Contact Details
University Links
- Position
- Lecturer
- Department
- Department of Biochemistry
- Qualifications
- BSc, MSc, PhD
- Research summary
- Bacterial engineering for biotechnology
Research
Research in my group is focused on bacterial genetic engineering for biotechnological applications, with a particular interest in waste upcycling applications.
Microbes, unicellular organisms such as bacteria, archaea, and simple eukaryotes, thrive in nearly every environmental niche on Earth. Their extraordinary biochemical diversity and adaptability allow them to inhabit environments ranging from deep underground to high in the atmosphere, and almost everywhere in between.
My research harnesses this biochemical diversity to engineer new metabolic pathways and functionalities in industrially relevant microorganisms. We focus on two core goals:
- Understanding and engineering new waste carbon assimilation pathways into bacterial hosts of industrial interest
- Converting these waste carbon streams into bio-based, petrochemical-free chemicals and products such as bioplastics, fertilisers, construction materials, and electricity
To achieve these goals, my group combines genetic engineering, synthetic biology, whole-genome sequencing, and adaptive laboratory evolution. By building and studying these ‘new-to-nature’ biological systems and their underpinning biochemistry, we aim to contribute to a low-carbon bioeconomy and reduce our reliance on fossil resources.
Publications
Eaglesfield, R., Frey, B. L., Lahive, C. W., Cuthbertson, A. A., Kuatsjah, E., Ramirez, K. J., … Werner, A. Z. (2026). Mixed polyamide and polyester upcycling via chemical autoxidation and engineered Pseudomonas putida. Reaction Chemistry & Engineering, 11, 64. doi: 10.1039/d5re00351b Journal - Research Article
Eaglesfield, R., Fernandez-Vizarra, E., Lacko, E., Caldwell, S. T., Sloan, N. L., Siciarz, D., … Tokatlidis, K. (2025). Sub-organellar mitochondrial hydrogen peroxide observed using a SNAP tag targeted coumarin-based fluorescent reporter. Redox Biology, 80, 103502. doi: 10.1016/j.redox.2025.103502 Journal - Research Article
Kiani, D., Eaglesfield, R., May, J. H., Werner, A. Z., Chen, E. Y.-X., Román-Leshkov, Y., … Beckham, G. T. (2025). Production of bio-based lactones as monomers for a circular polymer economy [Review]. Nature Reviews Chemistry, 9, 749-765. doi: 10.1038/s41570-025-00765-9 Journal - Research Article
Edwards, R., Eaglesfield, R., & Tokatlidis, K. (2021). The mitochondrial intermembrane space: The most constricted mitochondrial subcompartment with the largest variety of protein import pathways. Open Biology, 11, 210002. doi: 10.1098/rsob.210002 Journal - Research Article
Eaglesfield, R., Madsen, M. A., Sanyal, S., Reboud, J., & Amtmann, A. (2021). Cotranslational recruitment of ribosomes in protocells recreates a translocon-independent mechanism of proteorhodopsin biogenesis. iScience, 24, 102429. doi: 10.1016/ j.isci.2021.102429 Journal - Research Article