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| Dept. of Biological Sciences |
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Research Interests |
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Symbiotic nitrogen fixing root
nodules form on the roots of legumes as a result of interactions between a
legume host plant and soil bacteria in the Rhizobiaceae. Nitrogen fixation
within nodules is a major route for nitrogen to enter the food chain.
Symbiotic nitrogen fixation allows the legume host to thrive in the
absence of added nitrogen fertilizer and adds bioavailable nitrogen to
agricultural systems and the environment. My research group's
emphasis is to understand the development of symbiotic nitrogen fixing root
nodules. We are primarily interested in stages after initiation of nodule
development, those of invasion of the root and developing nodule
by rhizobia as well as nodule organogenesis. Most of our current work uses
Medicago truncatula, which has been selected as a model species for
genetic and genomic studies by an increasing number of researchers.
Current projects in the lab include: Characterization of two mutants of Medicago truncatula, nip and sli, including a collaborative effort to clone nip by a positional approach Role of the ENOD8 protein in nodules Signaling pathways during nodulation mediated by the MtIRE gene's product Lipid signaling during nodulation by N-acylethanolamine |
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