Aaron Lynne

Dr. Aaron Lynne is Professor and Chair of the Department of Biological Sciences at Sam Houston State University. He holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Pathogenesis from North Dakota State University. His research program focuses on two primary areas: developing microbial clocks for postmortem interval estimation through decomposition microbiome analysis, and investigating antimicrobial resistance mechanisms in enteric pathogens like Salmonella and E. coli.

Research interests include:

• Characterizing microbial succession patterns during human decomposition under varied environmental conditions
• Investigating plasmid-mediated antimicrobial resistance transmission
• Developing metagenomic approaches for forensic applications
• Analyzing virulence factors in foodborne pathogens

Dr. Lynne's publications demonstrate consistent focus on microbial forensics with recent work emphasizing machine learning applications for decomposition analysis. Earlier research established foundational knowledge on Salmonella plasmid biology and resistance mechanisms. His laboratory participates in the Small World Initiative for antibiotic discovery.

He directs an active research team at the Lynne Research Lab and collaborates nationally on decomposition ecology projects funded by the National Institute of Justice. Courses taught include General Microbiology, Virology, and Molecular Biology, along with specialized seminars linking science and society.