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Jonathan M. Galazka

Ames Space Biology Portfolio Scientist

Phone: (650) 604-3950
Email: Jonathan.M.Galazka@nasa.gov
Affiliation: Space Biosciences Research Branch

Professional Background

Biography

Dr. Jonathan Galazka joined the Space Biosciences Division in 2015. He has since served in many roles including as the Ames Space Biology Portfolio Scientist, and GeneLab Project Scientist. Jonathan received a PhD in Molecular & Cell Biology from the University of California, Berkeley. He subsequently performed postdoctoral fellowships at Oregon State University and NASA Ames Research Center. His research interests including Systems Biology, Microbiology and Synthetic Biology.

Education

PhD, Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California (2011), Berkeley

BS, Biology, University of Cincinnati (2001)

Research Interests

Microbiology and Synthetic Biology. Future explorations of the solar system could be enhanced by creative use of resources available in situ. Biological systems excel at converting simple chemical building blocks into complex molecules and materials, having precise control over chemical reaction networks and the capacity to self-replicate. In-space biomanufacturing would enable new mission capabilities. However, deploying these systems will require a greater understanding of how microbial manufacturing platforms respond to the space environment, and the engineering of space compatible systems.

Systems Biology and Open Science. Biological systems respond to the spaceflight environment through a series of interlinked molecular networks. New analytical techniques allow a more comprehensive understanding of these networks and and their dynamics during spaceflight. Moreover, improved frameworks for the standardization, interconnection and distribution of Space Systems Biology data allows broader participation in Space Biology research and an accelerated pace of discovery.

Select Publications

  1. Bowen CH, Reed TJ, Sargent CJ, Mpamo B, Galazka JM, Zhang F. Seeded Chain Growth Polymerization of Proteins in Living Bacterial Cells. ACS Synth Biol/ 2019 Dec 20;8(12):2651-2658. https://doi.org/10.1021/acssynbio.9b00362
  2. Bowen CH, Sargent CJ, Wang A, Zhu Y, Chang X, Li J, Mu X, Galazka JM, Jun YS, Keten S, Zhang F. Microbial production of megadalton titin yields fibers with advantageous mechanical properties. Nat Commun. 2021 Aug 30;12(1):5182. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-25360-6
  3. Lai Polo SH, Saravia-Butler AM, Boyko V, Dinh MT, Chen YC, Fogle H, Reinsch SS, Ray S, Chakravarty K, Marcu O, Chen RB, Costes SV, Galazka JM. RNAseq Analysis of Rodent Spaceflight Experiments Is Confounded by Sample Collection Techniques. iScience. 2020 Nov 25;23(12):101733. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2020.101733
  4. Overbey EG, Paul AM, da Silveira WA, Tahimic CGT, Reinsch SS, Szewczyk N, Stanbouly S, Wang C, Galazka JM, Mao XW. Mice Exposed to Combined Chronic Low-Dose Irradiation and Modeled Microgravity Develop Long-Term Neurological Sequelae. Int J Mol Sci. 2019 Aug 22;20(17):4094. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20174094
  5. Galazka JM, Tian C, Beeson WT, Martinez B, Glass NL, Cate JH. Cellodextrin transport in yeast for improved biofuel production. Science. 2010 Oct 1;330(6000):84-6. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1192838
  6. Galazka JM, Klocko AD, Uesaka M, Honda S, Selker EU, Freitag M. Neurospora chromosomes are organized by blocks of importin alpha-dependent heterochromatin that are largely independent of H3K9me3. Genome Res. 2016 Aug;26(8):1069-80. https://doi.org/10.1101/gr.203182.115

Awards and Activities

  • NASA Early Career Achievement Medal
  • NASA Postdoctoral Program Fellowship Award
  • Perkins Fund Award
  • Deloitte QB3 Award for Innovation, Finalist