| Hazel Barton | |
| Birth Date: | [1] |
| Birth Place: | Bristol |
| Occupation: | microbiologist, caver, cave diver |
| Awards: | Alice C. Evans Award, American Society for Microbiology (2019) |
Dr. Hazel A. Barton is an English born microbiologist, geologist and cave diving explorer, interested in extremophile microorganisms. She is a Professor and Director of the Integrated Bioscience Program at the University of Akron and has appeared in several documentaries.
Hazel Barton grew up in Bristol, England and first experienced caving through an Outward Bound course when she was 16, which was the beginning of her life-long involvement with caving.
She moved to the United States six years after she started caving as a hobby[2] and in the early 1990s studied for her PhD at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, in Boulder, Colorado undertaking research into drug resistant tuberculosis.[3] After graduating, she carried out postdoctoral research with Norman R. Pace, who was also keen on caving. She became increasingly disinterested in medical microbiology and he encouraged her to consider applying modern microbiological technology, especially culture independent methods, to the microbiology of caves. This was the start of her independent research career. She was appointed the Ashland Endowed Professor of Integrative Science and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky University in 2003[4] and is currently a Professor and Director of the Integrated Bioscience Program at the University of Akron[5] [6]
Barton studies the microbiome of caves, especially adaptations to nutrient-limitation. She considers that the microbes can be involved in the formation of caves. She is also interested in the fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans, the causative agent of White-nose Syndrome in bats. These take advantage of her expertise in caving and have led her to caves in every continent, including Antarctica.[7]
Barton is the author or co-author of more than 25 publications on cave research and extremophile bacteria. These include:
Barton co-starred with Nancy Holler Aulenbach in the 2001 IMAX film Journey into Amazing Caves.In December 2006, Barton was featured on Animal Planet's The Real Lost World. Both featured Barton's research involving caves and the microbial life that inhabit these harsh environments.
In 2008, she was part of the TV movie documentary How Life Began and in the TV documentary series Catastrophe in the segment Snowball Earth. In 2010, she was in the segment 'Arrival' of the TV documentary series First Life. In 2012, she appeared in 'Defeating the Superbugs' of the TV documentary series Horizon.In 2012, she appeared in 'Defeating the Superbugs' in the TV documentary series Horizon.[8] [9] In 2013, she was in a short documentary named Bat House and in the TV Series How the Earth Works episode Ice Age or Hell Fire?.
She was one of the scientists featured in the History Channel special Journey to the Center of the World, documenting the exploration of the Guatemalan cave Naj Tunich, which was used as a sacred site by the ancient Maya.She was included in the children's book Extreme Scientists: Exploring Nature's Mysteries from Perilous Places (Scientist in the Field) by Donna M. Jackson.[10]