Travis has expertise in state-of-the-art techniques in both analytical chemistry and molecular biology to characterize the bulk chemical, functional group, and isotopic composition of physiologically and environmentally relevant molecules (i.e., biomarkers) found in natural organic matter and cultured organisms stemming from all three domains of life (i.e., Eukarya, Bacteria, and Archaea). His research has focused on biogeochemical cycles in the surface and deep oceans, as well as in estuaries, inland waters, and sediments.
Education and Academic Positions
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2020-present Assist. Prof/Lecturer
University of South Bohemia, Faculty of Science, Dept. Ecosystem Biology (Budweis, Czechia)
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2018-present Principal Investigator & Head of Laboratory
Biology Center Czech Academy of Sciences (Budweis, Czechia)
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2016-2017 Research Associate
MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Research (Bremen, Germany)
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2010-2015 Postdoc
MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Research (Bremen, Germany)
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2008-2010 Postdoc
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Marine Chemistry & Geochemistry (Falmouth, MA, USA)
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2008 Postdoc
University of the Aegean (Mytilini, Greece) and Hellenic Center for Marine Research (Anavyssos, Greece)
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2008 Ph.D., Oceanography
University of California San Diego - Scripps Institution of Oceanography (La Jolla, CA, USA)
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2001 B.S. Marine Science
University of South Carolina, summa cum laude (Columbia, SC, USA)
Research Interests
- Organic Geochemistry
- Biogeochemical Cycles
- Stable Isotopes
- Microbial Food Webs
BIOMARKer INventions and INnovations
What it is that I do here: an elevator conversation:
Firstly, can you appreciate the importance of plant life for the planet? …Over centuries we have learned the relative importance and cultivation practices of many plant species: for crops, medicine, decoration, architecture, etc. Perhaps most importantly, plants on land and in the ocean are a natural sustenance that take carbon from the atmosphere, turn it into living biomass, and produce the oxygen that we breathe.
EQUALLY IMPORTANT as carbon assimilation by photosynthesis, is the removal of organic carbon via degradation of living biomass. Humans have also learned to benefit from this natural process; examples include composting, treating wastewater, and even brewing!
WE HAVE ONLY BEGUN to explore the many varieties of carbon degradation mechanisms on Earth. I am currently researching these and other capabilities of micro-organisms in aquatic systems, marine sediments, soils, . . .
Teaching Interests
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Stable Isotope Course: An introduction to uses in ecology and plant physiology
University of South Bohemia & TÜM collaborative intense course
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KBE/117 Biogeochemistry
University of South Bohemia
Services
Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry: a collaborative service facility that aims to enable and develop stable isotope applications and to answer congruent research questions.
(continuous flow) with interfaces to EA, GC, LC, & Gas Bench
Scientific Activities
Funded Projects:
Funded Projects |
Principal Investigator |
Collaborators |
Funding Source |
Term |
Microbial antioxidants as biomarkers of recalcitrant organic matter |
Sofia Semitsoglou-Tsiapou |
Travis Meador, Lihini Aluwihare, David Kahoun |
BC Grant Program (CAS) |
2019-2020 |
Fungal Stable Isotope Fractionation (FUNSIF) |
Travis Meador |
Jan Jansa (BioMed-CAS) |
GAČR 20-22380S |
2020-2022 |
Evaluating Groundwater Resources and Groundwater-Surface-Water Interactions in the Context of Adapting to Climate Change |
IAEA staff & Scientists from 20+ EU countries |
IAEA TC Project RER/7/013 |
2020-2023 |
Hydrogen and oxygen isotopes and cycling of humics in peat (PHOXYtopes) |
Travis Meador |
Petr Porcal (IHB, BC-CAS) |
GAČR 21-26382S |
2021-2024 |
Ongoing research themes:
Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a black box of organic molecules in both the logistical sense, that we vaguely understand how it cycles but do not know the underlying mechanisms that control this cycling, and in the aeronautical sense, that DOM records the molecular “conversations” of events that have transpired. Indeed, DOM is often depicted as a central component in marine food webs, having important ties to all domains of life and the global C cycle; however, the processes that control its distributions and fluxes remain poorly defined and further investigation of its composition and reactivity is necessary to resolve environmental phenomena and anthropogenic forcings.
Biogeochemical Networks: The generation of large OTUs, geochemistry, lipidomic datasets has allowed for scientists to explore the relationship and potential drivers of microbial life below the seafloor. Using multi-variate analysis techniques, I am coordinating the results and efforts of a team of scientists to identify diagnostic trends in the distribution of microbes and their cell membrane biomarkers.