Kostka Lab

Microbial Ecology lab at the Georgia Institute of Technology

[Jose Luis Rolando @joseluisrolando]

Join our new lab @UF_IFAS as a grad student!
We study how plant–microbe interactions drive ecosystem function.
Now recruiting PhD students (Fall 2026) via the Microbiology & Cell Science program.
💰 Fully funded (~$35k) | 🗓 Deadline: Dec 15, 2025
🔗 https://t.co/CtokkL5jzR

[Georgia Tech Research @GTResearch_]

Cordgrass keeps Georgia's marshes healthy, but how does it stay healthy? @KostkaLab used advanced genomic methods to discover bacteria detoxify sulfide and fix nitrogen, enhancing plant health and resilience. 🌾https://t.co/OdGXtyeRfA

[Kostka Lab @KostkaLab]

Our latest research in @NatureComms discovered that sulfur-eating bacteria play a key role in fixing nitrogen in the roots of salt marsh plant Spartina alterniflora.
More details in the press release below:
https://t.co/m4QBKLqhug

[Nature Communications @NatureComms]

The mechanisms underlying plant-microbe interactions in coastal ecosystems are little explored. Rolando et al. use multi-omics & biogeochemical measurements to investigate saltmarsh cordgrass root microbiome.
@joseluisrolando @KostkaLab

https://t.co/BrXwXEyEqs

[Jose Luis Rolando @joseluisrolando]

Excited to finally see this online! Here, we link N fixation to sulfur oxidation in Spartina alterniflora roots -the dominant marsh plant in the US. Interestingly, our discovered symbionts are closely related to those living in the gills of marine clams!
https://t.co/a8aaWf5US2

[bioRxiv Microbiology @biorxiv_micrbio]

Sulfur oxidation and reduction are coupled to nitrogen fixation in the roots of a salt marsh foundation plant species https://t.co/dV3gU1LQJ1 #biorxiv_micrbio

[Ecosphere @ESAEcosphere]

From our Coastal & #MarineEcology track:

#ExtremeEvents can cause long-lasting #SaltMarsh dieback - further eroding resilience to #SeaLevelRise

https://t.co/ct15TOoZrC

#ClimateChange #OpenAccess #NSFFunded @NSF @NFWFnews @NOAAFisheries @GTResearchNews

[Jose Luis Rolando @joseluisrolando]

A good week so far! On Monday I defended my PhD Thesis. Today, the second first-author publication from my PhD work was just released 🙂

[Nolan Williams @NolanCWilliams]

More on some ongoing salt marsh restoration efforts here in CHS. Looking forward to more collaboration with the fine folks @KostkaLab / @GTSciences, @SCDNR, @SCaquarium, and @Robinson_Eng !

https://t.co/sDTo61dp7K

[Will Ratcliff @wc_ratcliff]

So proud of @autpeterson for representing @GTSciences and @GaTechMicrobes at the ABRCMS conference!

To any prospective grad students reading this, I’m happy to tell you more about opportunities at both @QBioS_GT and in Biology. Just ping me here or via email.

[DOE Office of Science @doescience]

From northern Minnesota to coastal Georgia, wetlands are essential. Building on work w/@ORNL, Joel Kostka's team @GeorgiaTech is studying microbes' roles in salt marshes to understand how climate change will affect soils & plants that store carbon: https://t.co/MvLtQStJEf

[Chris Schadt @ChrisInKnox]

Postdoc opening to join our @ORNLBio_Env team working on the #SPRUCE project! https://t.co/Ry2Oat96dp

[Kostka Lab @KostkaLab]

We are so excited to start work on this cool new project in collaboration with @ORNL @Tfaily_Lab @ChrisInKnox, Caitlin Petro, Rachel Wilson, Kostas Konstantinidis, and Jeff Chanton!

[Kostka Lab @KostkaLab]

Joel Kostka Awarded $3.2 Million to Keep Digging into How Soils and Plants Capture Carbon — And Keep It Out of Earth’s Atmosphere | College of Sciences | Georgia Institute of Technology | Atlanta, GA https://t.co/NmtwewGkfQ

[Joint Genome Institute @jgi]

Little is known of how plant/microbe interactions regulate coastal ecosystems. @KostkaLab of @GeorgiaTech looks at the carbon/nitrogen exchange that govern interactions in Spartina alterniflora — a dominant plant along the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Coast. #2023FICUS (7/13)

[Kostka Lab @KostkaLab]

A million thanks to our amazing REU student Isabel from @haverfordedu

[Kostka Lab @KostkaLab]

Excited for the plenary seminar by Dr. Ido Golding at the 2022 @QBioS_GT Hands-on Workshop in Stochastic Gene Expression

[Kostka Lab @KostkaLab]

@UofSC cc @_JoshuaRobinson @NolanCWilliams

[Kostka Lab @KostkaLab]

Thread on our recent study assessing the trajectory of salt marsh long term dieback events. A collaboration with the South Carolina DNR, South Carolina Aquarium, Robinson Design Engineers, the Ashleyville Neighborhood Association, and Jim Morris at @UofSC

[Jose Luis Rolando @joseluisrolando]

We just released this preprint exploring the trajectory of salt marsh dieback events in South Carolina and Louisiana, USA. We found that extreme climatic events, which are increasing in frequency and intensity due to climate change, triggered dieback events

[Jose Luis Rolando @joseluisrolando]

We just released this preprint exploring the trajectory of salt marsh dieback events in South Carolina and Louisiana, USA. We found that extreme climatic events, which are increasing in frequency and intensity due to climate change, triggered dieback events