Myung Hwangbo

MYUNG HWANGBO

Assistant Professor of Practice, SEEMS

(956) 882-8271
myung.hwangbo@utrgv.edu

Department: SEEMS
Office: BPOP2 1.103
Location: Brownsville

UTRGV Faculty Profile

Curriculum Vitae

 

 

Areas of Interest

  • Microbial response to environmental stress
  • Microbial community analysis (Bioinformatics)
  • Microbial activity in biogeochemical carbon and nutrient cycling
  • Water quality monitoring – microbial indicator
  • Wastewater treatment
  • Microplastic pollution
  • Understanding of emerging contaminants
  • Renewable energy
  • Bioconversion of agricultural wastes
  • Environmental policy
  • Environmental management

Higher-Education

  • 2020, Ph.D., Civil and Environmental Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
  • 2014, M.A., Environmental Management/Planning, Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Seoul National University, South Korea
  • 2012, B.S., Earth and Environmental Sciences (Awarded ‘Cum Laude’), Seoul National University, South Korea

Research Overview

 

As an environmental engineer and scientist, my research focuses on environmental responses to the change and pollution. In particular, I am focusing on research topics related to the analysis of microbial communities using bioinformatics and their activity after exposure to contaminants or environmental changes. I am currently also doing water quality monitoring using microbial indicators. Also, I’m interested in the role of microbes in biogeochemical carbon and nutrient cycling in the marine ecosystem for environmental management. These are novel research to combine engineering and scientific areas to understand the impact of environmental changes and overcome environmental challenges.

Publications

 

  • W.J. Park, M. Hwangbo, K.H. Chu. Plastisphere, degraders, and synergistic effects of fungal enzymes and bacteria on polyurethane (PUR) biodegradation. Science of the Total Environment, 2023. 886: 163932.
  • J. Kim, C.H. Shih, M. Hwangbo, K.H. Chu, Advances and Perspectives of Stable Isotope Probing for Contaminant Biodegradation. Water Research X, 2023. 20: 100187
  • J. Kim, M. Hwangbo, P.S. Thibodeau, G. Rhodes, E. Hogarth, S. Copeland, Visualization of Productivity Zones Based on Nitrogen Mass Balance Model in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island. Journal of Visualized Experiments, 2023. 197: e65728.
  • M. Hwangbo, Y. Shao, P. Hatzinger, K.H. Chu. Acidophilic methanotrophs; Occurrence, diversity, and possible bioremediation application. Environmental Microbiology Reports, 2023. 1-17.
  • M. Hwangbo, J.J. Gill, R. Young, K.H. Chu. Dual-function oleaginous biocatalysts for non-sterile cultivation and solvent-free biolipid bioextraction to reduce biolipid-based biofuel production costs. Science of the Total Environment, 2021. 758: 143969.
  • M. Hwangbo, K.H. Chu. Recent advances in production and extraction of bacterial lipids for biofuel production. Science of the Total Environment, 2020. 734: 139420.
  • F. Asiri, C.H. Chen, M. Hwangbo, K.H. Chu. From organic wastes to bioplastics: Feasibility of non-sterile polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) production by Zobellella denitrificans ZD1. ACS Omega, 2020. 5(38): 24158-24168.
  • D. Pechacek, M. Hwangbo, R. Moreland, M. Liu, J. Ramsey. Complete genome sequence of Escherichia coli podophage Penshu1. American Society for Microbiology, 2019. 8(38): e01055-19.
  • Y.W.Wu, S.H. Yang, M. Hwangbo, K.H. Chu. Analysis of Zobellella denitrificans ZD1 draft genome: Genes and gene clusters responsible for high polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) production from glycerol under saline conditions and its CRISPR-Cas system. PLoS One, 2019. 14(9): e0222143.
  • M. Hwangbo, E.C. Claycomb, Y. Liu, T.E.G. Alivio, S. Banerjee, K.H. Chu. Effectiveness of zinc oxide-assisted photocatalysis for concerned constituents in reclaimed wastewater: 1,4-Dioxane, trihalomethanes, antibiotics, antibiotics resistant bacteria (ARB), and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). Science of the Total Environment, 2019. 649:1189-1197.
  • M. Hwangbo, J. Tran, K.H. Chu. Effective one-step saccharification of lignocellulosic biomass using magnetite-biocatalysts containing saccharifying enzymes. Science of the Total Environment, 2019. 647:806-813.
  • P.J. Huang, M. Hwangbo, Z. Chen, Y. Liu, J. Kameoka, K.H. Chu. Reusable functionalized hydrogel sorbents for removing long- and short-chain perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) and GenX from aqueous solution. ACS Omega, 2018. 3:17447-17455.
  • M. Hwangbo, S.J. Yun. Social Conflicts and Community Changes Caused by the Location of Nuclear Power Plants and Thermal Effluents: Focusing on the Case of the Hanvit Nuclear Power Plant. Space and Environment, 2014. 47: 46-83.

Present Courses

  • GEOL 1403 – Physical Geology
  • GEOL 1404 – Historical Geology