell RR.  2005.  Global microbial ecology of Vibrio cholerae. Oceans and health: pathogens in the marine environment. :297-305.

Colwell RR.  2005.  Cholera: the killer from the deep. The Biochemist.

Huq A, Sack BR, Nizam A, Longini IM, Nair BG, Ali A, Morris GJ, Khan HMN, Siddique KA, Yunus M et al..  2005.  Critical Factors Influencing the Occurrence of Vibrio Cholerae in the Environment of Bangladesh. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 71(8):4645-4654.

Louis VR, Gillespie IA, O'Brien SJ, Russek-Cohen E, Pearson AD, Colwell RR.  2005.  Temperature-Driven Campylobacter Seasonality in England and Wales. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 71(1):85-92.

2004


Binsztein N, Costagliola MC, Pichel M, Jurquiza V, Ramírez FC, Akselman R, Vacchino M, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2004.  Viable but Nonculturable Vibrio Cholerae O1 in the Aquatic Environment of Argentina. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 70(12):7481-7486.

Colwell RR.  2004.  Infectious disease and environment: cholera as a paradigm for waterborne disease. International Microbiology. 7(4):285-289.

Islam MS, Tasmin R, s l a m Khan SI, Bakht HBM, a y a t Mahmood ZH, i a u r Rahman MZ, m i n Bhuiyan NA, Nishibuchi M, a l a k r i s h Nair GB, r a d l e y Sack RB et al..  2004.  Pandemic strains of O3:K6 Vibrio parahaemolyticus in the aquatic environment of Bangladesh. Canadian Journal of Microbiology. 50(10):827-834.

Gil AI, Louis VR, Rivera ING, Lipp E, Huq A, Lanata CF, Taylor DN, Russek‐Cohen E, Choopun N, Sack BR et al..  2004.  Occurrence and distribution of Vibrio cholerae in the coastal environment of Peru. Environmental Microbiology. 6(7):699-706.

Espeland EM, Lipp EK, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2004.  Polylysogeny and prophage induction by secondary infection in Vibrio cholerae. Environmental Microbiology. 6(7):760-763.

Snellman EA, Colwell RR.  2004.  Acinetobacter lipases: molecular biology, biochemical properties and biotechnological potential. Journal of industrial microbiology & biotechnology. 31(9):391-400.

Islam MS, Talukder KA, Khan NH, Mahmud ZH, Rahman MZ, Nair GB, Siddique AKM, Yunus M, Sack DA, Sack RB et al..  2004.  Variation of toxigenic Vibrio cholerae O1 in the aquatic environment of Bangladesh and its correlation with the clinical strains. Microbiology and immunology. 48(10):773-777.

Colwell RR, Faruque SM, Nair GB.  2004.  Free-Living to Freewheeling: The Evolution of Vibrio cholerae from Innocence to Infamy. Infectious Disease and Host-Pathogen EvolutionInfectious Disease and Host-Pathogen Evolution. :198-198.

Colwell RR.  2004.  A Tangled Bank: Reflections on the Tree of Life and Human Health. Assembling the Tree of LifeAssembling the Tree of Life. :18-18.

2003


Louis VR, Russek-Cohen E, Choopun N, Rivera ING, Gangle B, Jiang SC, Rubin A, Patz JA, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2003.  Predictability of Vibrio Cholerae in Chesapeake Bay. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 69(5):2773-2785.

Talledo M, Rivera ING, Lipp EK, Neale A, Karaolis D, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2003.  Characterization of a Vibrio cholerae phage isolated from the coastal water of Peru. Environmental Microbiology. 5(5):350-354.

Faruque SM, Sack DA, Sack BR, Colwell RR, Takeda Y, Nair BG.  2003.  Emergence and Evolution of Vibrio Cholerae O139. Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesPNAS. 100(3):1304-1309.

Colwell RR, Huq A, Islam SM, Aziz KMA, Yunus M, Khan HN, Mahmud A, Sack BR, Nair GB, Chakraborty J et al..  2003.  Reduction of Cholera in Bangladeshi Villages by Simple Filtration. Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesPNAS. 100(3):1051-1055.

Faruque SM, Kamruzzaman M, Meraj IM, Chowdhury N, Nair BG, Sack BR, Colwell RR, Sack DA.  2003.  Pathogenic Potential of Environmental Vibrio Cholerae Strains Carrying Genetic Variants of the Toxin-Coregulated Pilus Pathogenicity Island. Infection and ImmunityInfect. Immun.. 71(2):1020-1025.

Sack BR, Siddique KA, Longini IM, Nizam A, Yunus M, Islam SM, Morris J, Ali A, Huq A, Nair BG et al..  2003.  A 4-Year Study of the Epidemiology of Vibrio Cholerae in Four Rural Areas of Bangladesh. Journal of Infectious DiseasesJ Infect Dis.. 187(1):96-101.

Colwell RR.  2003.  ANNUAL REVIEW & FORECAST REPORTS-THE OCEANS: TO PROTECT AND TO PLOW. Sea Technology. 44(1):33-34.

Pruzzo C, Tarsi R, Del Mar Lleò M, Signoretto C, Zampini M, Pane L, Colwell RR, Canepari P.  2003.  Persistence of adhesive properties in Vibrio cholerae after long‐term exposure to sea water. Environmental Microbiology. 5(10):850-858.

Rivera ING, Lipp EK, Gil A, Choopun N, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2003.  Method of DNA extraction and application of multiplex polymerase chain reaction to detect toxigenic Vibrio cholerae O1 and O139 from aquatic ecosystems. Environmental Microbiology. 5(7):599-606.

Colwell RR.  2003.  From terabytes to insights. Communications of the ACM. 46(7):25-27.

Lipp EK, Rivera ING, Gil AI, Espeland EM, Choopun N, Louis VR, Russek-Cohen E, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2003.  Direct Detection of Vibrio Cholerae and ctxA in Peruvian Coastal Water and Plankton by PCR. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 69(6):3676-3680.

2002


Chun J, Rivera ING, Colwell RR.  2002.  Analysis of 16S-23S rRNA intergenic spacer of Vibrio cholerae and Vibrio mimicus for detection of these species. METHODS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY. 179:171-178.

Snellman EA, Sullivan ER, Colwell RR.  2002.  Purification and properties of the extracellular lipase, LipA, of Acinetobacter sp. RAG‐1. European Journal of Biochemistry. 269(23):5771-5779.

Fischer-Le Saux M, Hervio-Heath D, Loaec S, Colwell RR, Pommepuy M.  2002.  Detection of Cytotoxin-Hemolysin mRNA in Nonculturable Populations of Environmental and Clinical Vibrio Vulnificus Strains in Artificial Seawater. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 68(11):5641-5646.

Lipp EK, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2002.  Effects of Global Climate on Infectious Disease: The Cholera Model. Clinical Microbiology ReviewsClin. Microbiol. Rev.. 15(4):757-770.

Colwell RR.  2002.  A voyage of discovery: cholera, climate and complexity. Environmental Microbiology. 4(2):67-69.

Choopun N, Louis V, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2002.  Simple Procedure for Rapid Identification of Vibrio Cholerae from the Aquatic Environment. Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyAppl. Environ. Microbiol.. 68(2):995-998.

Zo YG, Rivera ING, Russek-Cohen E, Islam MS, Siddique AK, Yunus M, Sack RB, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2002.  Genomic profiles of clinical and environmental isolates of Vibrio cholerae O1 in cholera-endemic areas of Bangladesh. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 99(19):12409-12409.

Pruzzo C, Tarsi R, Lleò MM, Signoretto C, Zampini M, Colwell RR, Canepari P.  2002.  In vitro adhesion to human cells by viable but nonculturable Enterococcus faecalis. Current microbiology. 45(2):105-110.

Ivanova EP, Matte GR, Matte MH, Coenye T, Huq A, Colwell RR.  2002.  Characterization of Pseudoalteromonas citrea and P. nigrifaciens Isolated from Different Ecological Habitats Based on REP-PCR Genomic Fingerprints. Systematic and Applied Microbiology. 25(2):275-283.

Colwell RR.  2002.  Fulfilling the promise of marine biotechnology. Marine biotechnology in the twenty-first century: problems, promise, and productsMarine biotechnology in the twenty-first century: problems, promise, and products. :39-39.

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