Area of Interest:

- Recreational and shellfish harvesting water quality
- Marine microbial ecology
- Coastal and estuarine water quality
- Environmental microbiology
- Microbial contaminants in recreational and shellfish harvesting waters
- Molecular applications and novel methods development

Education:

University of Southern California. Ph. D. Marine Biology, 1998.
    Dissertation:  Fates of Viruses in the Marine Environment

Carnegie Mellon University. B.S. Molecular Biology, 1991.

Professional Background:

Dr. Noble's research program bridges environmental microbiology and marine microbial ecology.  A main thread of Dr. Noble’s work is the application of novel molecular techniques for applied and  basic science.  She has developed a range of rapid water quality test methods, including those for E. coli, Enterococcus, and Vibrio species and studies the dynamics of microbial contaminants contributed through stormwater runoff to high priority recreational and shellfish harvesting waters.  A specific interest is conducting research to partition anthropogenic inputs from reservoir populations in coastal ecosystems, thereby permitting development of accurate models.  In addition to applied research, Dr. Noble is interested in the dynamics of marine microbial food webs, specifically focusing on viral control of bacterial and algal populations, and the interplay among viruses, bacteria including Bdellovibrio), phytoplankton, grazers, and biogeochemical cycling in estuarine and coastal marine environments. Current research projects include:

Determining sources of fecal contamination at Mill Dam Creek, in coastal Virginia

Development of hybridization assays for water quality assessment (Industry partners)

Linkage of Bacterial Pathogens to Human infectious Disease in an Estuary Subjected to Extreme Climatic Events (NSF/NIH)

Training the next generation of minority students in state of the art microbial ecology methods:  The Center for the Study of Molecular Microbial Ecology - HBCU RISE Program (NSF)

Understanding the dynamics of microbial contaminant fate and transport in rural and agricultural lands (USDA)

Monitoring, Prioritization, and Assessment of Ocean Outfalls of Stormwater in Dare County, North Carolina (State of NC)

If interested in any of the previous projects listed, please contact Dr. Noble, as she is actively searching for qualified students interested in pursuing graduate education at UNC Chapel Hill

To view a video about the research of Dr. Noble and others at the Institute of Marine Sciences, go to http://gazette.unc.edu/hurricane.html

Dr. Noble is also the Director of the UNC Chapel Hill Institute for the Environment Morehead City Field Site which was opened in Fall 2003. For more information on the Institute for the Environment at UNC Chapel Hill, please visit: http://www.ie.unc.edu/

For more information about the Morehead City Field Site operating at IMS please visit http://www.ie.unc.edu/content/education/field_sites/details.cfm?SITE_ID=3

As part of the Institute for the Environment, Dr. Noble is also coordinating research efforts to develop interdisciplinary research programs that will study the coastal zone as a hybrid ecosystem of both natural and man-made elements. Given Dr. Noble's work in environmental microbiology and water quality, she is also shares a joint appointment with both the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering and the Department of Marine Sciences at UNC Chapel Hill. 

Selected Publications:

Recent Publications:

Danovaro, R.,Corinaldesi, C., Dell’Anno, A., Fuhrman, J. A., Middelburg, J. J., Noble, R.T., and C. Suttle.  Marine viruses and climate change.2010. FEMS Microbiology Reviews. Article first published online:
4 JAN 2011. 2011:1-42.

Parker, J. P., D. A. McIntyre, and R. T. Noble.  2010.  Characterizing fecal contamination in stormwater runoff in coastal North Carolina, USA.  Water Research. 44 (14): 4186-4194

Gronewold, A. D., Myers, L., Swall, J. L., and R. T. Noble.  2010.  Addressing Uncertainty in Fecal Indicator Bacteria Inactivation Rates.  Water Research.  45(2), 652–664.

Jacquet, S., Takeshi, M., Noble, R. T., Peduzzi, P., and Wilhelm, S. W.  2010. Viruses in aquatic ecosystems: important advancements of the last 20 years and prospects for the future in the field of microbial oceanography and limnology. Advances in Oceanography and Limnology. 1 (1):71-101.

Stumpf, C. H., M. F. Piehler, S. Thompson, and R. T. Noble. 2010.  Loading of fecal indicator bacteria in tidal creek headwaters:  hydrographic, meteorological, and terrestrial runoff relationships.  Journal of Water Research. 44(16):4704-15. Epub 2010 Jul 13.

Converse, R. R., Griffith, J. F. and R. T. Noble.  2009.  Rapid QPCR-Based Assays for Fecal Bacteroides and Enterococcus Speciation as Tools for Assessing Fecal Contamination in Recreational Waters. Journal of Water Research. 43(19):4828-37.

Coulliette, A. D., Money, E. S., Serre, M. L., R. T. Noble. 2009.  Space/time analysis of fecal pollution and rainfall in an eastern North carolina estuary. Environmental Science and Technology. 43(10):3728–3735.

Sagarin, R., Carlsson, J., Duval, M., Freshwater, W., Godfrey, M., Litaker, W., Muñoz, R., Noble, R., Schultz, T., Wynne, B. 2009.  Bringing Molecular Tools into Environmental Resource Management:  Untangling the Molecules to Policy Pathway. PLoS Biology.7(3):426-430.

Comeau, A. M.,  and R. T. Noble. 2009.  Preparation and application of fluorescently-labeled virus particles.  Limnology and Oceanography Methods. In press.

Danovaro, R., Dell’Anno, A., Corinaldesi, C.,Magagnini, M., Noble, R., Tamburini, C., and M. Weinbauer. 2008. Major viral impact on the function of global deep-sea ecosystems.  Nature 454:1084–1087.

Wetz, J. J., A. D. Blackwood, J. S. Fries, Z. F. Williams, and R. T. Noble. 2008. Trends in total Vibrio spp. and Vibrio vulnificus concentrations in the eutrophic Neuse River Estuary, North Carolina, during storm events. Aquatic Microbial Ecology. 53:141-149.

Morris, C. A., Blackwood, A. D., Kirs, M., Buttigieg,  N. D., Morgan, R. R., Hogan, J., Weeks, I., Noble, R. T.  2008.  Comparison of Transcription-Mediated Amplification and growth-based methods for the quantitation of Enterococcus in environmental waters.  Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 74: 3319-3320.