The Charles Research Lab conducts microbiology research applying the tools of bacterial genetics to the study of bacteria in pure culture and in environmental communities. We have a particular interest in members of the Rhizobiales order of the Alphaproteobacteria, such as Sinorhizobium meliloti, Bradyrhizobium japonicum, and Agrobacterium tumefaciens. These organisms interact with eukaryal hosts in symbiotic or pathogenic relationships, and share several genetic factors that direct these relationships. We use comparative and functional genomics approaches to investigate these complex interactions. Research on microbial communities is directed towards functional metagenomics, which is the design and implementation of metagenomic library screens for metabolic functions. We have a particular interest in identifying novel genes for known functions that would not be discovered based on knowledge of the DNA sequence alone. We are also developing bacterial chromosome engineering methods for use in strain development, with an emphasis on the production of novel polyhydroxyalkanaote bioplastics.