Fungi of the Great Lakes Sand Dunes
My dissertation work focused on nitrogen deposition as an aspect of global change that may have a particularly large impact on nutrient deficient, primary successional systems and the inhabiting microbes. I explored how increases in resources within dune systems may alter communities of associated root endophytic fungi, which in turn indirectly influence above-ground processes through the native dune building grass, Ammophila breviligulata, on the shores of Lake Michigan.
Does Nitrogen Addition & Endophyte Symbiosis Alter Patterns of Plant Succession?Increases in nutrients and association with microbial mutualists are two ways in which a plant may increase dominance within their community. We use a field-based approach at a long-term experimental dunes site at Leelanau State park on Lake Michigan to conduct annual plant community surveys to determine the effects both biotic (endophyte mutualism) and abiotic (nitrogen fertilization) conditions may have on shifting successional trajectories in a primary system.
Check out this work at doi.org/10.1007/s00442-023-05362-5 |
Does Resource Availability Influence Plant "Mycobiome" Interactions?Plants host multiple fungal symbionts (their "mycobiome") that can have direct effects on host populations, along with indirect effects on communities and ecosystems. Studies of plant mycobiomes are often limited to understanding interactions between single classes of symbionts and hosts. The bulk of my research investigates interactions between co-occurring fungal symbionts within plants and shifts in microbial communities induced by nutrient addition. I use both culture-based and molecular techniques to explore interactions between fungal root endophyte communities and aboveground systemic endophyte, Epichloe, within dune building host grass Ammophila breviligulata at our long-term field site.
Check out my published work in Journal of Fungi's special issue "Fungal Endophytes of Grasses" doi.org/10.3390/jof8111142 |
Can We Use Life History Traits to Predict Root Endophyte Community Assembly?In natural communities, differences in life-history strategies among species allow for coexistence and help maintain biodiversity. One useful framework for understanding life history traits is Grimes' C-S-R (Competitor-Stress Tolerator-Ruderal) model which has been well characterized in plants. However, it is less understood whether micro-organisms demonstrate similar life-history strategies. In this study, we characterize life history traits associated with competitive ability and stress tolerance of fungal root endophytes in culture.
Using culture-based methods, we measure in-vitro growth rates of fungal endophyte taxa collected from roots of Ammophila breviligulata, across a resource availability gradient to address whether growth rates differed between rare and common fungal taxa under different resource conditions. |
Education Research
As a passionate educator, I have become increasingly interested in pedagogy as a tool in creating more equitable learning spaces for STEM within the academy. Below is a preview of some of my early education research results comparing student engagement within online versus in person discussion environments during the COVID19 pandemic. This poster was awarded 2nd place among graduate student education research at the National Association of Biology Teacher's (NABT) Annual Conference in 2022 and presented at the Gordon Research Seminar and conference for Undergraduate Biology education in June 2023. I look forward to continuing to collaborate on education research to further positive learning experiences in STEM.
Feel free to contact me for the pre-recorded voice over!
Feel free to contact me for the pre-recorded voice over!