Chuck Smallwood

Biography

Dr. Chuck Smallwood is a systems biologist with deep expertise in microbial interactions, bioimaging, and interkingdom signaling across diverse biosystems, including soils, marine environments, and engineered cultivation platforms. He earned his Ph.D. studying the molecular mechanisms of ligand-receptor transport in Gram-negative bacteria, with key contributions to understanding active transport of siderophores, antibiotics, and toxins. His career has since evolved to span applied and fundamental research at the interface of microbiology, imaging, and environmental systems. At Sandia National Laboratories, Dr. Smallwood leads efforts focused on algal biotechnology, microbial consortia engineering, and synthetic ecology for DOE and DoD applications, where he holds a pending patent for an engineered probiotic to enhance microalgal resilience.

Previously, Dr. Smallwood held research appointments at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and UC Berkeley, where he developed multimodal bioimaging and microfluidic platforms to study phenotype responses in living microbial systems, fungi, and algae. His work has informed national bioenergy strategies, including DOE-BER programs focused on real-time biology and environmental resilience. With over a decade of interdisciplinary experience and contributions to high-impact journals such as Frontiers in Microbiology, Biotechnology and Bioengineering, and Science of the Total Environment, Dr. Smallwood’s research continues to shape innovations in bioproduct development and sustainable microbial applications.

Education

PhD, Biochemistry, University of Oklahoma, Norman, 2012

BS, Biochemistry, University of Oklahoma, Norman, 2007

Research Interests

Dr. Chuck Smallwood leads interdisciplinary research at the intersection of microbiology, geochemistry, and environmental systems engineering to address some of the planet’s most pressing energy and climate challenges. His work focuses on how microbial processes influence methane emissions, hydrogen storage stability, and the health of bioenergy systems — from thawing permafrost to algal production ponds and subsurface gas reservoirs.

At Sandia National Laboratories, Dr. Smallwood spearheads projects that decode the early microbial signals behind methane flux in Arctic soils, identify pathogens threatening algal biofuel production systems, and explore microbial control strategies to improve the scalability and reliability of renewable energy. His team uses cutting-edge tools like culturomics, shotgun metagenomics, VOC profiling, isotopic analysis, and reactive transport modeling to uncover how life at the microscopic scale shapes global energy and climate dynamics.

Professional Organizations and Leadership

• Society for Industrial Microbiology
• American Geophysical Union
• American Society for Microbiology

Awards

NNSA Achievement Award, 2024

Publications

Brittany Humphrey, Morgan Mackenzie, Jenna Schambach, Chuck R. Smallwood, and Jesse Cahill. Phage therapy for algae microbiomes: rescuing N. gaditana from a Bacillus infection. (2023). “Biotic countermeasures that rescue Nannochloropsis gaditana from a Bacillus safensis infection.” Frontiers in Microbiology 14.

Boiteau, R.M., Kukkadapu, R., Cliff, J.B., Smallwood, Chuck R., Kovarik, L.W., Engelhard, M.G., Varga, M.H., Dohnalkova, A., Perea, D.E., Wietsma, T., Moran, J.J., Hofmockel, K.S. Calcareous organic matter coatings sequester siderophores in alkaline soils. 2020 Science of The Total Environment, 2020 v.724 pp.13

Henske, J.K., Wilken, S.E., Solomon, K.V., Smallwood, Chuck R., Shutthanandan, V., Evans, J.E., Theodorou, M.K., O’Malley, M.A. Metabolic characterization of anaerobic fungi provides a path forward for bioprocessing of crude lignocellulose 2017 Biotechnology and bioengineering DOI: 10.1002/bit.26515

Geng, T., Smallwood, Chuck R., Bredeweg, E.L., Plymale, A.E., Baker, S.E., Evans, J.E., and Kelly, R.T. Multimodal microfluidic platform for controlled culture and analysis of unicellular organisms. 2017 Biomicrofluidics 11 (5), 054104 DOI: 10.1063/1.4986533

KA Tinker, W Anthony, M Brandi, S Flett, CE Bagwell, C Smallwood, Identifying Potential Geochemical and Microbial Impacts of Hydrogen Storage in a Deep Saline Aquifer. Environmental Microbiology Reports 17 (2), e70076. doi: 10.1111/1758-2229.70076

CR Smallwood, N Hasson, J Yang, J Schambach, H Bennett, B Ricken, Bioindicator “fingerprints” of methane-emitting thermokarst features in Alaskan soils. Frontiers in Microbiology 15, 1462941. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2024.1462941

D Maes, A Finke, C Smallwood, J Timlin, M Howard, A Ruffing. Hyperspectral Bioindicators of Heavy Metal Exposure in Tall Fescue. Microscopy and Microanalysis 27 (S1), 3190-3191 https://doi.org/10.1017/S1431927621011028

SP Lillington, W Chrisler, CH Haitjema, SP Gilmore, CR Smallwood, Cellulosome Localization Patterns Vary across Life Stages of Anaerobic Fungi. Mbio 12 (3), https://doi.org/10.1128/mbio.00832-21