HISTORY
Initiated in 1970, the Graduate Program in Agricultural Microbiology at UFV is rated 7 (seven) by CAPES – Federal Agency for Support and Evaluation of Graduate Education, which is one of the ratings exclusive to programs that offer a doctorate with a level of excellence, performance equivalent to that of the most important centers for teaching and research, a high level of international integration, a significant capacity to foster new research and teaching groups, and whose faculty plays a leadership and representative role in the respective community.
In the Master’s degree program, the aspiration to obtain postgraduate training is fulfilled through a set of courses that deepen knowledge of the foundations of science, as well as providing the opportunity to become familiar with the scientific method.
The Doctorate program aims to train leaders in science who possess a deep and comprehensive understanding of the realities within the field of knowledge, enabling them to anticipate trends and influence the direction of science and its technological applications.
The program aims to provide qualified training opportunities for talented students who aspire to master a specific area of knowledge and scientific research methods. It is designed to help students develop an appreciation for interdisciplinary collaboration and teamwork. Consequently, intellectual independence, familiarity with the literature in Microbiology, and the ability to communicate research results and conclusions both in writing and orally are essential requirements for the completion of the course.
Maintaining and developing excellence, upholding justice and ethics, and promoting diversity within its student population are commitments of the faculty programs.
Specific objectives
The program aims to provide qualified training opportunities for talented students who aspire to master a specific area of knowledge and scientific research methods. It is designed to help students develop an appreciation for interdisciplinary work and teamwork. Consequently, intellectual independence, familiarity with the literature in microbiology, and the ability to communicate research results and conclusions both in writing and orally are essential requirements for the completion of the courses.
Maintaining and developing excellence, upholding justice and ethics, and promoting diversity within its student population are commitments of the faculty programs.
Research Areas
Genetics, physiology and microorganisms ecology:
Gene expression regulation and global regulatory mechanisms. Pathogenicity and virulence factors. Microbial genomes analysis. Microbial growth and fermentative processes. Metabolic and metabolomic flow. Microbial communities associated with water, soil, plants and animals development and structure. Biodiversity in aquatic and terrestrial environments. Interactions between microorganisms populations. Nutrient cycling and biogeochemical cycles. Antimicrobials. Microorganisms with plants and animals biological associations.
Processes and microbiologic products:
Isolation, selection, and improvement of mycelial fungi, yeast, bacteria and viruses and development of processes for the production of cells, enzymes, proteins and metabolites of interest for the agricultural and environmental industry. Development of methods for detection and control of pathogenic microorganisms, food deteriorators, and antibiotic-resistant.
INFRASTRUCTURE
The physical and laboratory infrastructure used by students and professors of the Graduate Program in Agricultural Microbiology is located at the Institute of Biotechnology Applied to Agriculture (BIOAGRO) and in the building of the Center for Biological and Health Sciences (CCB-I), which are located about 200 m apart. The Department has 9 (nine) research laboratories (Mycorrhizal Associations, Biotechnology and Biodiversity for the Environment, Microbial Ecology, Physiology of Microorganisms, Molecular and Microorganism Genetics, Food Microbiology, Food Pathogens, Anaerobic Microbiology and Industrial Microbiology) with approximately 1,350 square meters of total area. All laboratories are led by supervisors from the Program’s permanent nucleus. The Microbiology Department also has two greenhouses: one with 192 square meters and another with 144 square meters and a laboratory to support greenhouses, where materials are prepared and sterilized substrates used for in vivo experiments, using different plant species. The laboratories have modern equipment, suitable for carrying out high-level research projects and comparable to the best research centers abroad. The Program has several medium and large equipment, including, for example: high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) systems; gas chromatography (GC) system; electroporators; thermal cyclers; vertical autoclaves; rotational incubators (shaker); protein and DNA electrophoresis systems; fermenters and bioreactors; equipment for pulsed field electrophoresis; denaturation gradient gel electrophoresis systems – DGGE; Pulse Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) system; drying greenhouses; several B.O.D .; stomacher appliance; DNA sequencer; central water purification system; lyophilizer; atomic absorption spectrophotometer; milliQ water purification system; French Press Cell system; laminar flow hoods; real-time PCR equipment; ultrafreezers; nitrogen analysis system; ultracentrifuge; microplate reader; electrotransfer apparatus, refrigerated centrifuges; water baths; rotavapor; diverse microcentrifuges; cryomyotrotome; microscopes; fluorescence microscope; photomicrograph systems; system for analysis, processing and storage of images; room for developing images, among others.
The Laboratory for Molecular Genetics of Microorganisms / BIOAGRO has a CNEN license for operation, with a specific room equipped for radioisotope work, in addition to access to the scintillator. The Program has two anaerobic chambers, located in the Biotechnology and Biodiversity for the Environment and Anaerobic laboratories. Other large equipment such as a respirometer and a system for the identification of bacteria and yeasts based on MIDI fatty acid analysis are also installed in our laboratories.
The program also has research laboratories and practical classes, in the Building of the Center for Biological and Health Sciences (CCB-I), equipped for basic research in microbiology and for conducting practical classes in the four specific laboratory disciplines offered by the Department. The Laboratory of Post-Graduation practical classes presents excellent equipment infrastructure, compatible with the execution of experiments related to the topics taught in the practical disciplines offered by the Program: MBI 611 – Laboratory of Physiology of Microorganisms, MBI 621 – Laboratory of Genetics Molecular and Microorganisms, MBI 631 – Food Microbiology Laboratory and MBI 651 – Soil Microbiology Laboratory. The Food Microbiology Laboratory is equipped to carry out microbiological analysis of food and has provided services to companies and food industries, among others, performing analysis or training company employees.
Teachers and students have access to institutional laboratories, such as the Nucleus of Microscopy and Microanalysis at UFV and the Nucleus of Biomolecules, assembled and maintained by the joint effort of several Graduate Programs from different Departments of UFV. The Nucleus of Microscopy and Microanalysis at UFV and the Nucleus of Biomolecules were created in order to provide equipment that is large, high cost and expensive to maintain, for the analysis of biological or non-biological materials, in an organized, rational way and democratic. Users of the Centers are researchers already trained and in training, from any Department of UFV and other interested public or private entities. Thus, these institutional laboratories aim at wide openness and multidisciplinarity, aiming to justify their allocation in a Multidi Nucleus.
Coordinating Committee
Coordinator:
Wendel Batista da Silveira
Members:
Cynthia Canêdo da Silva
Mateus Ferreira Santana
José Guilherme Prado Martin
Student Representatives:
Lorena Cornélia Ribeiro – DS
Sebastião Moreira Junior– DS
Program Secretary:
Letícia Monteiro da Silva Freitas
Program Secretariat
Secretariat of the Graduate Program in Agricultural Microbiology
Universidade Federal de Viçosa
Departamento de Microbiologia
Av. P. H. Rolfs, s/n – Campus Universitário
Edifício Chotaro Shimoya, sala 141 36570-900 – Viçosa, MG, Brasil
Contact:
Letícia Monteiro da Silva Freitas
Telephone: +55 (31) 3612-5054
E-mail: mba@ufv.br