Kyle J. Card, Ph.D.

Kyle J. Card, Ph.D.

HHMI Hanna H. Gray Postdoctoral Fellow · Cleveland Clinic Research

cardkyle1@gmail.com · 517-643-1747 · kylejcard.com
9500 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, OH 44195

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Education and Training

  • 2020 – Present

    Postdoctoral Research Fellow

    Cleveland Clinic Research

    Department of Genomic Sciences and Systems Biology

    Advisor: Dr. Jacob Scott

  • 2014 – 2020

    Ph.D. in Microbiology & Molecular Genetics and Ecology, Evolutionary Biology & Behavior

    Michigan State University

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics

    Dissertation Title: The Effects of Genetic Background on the Evolution of Antibiotic Resistance and Its Fitness Costs

    Advisor: Dr. Richard Lenski

  • 2011 – 2013

    B.S. with Honors in Microbiology

    Michigan State University

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics

    Advisor: Dr. Frank Dazzo

Additional Research Experience

  • 2012 – 2014

    Undergraduate and Postbaccalaureate Research

    Michigan State University

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics

    Advisor: Dr. Frank Dazzo

Peer-Reviewed Publications

578 citations · h-index 7 · Google Scholar, as of July 1, 2026

  1. Card K.J.*, Crozier D.*, Durmaz A., Gray J., Creary J., Stocks A., Maltas J., Bonomo R.A., Burke Z.D.C., Scott J.G.

    Evolution under vancomycin selection drives divergent collateral sensitivity patterns in Staphylococcus aureus.

    Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 122, e2507962122 (2025). doi ↗

  2. Gopalakrishnan V.*, Crozier D.*, Card K.J.*, Krishnan N.P., McClure E., Pelesko J., Williamson D.F.K., Webster N., Nichol D., Mandal S., Bonomo R.A., Scott J.G.

    Science Forum: A low-cost, open-source evolutionary bioreactor and its educational use.

    eLife 11, e83067 (2022). doi ↗

  3. Jordan J.A., Lenski R.E., Card K.J.

    Idiosyncratic fitness costs of ampicillin-resistant mutants derived from a long-term experiment with Escherichia coli.

    Antibiotics 11, 347 (2022). doi ↗

  4. Weaver D.T., McElvany B.D., Gopalakrishnan V., Card K.J., Crozier D., Dhawan A., Dinh M.N., Dolson E., Farrokhian N., Hitomi M., Ho E., Jagdish T., King E.S., Cadnum J.F., Donskey C.J., Krishnan N., Kuzmin G., Li J., Maltas J., Mo J., Pelesko J., Scarborough J.A., Sedor G., Tian E., An G.C., Diehl S., Scott J.G.

    UV decontamination of personal protective equipment with idle laboratory biosafety cabinets during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    PLoS One 16, e0241734 (2021). doi ↗

  5. Card K.J., Jordan J.A., Lenski R.E.

    Idiosyncratic variation in the fitness costs of tetracycline-resistance mutations in Escherichia coli.

    Evolution 75, 1230–1238 (2021). doi ↗

  6. Card K.J., Thomas M., Graves J.L., Barrick J.E., Lenski R.E.

    Genomic evolution of antibiotic resistance is contingent on genetic background following a long-term experiment with Escherichia coli.

    Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 118, e2016886118 (2021). doi ↗

  7. Card K.J., LaBar T., Gomez J.B., Lenski R.E.

    Historical contingency in the evolution of antibiotic resistance after decades of relaxed selection.

    PLoS Biology 17, e3000397 (2019). doi ↗

  8. Lenski R.E., Wiser M.J., Blount Z.D., Nahum J.R., Morris J.J., Zaman L., Turner C.B., Wade B.D., Maddamsetti R., Burmeister A.R., Baird E.J., Bundy J., Grant N.A., Card K.J., Rowles M., Weatherspoon K., Papoulis S.E., Sullivan R., Clark C., Mulka J.S., Hajela N.

    Sustained fitness gains and variability in fitness trajectories in the long-term evolution experiment with Escherichia coli.

    Proceedings of the Royal Society London B 282, 20152292 (2015). doi ↗

  9. Ji Z., Card K.J., Dazzo F.B.

    CMEIAS JFrad: A digital computing tool to discriminate the fractal geometry of landscape architectures and spatial patterns of individual cells in microbial biofilms.

    Microbial Ecology 69, 710–720 (2015). doi ↗

* Equal contribution · Underline = direct mentee

Fellowships, Grants, and Awards

  • 2021 – Present

    Hanna H. Gray Fellowship

    Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI)

    Postdoctoral award phase: $514,000 in salary and research support | Faculty award phase: $1.48 million in direct research support and $280,000 in indirect costs over four years | HHMI will provide four years of complete funding, covering salary and benefits, to Gilliam Fellows who decide to pursue a postdoctoral position in my lab.

  • 2020 – 2021

    Diversity Supplement

    National Cancer Institute (NIH/NCI)

  • 2020

    Ralph Evans Award

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics | Michigan State University

  • 2019 – 2020

    BEACON Center Grant

    National Science Foundation (NSF)

    Lenski R.E., Grant N.A., Card K.J., Bundy J. — BEACON’s Legacy of Research and Diversity in the Long-Term Evolution Experiment

    Funded: $89,999

  • 2019

    Russell B. DuVall Scholar Award

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics | Michigan State University

  • 2018 – 2019

    BEACON Center Grant

    National Science Foundation (NSF)

    Grant N.A., Card K.J., Lenski R.E., Thomas M., Graves J.L. — Correlated Responses in Metabolism and Antibiotic Resistance in the LTEE.

    Funded: $94,583

  • 2017 – 2020

    Gilliam Fellowship for Advanced Study

    Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI)

    $138,000

  • 2017

    Rudolf Hugh Scholarship Award

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics | Michigan State University

  • 2016 – 2017

    BEACON Center Grant

    National Science Foundation (NSF)

    Connelly B., Card K.J., Kerr B., Lenski R.E., Zaman L. — An Empirical Test of the Evolution of Cooperation by the Hankshaw Effect

    Funded: $79,791

  • 2013

    William S. Sayer Award

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics | Michigan State University

Contributed Presentations

  • 2026
    Evolution Conference Selected Talk
  • 2026
    HHMI Investigator Meeting Poster
  • 2026
    Vaughn Cooper Lab Seminar | University of Pittsburgh Invited Talk
  • 2025
    Department of Biology Seminar | Case Western Reserve University Invited Talk
  • 2025
    HHMI Investigator Meeting Poster
  • 2024
    HHMI Investigator Meeting Poster
  • 2023
    Microbial Population Biology Gordon Research Conference Poster
  • 2023
    HHMI Investigator Meeting Poster
  • 2022
    Meetings in Ecology and Evolution: Evolutionary Dynamics and Processes Poster
  • 2022
    Ecology and Evolution Graduate Program Seminar | University of Pittsburgh Invited Talk
  • 2022
    HHMI Investigator Meeting: Microbes and the Host Response Poster
  • 2021
    BEACON Congress | Michigan State University Selected Talk
  • 2021
    Case Comprehensive Center Annual Scientific Retreat Poster
  • 2021
    Evolution Conference Selected Talk
  • 2021
    Club Evolutionary Medicine Seminar Series | Duke University Invited Talk
  • 2019
    Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (EEB) Department Seminar | University of Michigan Invited Talk
  • 2019
    Microbial Population Biology Gordan Research Seminar Selected Talk
  • 2019
    Microbial Population Biology Gordon Research Conference Poster
  • 2019
    Molecular Mechanisms in Evolution Gordon Research Seminar Selected Talk
  • 2019
    Molecular Mechanisms in Evolution Gordon Research Conference Poster
  • 2019
    Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, and Behavior (EEBB) Colloquium Seminar Selected Talk
  • 2018
    BEACON NSF Site Visit Poster
  • 2018
    Gilliam Annual Fellows Meeting Poster
  • 2018
    BEACON Congress Selected Talk
  • 2018
    Population, Evolution, and Quantitative Genetics Conference Poster
  • 2018
    Midwest Ecology and Evolution Conference Selected Talk
  • 2017
    BEACON NSF Site Visit | Michigan State University Invited Talk
  • 2017
    Gilliam Annual Fellows Meeting Poster
  • 2017
    Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, and Behavior (EEBB) Colloquium Seminar Selected Talk
  • 2017
    Midwest Ecology and Evolution Conference Selected Talk
  • 2015
    BEACON Congress Poster
  • 2013
    University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum Poster

Teaching Experience

  • 2022

    Guest Lecturer – Genes, Evolution, and Ecology

    CWRU

    Dr. Arvid Ågren invited me to guest lecture on experimental evolution for his freshman-level biology course, “Genes, Evolution, and Ecology.” I discussed how experimental evolution emerged contemporaneously with Darwin as a direct challenge to gradualism and a complementary approach to the comparative method. I also introduced the E. coli Long-Term Evolution Experiment to the students and highlighted several key studies. Lastly, I presented on contingency, first in the context of human history and then its implications in the evolution of drug resistance.

  • 2016

    Teaching Assistant – Fundamentals of Microbiology

    MSU

  • 2015

    Teaching Assistant – Advanced Microbiology Laboratory

    MSU

Mentorship

  • 2026 – Present
    Drew Sager Undergraduate · Notre Dame University
  • 2026 – Present
    Brandon Kakuda Undergraduate · CWRU
  • 2025 – Present
    Aryan Agarwal High School Student
  • 2025 – Present
    Rohan Desai Undergraduate · Vanderbilt University
  • 2025 – Present
    Shiva Ayyar Undergraduate · CWRU
  • 2024 – Present
    Justin Creary* Postbaccalaureate · Cleveland Clinic
  • 2024 – Present
    Amira Stocks* Undergraduate · CWRU
  • 2022 – 2023
    Donovan Wu Undergraduate · CWRU
  • 2022
    Ashwin Balakrishnan High School Student · Hawken Upper School
  • 2021 – 2023
    Dena Crozier* Medical Student · CWRU
  • 2019 – 2022
    Jalin Jordan* Undergraduate · MSU
  • 2016 – 2017
    Thomas LaBar* Doctoral Student · MSU
  • 2016 – 2019
    Jasper Gomez* Undergraduate · MSU
  • 2015
    Tanush Jagdish Undergraduate · Kalamazoo College
  • 2015
    Lucas Warner Undergraduate · MSU
  • 2014
    Jacob Wright Undergraduate · MSU

* Led to co-authored paper(s)

Professional Development

  • 2018 – 2019

    Internship at the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services

    Infectious Disease Division

  • 2017 – 2020

    Broadening Experiences in Scientific Training (BEST) Trainee

Service and Outreach

Journal peer review

The American Naturalist · Ecology and Evolution · eLife · Evolution, Medicine, and Public Health · G3 · mSphere · mSystems · Nature Communications · Nature Microbiology · npj Antimicrobials and Resistance · PLoS Computational Biology · PLoS Pathogens · PNAS · Science Advances · Scientific Reports

Ad hoc / panels

NSF BEACON Center · Swiss National Science Foundation · UK Research and Innovation

  • 2026 – Present

    Rare Neurological Disorder Foundation (RNDF) Advisory Board Member

    As a member of the Clinical & Neuroscience Council, I provide strategic insights, sector expertise, and governance guidance during RNDF’s redevelopment and national expansion. We advise on organizational structure, program development, fellowship curriculum refinement, national partnership strategy, governance standards, and ethical oversight.

  • 2023 – Present

    Scientific Officer for Rise Up: Northeast Ohio

    I evaluate high school student proposals and develop experiments for in-class research projects.

  • 2021

    Experimental Evolution Session Chair and Moderator

    Evolution Conference

  • 2019 – 2020

    Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Task Force Member

    American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

    I was a member of a blue-ribbon Task Force with the charge to elevate and embody inclusive diversity with equity within the ASM. To this end, we comprehensively reviewed current policies and procedures to identify deficiencies within the Society that hinder DEI efforts; contracted and worked with a third-party DEI consultant – the Kaleidoscope Group – to develop a Member Perception Survey; and advanced guiding principles and vision statements to direct future work and activities, along with codifying benchmarks for success. We reported our findings and recommendations in a report presented to the Board of Directors. The full report may be found here.

  • 2019 – 2020

    Member of the Select Group for Graduate Curriculum Redesign

    Participated in the strategic planning process for the Microbiology & Molecular Genetics Department at Michigan State University, focusing on curriculum redesign. The committee members and I advocated for a shift away from a curriculum focused on teaching facts to one that emphasizes critical thinking, the nature, practice, and philosophy of science, and epistemological thinking. We met with department leaders to discuss introducing a new course, modeled after the R3 Initiative at Johns Hopkins. My colleague, Dr. Zachary Blount, now leads this initiative as the Director of Graduate Education Innovation.

  • 2018

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics Host for Seminar Speaker Adam Lauring

    Michigan State University

  • 2018

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics Host for Seminar Speaker Michael Baym

    Michigan State University

  • 2017 – 2019

    Darwin Discovery Day Volunteer

    I taught the public about experimental evolution and the Long-Term Evolution Experiment (LTEE) at the Michigan State University Museum.

  • 2017

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics Student Coordinator for Faculty Candidate, Dr. Jeffrey Barrick

    Michigan State University

  • 2015 – 2020

    BioMolecular Science Gateway Program Recruitment

    Michigan State University

  • 2015 – 2016

    Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics Faculty Meeting Representative

    Michigan State University

  • 2015

    Microbiology Day Volunteer

    Impression 5 Science Museum

    I taught the public about bacterial chemotaxis and motility.

Media Coverage

Society Memberships

  • 2023 – Present

    American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)

  • 2020 – Present

    Society for the Study of Evolution (SSE)

  • 2015 – Present

    American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

  • 2014 – Present

    American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

References

  • Dr. Richard E. Lenski

    Professor, Michigan State University

    Department of Microbiology, Genetics, and Immunology

    567 Wilson Rd., Room 6177

    East Lansing, MI 48824

    lenski@msu.edu

  • Dr. Jacob G. Scott

    Professor, Case Western Reserve University

    Department of Molecular Medicine, School of Medicine

    2111 E. 96th Street, NE6

    Cleveland, OH 44106

    scottj10@ccf.org

  • Dr. Robert A. Bonomo

    Professor, Case Western Reserve University

    Department of Medicine, School of Medicine

    12200 Fairhill Rd.

    Cleveland, OH 44120

    robert.bonomo@med.va.gov