Sheila M. Macfie

Sheila M. Macfie is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biology at Western University. She is affiliated with the Faculty of Science and leads the Macfie Lab, located in the Biological & Geological Sciences Building. Her research focuses on metal-tolerance mechanisms in plants, emphasizing eco-physiological perspectives, rhizosphere dynamics, and intracellular compartmentation. She holds teaching awards, including the Marilyn Robinson Award for Excellence in Teaching and the Faculty of Science Award of Excellence in Teaching.

Dr. Macfie’s education includes a Ph.D. from the University of Alberta, and M.Sc. and B.Sc. from Queen’s University. Her lab investigates heavy metal interactions with plants, microbial communities, and environmental factors such as compost application. She collaborates with institutions like the Argonne National Laboratory and the Rotman Institute of Philosophy. Despite not currently accepting new graduate students, her lab has supervised numerous MSc, PhD, and undergraduate researchers in areas like phytoremediation, nanotoxicology, and metal speciation.

Her research outputs span over three decades, addressing topics such as cadmium stress in Arabidopsis, silver nanoparticle impacts on soybean nodules, and microbial community shifts in contaminated soils. Key techniques in her work include synchrotron-based imaging and chemical speciation modeling with Visual MINTEQ. Awards recognize both her academic contributions and teaching excellence.