Jessica Gutknecht

Jessica Gutknecht
Associate Professor
[email protected]
612-626-8435
S431 Soil Science Building
Jessica's Google Scholar Profile
Gutknecht Lab: Soil Microbial Ecology and Sustainable Ecosystems
Jessica's Curriculum Vitae
Education
  • BS, Oregon State University - 2000
  • MS, University of Wisconsin-Madison - 2003
  • PhD, University of Wisconsin-Madison - 2007

Areas of Interest

Soil Environmental Microbiology, Sustainable Ecosystems 

Teaching

ESPM 3612/SOIL 5611 Environmental Soil Biology

This course is an introduction to life in the soil and the properties of microorganisms that impact soil fertility, structure, and quality. We go over the major groups of soil organisms, the nutrient and metabolic requirements of those organisms, and biogeochemical cycles. Symbiotic plant/microbe associations and their role in sustainable agricultural production are discussed, as well as other microbial ecological considerations. We then go over current issues in soil biology including bioremediation approaches, sustainable agriculture, and global environmental change. In addition, this course is listed as writing intensive and students will write a literature review and get lots of practice reading and critiquing primary literature. This is a mixed grad/undergraduate course.

GCC 3031/5031 The Grand Climate Challenge: Creating and Empowered Movement for Change

This is a multidisciplinary course and our teaching team includes Julie Nerbonne, an adjunct professor in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife and Director of Minnesota Interfaith Power and Light, and Dr. Teddie Potter, a professor in Nursing. We overtly model how to create an interdisciplinary movement. This is a project-based course where we teach students the science and tools to power the work that they are passionate about. We teach them how to navigate a challenging societal landscape with excitement, and how to bring their own expertise to the table. We work by their sides as they develop community action projects aimed at reducing carbon emissions, and knowledge projects to research the facts on a chosen climate impact.

See this link for more information on the UMN GCC education movement

SOIL 8123 Research Ethics

This is a required graduate level course taught every 4 years, covering all aspects of ethical behavior and research practices. We lead this as a discussion based course focusing on case studies. (We are always looking for your new stories to add and will hold them confidential and/or will remove personal information!)

ESPM 1002 Transfer Orientation Seminar

This is a 1 credit seminar for orientation and career development of undergraduates transferring into the Environmental Science, Policy, and Management major.

CFAN 1501 Biotechnology, People, and The Environment (Taught in 2018-2019)

This is an introductory level course presenting many aspects of biotechnology, and how biotechnological advances deserve consideration of ethics and societal value. This is a discussion and engaged learning course where students actively debate and explore the issues.

Research

My research generally lies in understanding ecosystem scale processes through the lens of soil microbial ecology. Soil microorganisms are important drivers of soil quality and ecosystem function, depending both on local microbial adaptation and on interactions with plants and other soil biota. Basic characteristics of soil microbial community growth, composition, and activity can be important indicators of soil quality, sustainability, and soil recovery to disturbance. I’m especially interested in how soil microbial community dynamics can inform our understanding of ecosystem functions such as carbon cycling and sustainability under global change and other human influences.

Select Publications

  • Docherty, K. and J. Gutknecht. 2019. Microbial community structure alters the resilience of restored prairies to climate change. Ecological Applications. e01858.
  • Schuldt, A., T. Assmann, M. Brezzi, F. Buscot, D. Eichenberg, J. Gutknecht, W. Härdtle, J.S. He, A. Klein, P. Kühn, X. Liu, K. Ma, P.A. Niklaus, K.A. Pietsch, W. Purahong, M. Scherer-Lorenzen, B. Schmid, T. Scholten, M. Staab, Z. Tang, S. Trogisch, G. von Oheimb, C. Wirth, T. Wubet, C.D. Zhu, H. Bruelheide. 2018. Biodiversity across trophic levels drives multifunctionality in highly diverse forests. Nature Communications. 9: 2989-2999.
  • Trogisch, S., A. Schuldt, J. Bauhus, J. Blum, S. Both, F. Buscot, N. Castro-Izaguirre, D. Chesters, W. Durka, D. Eichenberg, A. Erfmeier, M. Fischer, C. Geißler, M. Germany, P. Goebes, J. Gutknecht, C. Hahn, S. Haider, W. Härdtle, J. He, A. Hector, L. Hönig, Y. Huang, A. Klein, P. Kühn, M. Kunz, K. Leppert, Y. Li, X. Liu, P. Niklaus, Z. Pei, K. Pietsch, R. R. Prinz, T. Proß, M. Scherer-Lorenzen, K. Schmidt, T. Scholten, S. Seitz, Z. Song, M. Staab, G. von Oheimb, C. Weißbecker, E. Welk, C. Wirth, T. Wubet, B. Yang, C.D. Zhu, B. Schmid, K. Ma, and H. Bruelheide 2017. Towards a methodical framework for comprehensively assessing forest multifunctionality. Methods in Ecology and Evolution. 7:10652-10674.
  • Pei, Z., D. Eichenberg, H. Bruelheide, W. Kröber, P. Kühn, Y. Li, G. von Oheimb, O. Purschke, T. Scholten, F. Buscot, J.L.M. Gutknecht. 2017. Leaf litter diversity affects the microbial community structure and functions in Chinese subtropical forest. Biogeochemistry. 134 (1-2), 163-181.
  • Schmidt, J., T. Fester, E. Schulz, B. Michalzik, F. Buscot, and J.L.M. Gutknecht. 2017. Effects of plant-symbiotic relationships on the living soil microbial community and microbial necromass in a long-term agro-ecosystem. Science of the Total Environment. volumes 581-582, pgs 756-765.
  • Pei, Z., D. Eichenberg, H. Bruelheide, W. Kröber, P. Kühn, Y. Li, G. von Oheimb, O. Purschke, T. Scholten, F. Buscot, J.L.M. Gutknecht. 2016. Soil and tree species traits both shape soil microbial communities during early growth of Chinese subtropical forests. Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 96:180-190.
  • Docherty, K.M., H. Borton, N. Espinosa, M. Gebhardt, J. Gil-Loaiza, J.L.M. Gutknecht, P.W. Maes, B.M. Mott, J. Parnell, G. Purdy, P.A. Rodrigues, L. Stanish, O. Walser, R.E. Gallery. 2015. Key edaphic properties largely explain temporal and geographic variation in soil microbial communities across four biomes. PLoS One. journal.pone.0135352.
  • Liang, C., J.L.M. Gutknecht, and T.C. Balser. 2015. Microbial lipid and amino sugar responses to long-term simulated global environmental changes in a California annual grassland. Frontiers in Microbiology 6:385.
  • Schmidt, J., E. Schulz, B. Michalzik, F. Buscot, J.L.M. Gutknecht. 2015. Carbon input and crop-related changes in microbial biomarker levels strongly affect the turnover and composition of soil organic carbon. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 85:39-50.
  • Purahong, W., M. Schloter, M.J. Pecyna, D. Kapturska, V. Däumlich, S. Mital, F. Buscot, M. Hofrichter, J.L.M. Gutknecht, and D. Krüger. 2014. Uncoupling of microbial community structure and function in decomposing litter across beech forest ecosystems in Central Europe. Nature: Scientific Reports DOI:10.1038/srep07014.
  • Zhang N, Liu W, Yang H, Yu X, Gutknecht JLM, Zhang Z, Wan S, Ma K (2013). Soil microbial responses to warming and increased precipitation and their implications for ecosystem C cycling. Oecologia (in press), DOI 10.1007/s00442-013-2685-9.
  • Birkhofer, K, I Schöning, F Alt, N Herold, B Klarner, S Marhan, Y Oelmann, T Wubet, K Barto, D Berner, M Bonkowski, F Buscot, A Chatzinotas, R Daniel, T Diekötter, H L. Drake, R Ehnes, G Erdmann, F Faßhauer, A Focks, T Friedl, K Glaser, J Groh1, J Gutknecht, L Hodac, E Kandeler, S Kolb, R Koller, C Lang, G Lohaus, M Maraun, M Maraun, A Meyer, JC Munch, H Nacke, J Overmann, A Polle, M Rillig, S Scheu, M Schloter, E-D Schulze, W Schulze, F Seiffert, J Weinert, C Will, V Wolters, S Wurst, A Yurkov, M Schrumpf (2012) General Relationships between Abiotic Soil Properties and Soil Biota across Spatial Scales and Different Land-Use Types. PLOS One, 7: e43292.
  • Wu, Y, JLM Gutknecht, K Nadrowski, C Geißler, P Kühn, T Scholten, S Both, A Erfmeier, M Böhnke, H Bruelheide, T Wubet, and F Buscot (2012) Exploring the relationships between soil microbial and plant communities, and soil characteristics in Chinese subtropical forests. Ecosystems, 15: 624-636.
  • Gutknecht JLM, CB Field, and TC Balser (2012) Variation in long-term microbial community response to simulated global change. Global Change Biology, 18: 2256–2269.
  • Docherty, KM, and JLM Gutknecht (2012) The role of environmental microorganisms in ecosystem responses to global change: current state of research and future outlooks. Biogeochemistry, 109: 1-6.
  • Docherty KM, TC Balser, BMJ Bohannan, and JLM Gutknecht (2012). Soil microbial responses to fire and interacting global change factors in a California annual grassland. Biogeochemistry, 109: 63-83.
  • Balser, TC, JLM Gutknecht, and C Liang (2010) How will climate change impact soil microbial communities? In: Soil Microbiology and Sustainable Crop Production, G R Dixon and Emma Tilston, eds. University of Reading Press, Reading, UK. Pp 373-397.
  • Will C, A Thürmer, A Wollherr, H Nacke, N Herold, M Schrumpf, J Gutknecht, T Wubet, F Buscot, and R Daniel (2010) Horizon-specific bacterial community composition of German grassland soils as revealed by pyrosequencing-based analysis of 16S rRNA genes. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 76: 6751-6759.
  • Gutknecht JLM, HAL Henry, and TC Balser (2010) Annual variations in soil extra-cellular enzyme activity in response to simulated climate change, nitrogen deposition, elevated CO2, and burn disturbance, Pedobiologia 53: 283-293.
  • Brown, V, J Gutknecht, L Harden, C Harrison, D Hively, C Jogensen, T Levi, B Pflugeisen, P Rovengno, J Wiedenman, Y Yang, and M Mangel (2010) Understanding and engaging values in policy relevant science. British Ecological Society Bulletin, 41(1): 46-58.
  • Gutknecht JLM, RM Goodman, and TC Balser (2006) Linking soil processes and microbial ecology in freshwater wetland ecosystems. Plant and Soil, 289: 17-34.
  • Mentzer* JL, RM Goodman, and TC Balser (2006) Microbial response over time to hydrologic and fertilization treatments in a simulated wet prairie. Plant and Soil, 284: 85-100.

*Surname changed from Mentzer to Gutknecht fall 2006.