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2023

Fungi

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Articles 1 - 13 of 13

Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

First Draft Genome Of Thecaphora Frezii, Causal Agent Of Peanut Smut Disease, Renee S. Arias, Cinthia Conforto, Valerie A. Orner, Edgardo J. Carloni, Juan H. Soave, Alicia N. Massa, Marshall C. Lamb, Nelson Bernardi-Lima, Alejandro M. Rago Dec 2023

First Draft Genome Of Thecaphora Frezii, Causal Agent Of Peanut Smut Disease, Renee S. Arias, Cinthia Conforto, Valerie A. Orner, Edgardo J. Carloni, Juan H. Soave, Alicia N. Massa, Marshall C. Lamb, Nelson Bernardi-Lima, Alejandro M. Rago

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Objectives: The fungal pathogen Thecaphora frezii Carranza & Lindquist causes peanut smut, a severe disease currently endemic in Argentina. To study the ecology of T. frezii and to understand the mechanisms of smut resistance in peanut plants, it is crucial to know the genetics of this pathogen. The objective of this work was to isolate the pathogen and generate the first draft genome of T. frezii that will be the basis for analyzing its potential genetic diversity and its interaction with peanut cultivars. Our research group is working to identify peanut germplasm with smut resistance and to understand the genetics …


Opening The Black Box: Soil Microbial Communities In Field-Based Plant-Soil Feedback Experiments, Julia Kate Aaronson Aug 2023

Opening The Black Box: Soil Microbial Communities In Field-Based Plant-Soil Feedback Experiments, Julia Kate Aaronson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Plant-soil feedback is a process through which plants modify the properties of their associated soils, affecting their growth. PSF can play a key role in regulating plant growth and communities including altering plant invasion, rarity, and abundance. However, our understanding of the soil organisms that drive these plant growth responses is limited. Most studies treat soils as a ‘black box’ and do little to reveal which specific microbes or microbial communities may be responsible. This chapter examines two recent large PSF field experiments conducted in Minnesota, USA, and Jena, Germany. These experiments revealed that plants altered their soils, changing subsequent …


Potential Biological Control Agents For Nassella Neesiana (Poaceae) Invading Australian Native Grasslands, F. E. Anderson, M. L. Díaz, D. A. Mclaren Jun 2023

Potential Biological Control Agents For Nassella Neesiana (Poaceae) Invading Australian Native Grasslands, F. E. Anderson, M. L. Díaz, D. A. Mclaren

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

The introduction and proliferation of exotic stipoid grasses over the past 100 years seriously threatens agricultural productivity and the integrity of Australia's indigenous flora and fauna, particularly its grasslands (McLaren et al., 1998). The full effect on biodiversity by the spread of these grasses is unknown but likely to be major (Hocking, 1998). Conventional control techniques have not stopped the invasion adequately, so it is a priority to find control options to achieve an effective management strategy. A biological control project against Nassella trichotoma and N. neesiana was initiated in 1999 in Argentina. We report on the most recent …


Characterization Of A Novel Polyextremotolerant Fungus, Exophiala Viscosa, With Insights Into Its Melanin Regulation And Ecological Niche, Erin C. Carr, Quin Barton, Sarah Grambo, Mitchell Sullivan, Cecile M. Renfro, Alan Kuo, Jasmyn Pangilinan, Anna Lipzen, Keykhosrow Keymanesh, Emily Savage, Kerrie Barry, Igor V. Grigoriev, Wayne R. Riekhof, Steven D. Harris May 2023

Characterization Of A Novel Polyextremotolerant Fungus, Exophiala Viscosa, With Insights Into Its Melanin Regulation And Ecological Niche, Erin C. Carr, Quin Barton, Sarah Grambo, Mitchell Sullivan, Cecile M. Renfro, Alan Kuo, Jasmyn Pangilinan, Anna Lipzen, Keykhosrow Keymanesh, Emily Savage, Kerrie Barry, Igor V. Grigoriev, Wayne R. Riekhof, Steven D. Harris

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Black yeasts are polyextremotolerant fungi that contain high amounts of melanin in their cell wall and maintain a primar yeast form. These fungi grow in xeric, nutrient depletes environments which implies that they require highly flexible metabolisms and have been suggested to contain the ability to form lichen-like mutualisms with nearby algae and bacteria. However, the exact ecological niche and interactions between these fungi and their surrounding community are not well understood. We have isolated 2 novel black yeasts from the genus Exophiala that were recovered from dryland biological soil crusts. Despite notable differences in colony and cellular morphology, both …


Considerations For The Use Of Mycorrhizal Fungi Inoculants In Coal Mine Reclamation And Reforestation In Appalachia: A Guide Of Best Practices And Management Recommendations, Cole Hansen Reistrup May 2023

Considerations For The Use Of Mycorrhizal Fungi Inoculants In Coal Mine Reclamation And Reforestation In Appalachia: A Guide Of Best Practices And Management Recommendations, Cole Hansen Reistrup

Master's Projects and Capstones

Nearly all terrestrial plants form symbiotic relationships with mycorrhizal fungi. These beneficial soil microbes support plant health by increasing plants’ access to nutrients and water, protecting them from pathogens, improving soil properties, and more. A challenge to restoring forests on coal mined land in Appalachia is that mine soils are often degraded in a number of ways, including lacking mycorrhizal fungi, which makes mine soils difficult for trees to grow upon. Substantial improvements to coal mine reforestation success have been made since the development of the Forestry Reclamation Approach in 2005 that provides guidelines for how to create a suitable …


The Last Of Us In Therapy: How Mind-Controlling Fungi And Gut Bacteria Affect Your Mental Health, Anastasia Lyon May 2023

The Last Of Us In Therapy: How Mind-Controlling Fungi And Gut Bacteria Affect Your Mental Health, Anastasia Lyon

Journal of Pharmacology & Nutritional Sciences

The "psilocybiome" represents the mutually beneficial relationship between ourselves, our bacteria, and psychedelic drugs. This short review briefly discusses the benefits and limitations surrounding the potential for psychedelic therapy to synergize with gut bacteria to help regulate and maintain proper balance in the immune system, diet, and stress levels. Psychedelic therapy is a novel treatment strategy that has the potential to improve patient mental health, and, by identifying the types of gut bacteria present in patients, it can aid in personalizing medicine by determining how well their "psilocybiome" may respond.


Are Fungal Endophytes Of Fire Adapted Plants Also Fire Adapted?, Alexander C. Dowd May 2023

Are Fungal Endophytes Of Fire Adapted Plants Also Fire Adapted?, Alexander C. Dowd

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.


Comparing Fungal Communities In Tsuga Heterophylla Seedling Roots Across Nurse Log Decay Stages And The Forest Floor, Ellie Olpin, Reisha Foertsch Jan 2023

Comparing Fungal Communities In Tsuga Heterophylla Seedling Roots Across Nurse Log Decay Stages And The Forest Floor, Ellie Olpin, Reisha Foertsch

Summer Research

Nurse logs are fallen, decaying trees that have been shown to facilitate the survival, establishment, and growth of tree seedlings, therefore making vital contributions to forest regeneration. Plant-fungi interactions may play a role in influencing seedling survival across nurse log decay and the forest floor. We sought to examine how fungal communities in seedling roots change between nurse logs and forest floor as well as across nurse log decay stages. To study this, we collected western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla) seedlings (5-10 cm) from nurse logs of each decay stage and the forest floor at three field sites on the Olympic …


Difference In The Inhibitory Effects Of Violacein On Various Yeast Isolate Strains From The Hudson Valley Region, Lilah Dorothy Blaker Jan 2023

Difference In The Inhibitory Effects Of Violacein On Various Yeast Isolate Strains From The Hudson Valley Region, Lilah Dorothy Blaker

Senior Projects Spring 2023

Violacein is a purple pigmented compound produced by numerous bacterial species including Janthinobacterium lividum. Studies into violacein have found it to have a multitude of medicinal properties, from antifungal, antibiotic, to antitumor activity. Research has shown that violacein significantly inhibits both tumor and fungal growth and it has been shown to have higher cyotoxicity in pathogenic or cancerous cells than in healthy ones, giving it great potential as for use as a pharmaceutical drug in humans, alongside the fact that as a bacterial compound it’s easier and faster to produce than some other drugs. Violacein has also been shown to …


Potentials Of Pleurotus: Reimagining The Relationship Between Cattle And Brewer's Spent Grain, Zoe Stojkovic Jan 2023

Potentials Of Pleurotus: Reimagining The Relationship Between Cattle And Brewer's Spent Grain, Zoe Stojkovic

Senior Projects Spring 2023

Brewer’s spent grains (BSGs), a byproduct from beer production, are generated in excess globally. Most often, they are sold or given to proximate cattle farmers for use as feed. However, spent grain can also be used as a medium for fungal cultivation. Given that certain fungal species have the capability to degrade lignin and produce protein, the cultivation of fungi on spent grains may serve to enhance the nutritional profile of the grains for their use as cattle feed. This project is an effort to determine the compatibility of fungal cultivation with BSGs in order to both improve upon cattle …


Diversification Of Ergot Alkaloid Biosynthesis In Natural And Engineered Fungi, Kyle Austin Davis Jan 2023

Diversification Of Ergot Alkaloid Biosynthesis In Natural And Engineered Fungi, Kyle Austin Davis

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Ergot alkaloids are a complex family of tryptophan-derived mycotoxins produced by a diverse range of fungi that occupy a wide variety of ecological niches including soil saprotrophs, plant endophytes, pathogens of plants or insects, and opportunistic pathogens of humans and other mammals. Ergot alkaloids are a similarly diverse family of chemicals that elicit a variety of pharmacological activities in animals due to their resemblance to neurotransmitters and high binding affinity for neurological receptors, including those that bind adrenaline, dopamine, and 5-hydroxytryptamine receptors. These structural similarities allow us to create medicines aimed at treating a range of neurological diseases and disorders …


The Effects Of Ericoid Inoculum Source And Nutrient Addition On Growth And Reproduction In Highbush Blueberry, Ilana Williams Jan 2023

The Effects Of Ericoid Inoculum Source And Nutrient Addition On Growth And Reproduction In Highbush Blueberry, Ilana Williams

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Ericoid mycorrhizal fungi (EMF) form symbiotic relationships with ericaceous plants such as Vaccinium corymbosum, or highbush blueberry and assist in nutrient acquisition. EMF help plants thrive in stressful environments by increasing the area in which roots can uptake water and nutrients. In plant-mycorrhizal symbioses, nutrient uptake may depend on the identity of the fungal partner. Therefore, differently sourced mycorrhizal fungi could show differences in nutrient uptake ability. Here, I hypothesized that inoculation of V. corymbosum with EMF would enhance plant growth and investment in reproduction, and that effect would be more pronounced for plants in low nutrient conditions. I also …


Using Qpcr And Microscopy To Assess The Impact Of Harvesting And Weather Conditions On The Relationship Between Alternaria Alternata And Alternaria Spp. Spores In Rural And Urban Atmospheres, Godfrey Philliam Apangu, Carl Alexander Frisk, Beverley Adams-Groom, Geoffrey M. Petch, Mary Hanson, Carsten Ambelas Skjøth Jan 2023

Using Qpcr And Microscopy To Assess The Impact Of Harvesting And Weather Conditions On The Relationship Between Alternaria Alternata And Alternaria Spp. Spores In Rural And Urban Atmospheres, Godfrey Philliam Apangu, Carl Alexander Frisk, Beverley Adams-Groom, Geoffrey M. Petch, Mary Hanson, Carsten Ambelas Skjøth

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Alternaria is a plant pathogen and human allergen. Alternaria alternata is one of the most abundant fungal spores in the air. The purpose of this study was to examine whether Alternaria spp. spore concentrations can be used to predict the abundance and spatio-temporal pattern of A. alternata spores in the air. This was investigated by testing the hypothesis that A. alternata dominates airborne Alternaria spp. spores and varies spatio-temporally. Secondarily, we aimed at investigating the relationship between airborne Alternaria spp. spores and the DNA profile of A. alternata spores between two proximate (~ 7 km apart) sites. These were examined …