Nikhil S. Malvankar

Wiring Cells: Imaging and Control of Microbial Metabolism via Protein Nanowires

Our lab is interested in how various clinically and environmentally important bacteria respire without O₂-like soluble molecules. We have found that cells use extracellular electron transfer via polymerized cytochromes as nanowires^1,2. We have electronically controlled cell metabolism and enzyme activity via nanowires by discovering the mechanism of their assembly^3,6, and electron transfer and evaluating their role in respiration, communication, and pathogenesis. By combining experiments and computations, our lab has addressed the following questions:

• How do microbes kickstart metabolism⁷ to build & use OmcS⁶ & OmcZ³ nanowires secreted by pili⁴?

• How are electrons transferred from the bacterial cytoplasm to surface-displayed nanowires⁸?

• How to control bacterial metabolism by optimizing nanowire conductivity using light⁹, pressure¹⁰, temperature¹¹, electromagnetic fields¹⁰, humidity¹², non-natural ‘click’ chemistry¹³ & quantum oherence¹⁴ ?

Using what we learn from these studies, our long-term vision is to monitor and control the growth of microbes residing in the deep ocean, in soil, or in the human body, and to use nanowires in four areas:

1) Fundamental studies to elucidate how diverse microbes assemble and use various nanowires.

2) Repair soil and marine environmental health using microbial nanowire-mediated electron exchange.

3) Restore rhizosphere health by targeting nanowire-mediated microbe-plant interactions; and

4) Restore human health by controlling the growth and colonization of clinically important microbes.

Towards this vision, we have rotation projects in the following 3 key areas:

1) In situ structural and functional imaging of metabolism within microbial communities using our electron imaging (Nature Nano.) combined with cryo-electron microscopy & tomography^15,16 (in revision with Jun Liu)

2) Understanding conductivity mechanisms employed by protein nanowires. We are determining how nanowires move electrons, ions, spins, and excitons at unprecedented ultrafast (< 200 fs) rates ( Nature Comm. 2022) and over centimeter distances. We have found a novel electron escape route in proteins to avoid oxidative damage (PNAS 2021) and how cooling¹¹ (Science Adv. 2022) and humidity¹² (in revision) speed up electrons

3) Control bacterial metabolism to develop Antibiotics: Disrupting electron export to inhibit growth and adhesion of pathogens and Probiotics: Accelerating electron export to promote growth of commensals.

Small wires, big opportunities. Nanowires are a fundamentally new class of electron-conducting proteins, making it possible to control microbial function and design custom microbial communities electronically. Projects involve structural studies, genetically engineering nanowire conductivity, nanoscale electron transfer measurements in nanowires and living biofilms, spectroelectrochemistry, and building and experimentally testing computational models through ongoing collaborations with Goodman and Liu (Microbial Pathogenesis), Batista and Brudvig (Chemistry), and Lisa Craig (Canada), Olivera Francetic (France), and Carlos Salgueiro (Portugal).

We have several interdisciplinary projects embedded in these larger goals that would be great rotation projects. They provide training in a variety of biophysical, molecular, and synthetic biology, as well as biochemical techniques, and are likely to yield positive results/publications within the rotation.

Please feel free to chat with one of my laboratory members or me to explore how your interests align with our training opportunities. Rotation projects are experimentally or computationally oriented, with the possibility of combining both approaches, and no prior background in a specific discipline is required.

The lab’s policy on career development: Among my foremost goals is the development of the next generation of interdisciplinary scientists who will play vital roles in advancing the biological sciences. We achieve this by training students to be self-directed learners by building a core set of discipline-specific expertise first and then showing them how to expand beyond their core discipline to appreciate and incorporate other disciplines for all careers, especially industry and teaching. We have also received patents and a Blavatnik Innovation Award for commercializing nanowire-based technologies with partners from industry. Past students are working in diverse positions such as national labs, technology industries, academia, and consulting firms (see full list here).

References (BBS students are highlighted in bold)

• Summers et al. Malvankar & Lovley, Science 2010

• Malvankar et al. Nature Nano., 2011 & Nature Nano., 2014

• Gu et al. Malvankar Nature Micro., 2023

• Gu et al. Malvankar Nature, 2021

• Wang & Gu et al. Hochbaum, Egelman & Malvankar Cell, 2019

• Shen et al. Malvankar Cell Chemical Biology, 2025. Cover Article.

• Erwin et al. Malvankar Preprint, 2024

• Portela & Shipps et al. Malvankar, Nature Comm. 2024

• Neu & Shipps et al. Malvankar, Nature Comm. 2022

• Yalcin & O’Brien et al. Malvankar, Nature Chem. Bio., 2019

• Dahl et al. Malvankar, Science Adv., 2022

• Dahl et al. Malvankar, Preprint, 2024

• Shapiro et al. Malvankar & Isaacs, Nature Comm. 2022

• Parson, Dahl et al. Malvankar, Journal of Physics Chemistry Letters, 2025. Cover Article.

• Salazar-Morales and Yalcin et al. Malvankar Preprint, 2026

• Wissink and Shen et al. Malvankar & Welte Nature Comm., 2026