Geomicrobiology, Assistant Professor, Geology & SREL My research focuses on exploring life in extreme and unexplored environments with a broader goal of understanding the origin of life, microbial adaptation/evolution, and extraterrestrial life. My research uses multi-omics approaches and machine learning-based models to understand the role of microbes in the Earth system. My current research activities include looking at anthropogenic impacts on biogeochemical cycles. We are also developing bioinformatics tools and streamlined pipelines for data mining and extracting information from sequence-based data. Some of the research themes that my lab focuses on are: Microbial community function in extreme environments Role of viruses and eukaryotic microorganisms in ecosystem function and service Astrobiology Role of microbes in the fate and transport of contaminants Anthropogenic impacts on biogeochemical cycles Research opportunities at Dutta Lab Education Education: Ph.D., Geomicrobiology, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, India, 2019 M.Tech, Environmental Biotechnology, Jadavpur University, India, 2014 B.Tech, Biotechnology, West Bengal University of Technology, India, 2012 Research Research Areas: Geomicrobiology Environmental Geosciences Research Interests: Geomicrobiology Microbial ecology Bioinformatics Machine Learning Selected Publications Selected Publications: (# student’s publication from Geomicrobiology Lab) 2025 Connors, E., Gallagher, K.L., Dutta, A., Oliver, M., Bowman, J.S., Suspended detrital particles support a distinct microbial ecosystem in Palmer Canyon, Antarctica, a coastal biological hotspot. Polar Biol 48, 62 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-025-03380-y Pandey, S.#, Duttagupta, S., Dutta, A., Machine Learning Models for Mapping Groundwater Pollution Risk: Advancing Water Security and Sustainable Development Goals in Georgia, USA. Water. 2025; 17(6):879. https://doi.org/10.3390/w17060879 Weng, M.M., Klempay, B., Bowman, J.F., Fisher, L., Camplong, C., Doran, P., Rundell, S., Glass, J.B., Dutta, A., Pontefract, A., Bartlett, D., Schmidt, B., Johnson, S.S., and the Oceans Across Space and Time Team (2025) Light cues drive community-wide transcriptional shifts in the hypersaline South Bay Salt Works Commun Biol 8, 450 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-025-07855-w 2024 Connors, E., Dutta, A., Trinh, R., Erazo, N., Dasarathy, S., Ducklow, H., Weissman, J.L., Yeh, Y-C Schofield, O., Steinberg, D., Fuhrman, J., Bowman, J.S. (2024) Microbial community composition predicts bacterial production across ocean ecosystems, The ISME Journal, Volume 18, Issue 1, January 2024, wrae158, https://doi.org/10.1093/ismejo/wrae158 Basapuram, G.#, Duttagupta, S., Dutta, A., 2024. Detection and Screening of Organic Contaminants in A Riverine System of Georgia using Non-Targeted Analysis. Environments, 11, 89. https://doi.org/10.3390/environments11050089 2023 Dutta, A., Connors, E., Trinh, R., Erazo, N., Dasarathy, S., Ducklow, H.W., Steinberg, D.K., Schofield, O.M. and Bowman, J.S., 2023. Depth drives the distribution of microbial ecological functions in the coastal western Antarctic Peninsula. Frontiers in Microbiology, 14, p.1494. 2022 Dutta, A., Goldman, T., Keating, J., Burke, E., Williamson, N., Dirmeier, R., & Bowman, J. S. (2022). Machine learning predicts biogeochemistry from microbial community structure in a complex model system. Microbiology Spectrum. https://doi.org/10.1128/spectrum.01909-21 2021 Erazo, N. G., Dutta, A., & Bowman, J. S. (2021). From microbial community structure to metabolic inference using paprica. STAR Protocols, 2(4), 101005. Sahu, R., Kazy, S., Bose, H., Mandal, S., Dutta, A., Saha, A., Roy, S., Duttagupta, S., Mukherjee, A., Sar, P. (2021) Microbial diversity and function in crystalline basement beneath the Deccan Traps explored in a 3-km borehole at Koyna, western India. Environmental microbiology. doi:10.1111/1462-2920.15867 Dutta, A., Valle, F., Goldman, T., Keating, J., Burke, E., Williamson, N., Dirmeier, R., & Bowman, J. S. (2021). Detection of sulfate-reducing bacteria as an indicator for successful mitigation of sulfide production. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, AEM 01748-21. https://doi.org/10.1128/AEM.01748-21 Pal, S., Dutta, A., Sarkar, J., Roy, A., Sar, P., & Kazy, S. K. (2021) Exploring the diversity and hydrocarbon bioremediation potential of microbial community in the waste sludge of Duliajan oil field, Assam, India. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 28, 50074–50093. Duttagupta, S.*, Bhanja, S.N.*, Dutta, A.*, Sarkar, S.*, Chakraborty, M., Ghosh, A., Mondal, D., & Mukherjee, A.* (2021) Impact of Covid-19 Lockdown on Availability of Drinking Water in the Arsenic-Affected Ganges River Basin. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18, 2832.(* contributed equally) Klempay, B., Arandia-Gorostidi, N., Dekas, A. E., Bartlett, D. H., Carr, C. E., Doran, P. T., Dutta, A. ... & Bowman, J. S. (2021) Microbial diversity and activity in Southern California salterns and bitterns: analogues for remnant ocean worlds. Environmental microbiology. 10.1111/1462-2920.15499, 23, 7, (3335-3344) 2020 Dutta, A., Smith, B., Goldman, T., Walker, L., Streets, M., Eden, B., ... & Bowman, J. S. (2020) Understanding microbial community dynamics in up-flow bioreactors to improve mitigation strategies for oil souring, Frontiers in microbiology, 11 Gupta, A., Dutta, A., Panigrahi, M. K., & Sar, P. (2020). Geomicrobiology of Mine Tailings from Malanjkhand Copper Project, India. Geomicrobiology Journal, 1-18. Bose, H., Dutta, A., Roy, A., Gupta, A., Mukhopadhyay, S., Mohapatra, B., Sarkar, J., Roy, S., Kazy, S. K., & Sar, P. (2020). Microbial diversity of drilling fluids from 3000m deep Koyna pilot borehole provides insights into the deep biosphere of continental earth crust. Scientific Drilling, 27, 1-23 Duttagupta, S., Mukherjee, A., Das, K., Dutta, A., Bhattacharya, A., & Bhattacharya, J. (2020). Groundwater vulnerability to pesticide pollution assessment in the alluvial aquifer of Western Bengal basin, India using overlay and index method. Geochemistry, 125601. 2019 Dutta, A., Peoples, L. M., Gupta, A., Bartlett, D. H., & Sar, P. (2019). Exploring the piezotolerant/piezophilic microbial community and genomic basis of piezotolerance within the deep subsurface Deccan traps. Extremophiles, 1-13. Dutta, A., Sar, P., Sarkar, J., Dutta Gupta, S., Gupta, A., Bose, H., ... & Roy, S. (2019). Archaeal communities in deep terrestrial subsurface underneath the Deccan traps, India. Frontiers in microbiology, 10, 1362. 2018 Dutta, A., Dutta Gupta, S., Gupta, A., Sarkar, J., Roy, S., Mukherjee, A., & Sar, P. (2018). Exploration of deep terrestrial subsurface microbiome in Late Cretaceous Deccan traps and underlying Archean basement, India. Scientific Reports 8(1), 17459. Gupta, A., Dutta, A., Sarkar, J., Panigrahi, M. K., & Sar, P. (2018). Low-abundance members of the Firmicutes facilitate bioremediation of soils impacted by highly acidic mine drainage from the Malanjkhand Copper Project, India. Frontiers in Microbiology 9, 2882. Roy, A., Sar, P, Sarkar, J., Dutta, A., Sarkar, P., Gupta, A., Mohapatra, B., Pal, S., & Kazy, S. K. (2018). Petroleum hydrocarbon rich oil refinery sludge of North-East India harbours anaerobic, fermentative, sulfate-reducing, syntrophic and methanogenic microbial populations. BMC Microbiology, 18,151. Roy, A., Dutta, A., Pal, S., Gupta, A., Sarkar, J., Chatterjee, A., ... & Kazy, S. K. (2018). Biostimulation and bioaugmentation of native microbial community accelerated bioremediation of oil refinery sludge. Bioresource Technology, 253, 22-32. 2017 Dutta, A.*, Ghosh, S.*, Choudhury, J. D., Mahansaria, R., Roy, M., Ghosh, A. K., ... & Mukherjee, J. (2017). Isolation of indigenous Staphylococcus sciuri from chromium-contaminated paddy field and its application for reduction of Cr (VI) in rice plants cultivated in pots. Bioremediation Journal, 21(1), 30-37. (* contributed equally) Gupta, A., Dutta, A., Sarkar, J., Paul, D., Panigrahi, M. K., & Sar, P. (2017). Metagenomic exploration of microbial community in mine tailings of Malanjkhand copper project, India. Genomics Data, 12, 11-13. 2016 Sarkar, J., Kazy, S. K., Gupta, A., Dutta, A., Mohapatra, B., Roy, A., ... & Sar, P. (2016). Biostimulation of indigenous microbial community for bioremediation of petroleum refinery sludge. Frontiers in Microbiology, 7, 1407. 2011 Patel, M., Dutta, A., & Huang, H. (2011). A selective adenosine sensor derived from a triplex DNA aptamer. Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, 400(9), 3035-3040. Book Chapter: Sar, P., Dutta, A., Bose, H., Mandal, S., & Kazy, S. K. (2019). Deep Biosphere: Microbiome of the Deep Terrestrial Subsurface. In Microbial Diversity in Ecosystem Sustainability and Biotechnological Applications (pp. 225-265). Springer, Singapore. Courses Taught Courses Regularly Taught: GEOL 1120
