Dr Bethan Stallwood | University of Chester

Senior Lecturer

Bethan joined University Centre, Shrewsbury as a Senior Lecturer in 2022. She is the Programme Lead for MSc Biotechnology. Bethan’s research interests are in environmental biotechnology and environmental microbiology, particularly when the two cross paths with medicine.

Bethan completed her undergraduate degree in Environmental Biology BSc (Hons) at the University of Wales, Bangor. She received her doctorate in 2003 with her thesis entitled “Hydrocarbon-degradation by Bacteria from Antarctica”, in which she researched the biochemical and molecular pathways of oil degradation. After a postdoctoral position with the Australian Antarctic Division (based in Antarctica and Tasmania), Beth returned the UK to continue her research career in environmental biotech – working on an industrially funded and classified project on biomining. After a short stint in industry, as the lead scientist on a large-scale bioremediation project, Bethan took up a lectureship and has remained in education ever since.

Bethan is programme lead for MSc Biotechnology and teaches on undergraduate modules relating to biotechnology and microbiology.

Working with a UK-African charity, Beth’s research is currently focussed on developing low-cost water treatment systems. In Sub-Saharan Africa, water remediation is a particular challenge: standing water acts as a breeding ground for parasites, and the prevalence of AMR in watercourses, mean simpler systems cannot be used.

Her love of birds, also means that Beth hopes to continue with her research into bird health at UCS.

Goodenough, A.E., Stallwood, B., Dandy, S., Nicholson, T.E., Stubbs, H. and Coker, D.G., 2017. Like mother like nest: similarity in microbial communities of adult female pied flycatchers and their nests. Journal of ornithology, 158(1), pp.233-244.

Goodenough, A.E. and Stallwood, B., 2012. Differences in culturable microbial communities in bird nestboxes according to orientation and influences on offspring quality in great tits (Parus major). Microbial ecology, 63(4), pp.986-995.

Goodenough, A.E. and Stallwood, B., 2010. Intraspecific variation and interspecific differences in the bacterial and fungal assemblages of blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) and great tit (Parus major) nests. Microbial ecology, 59(2), pp.221-232.

Stevenson, K., Stallwood, B. and Hart, A.G., 2008. Tire rubber recycling and bioremediation: a review. Bioremediation Journal, 12(1), pp.1-11.

Johnson, D.B., Stallwood, B., Kimura, S. and Hallberg, K.B., 2006. Isolation and characterization of Acidicaldus organivorus, gen. nov., sp. nov.: a novel sulfur-oxidizing, ferric iron-reducing thermo-acidophilic heterotrophic Proteobacterium. Archives of microbiology, 185(3), pp.212-221.

Stallwood, B., Shears, J., Williams, P.A. and Hughes, K.A., 2005. Low temperature bioremediation of oil‐contaminated soil using biostimulation and bioaugmentation with a Pseudomonas sp. from maritime Antarctica. Journal of Applied Microbiology, 99(4), pp.794-802.

PhD Hydrocarbon Degradation by Antarctic Bacteria (A BBSRC CASE studentship with The British Antarctic Survey, Cambridge and the University of Wales)

Environmental Biology BSc (Hons) University of Wales, Bangor.

PGCHE