Agroecology and Plant Interactions
The fundamental interactions between plants and the organisms that they interact with as well as the application of chemical ecology to solve problems in agriculture. By better understanding the evolution and interactions between plants, insects, microorganisms and the metabolites that connect them, we find potential sustainable strategies for pest management and agricultural practices.
Topics
- Plant-Herbivore interactions
- Insect Agroecology
- Insect Ecology
- Predator-Prey Interactions
- Mating Disruption
- Precision Agriculture
- Evolution of Chemical Defenses
Jared Ali
Acting Chair, Intercollege Graduate Degree Program in Ecology; Director of the Center for Chemical Ecology; Associate Professor of Entomology
Behavior and chemical ecology of multi-trophic interactions, including plant responses to below-ground herbivory and nematode. Insect community ecology, chemical ecology, and coevolution. Trophic cascades, above- and below-ground interactions,…
Surinder Chopra
Professor of Maize Genetics Regulation of flavonoid biosynthesis during plant development and plant-pathogen interaction. Epigenetic regulation and allele specific patterns.
Francisco Dini-Andreote
Assistant Professor of Plant Science Microbiome, plant-microbe interactions, and community ecology. Harnessing the plant microbiome to enhance protection against biotic and abiotic stresses.
Gary Felton
Professor and Department Head of Entomology Plant-herbivore interactions. Adaptive responses of herbivores to plant defenses. Herbivore cues recognized by plants with specific focus on biochemical and molecular analysis of salivary secretions.
David Geiser
Professor of Mycology Molecular evolutionary genetics of pathogenic and toxigenic fungi.
Christina Grozinger
Director of the Center for Pollinator Research; Director of the Insect Biodiversity Center; Publius Vergilius Maro Professor and Huck Scholar of Entomology Genomics of social behavior and health in bees
Sara Hermann
Assistant Professor of Arthropod Ecology and Trophic Interactions
Kelli Hoover
Professor of Entomology Invasive species of forest insects; plant-insect-entomopathogen interactions; impacts of plants on pathogenesis; biological control of hemlock woolly adelgid
Seogchan Kang
Professor of Plant Pathology & Environmental Microbiology Genetic and cellular mechanisms underpinning plant-fungal interactions with Arabidopsis thaliana and Fusarium oxysporum as a model system. Molecular genetics and comparative genomics of fungal plant pathogens. Bioinformatics.
Erika Machtinger
Assistant Professor of Entomology Veterinary entomology, including vector-borne diseases. Focus is on ecology and behavior associated with host-parasite interactions to improve or develop new control methods.
James Marden
Associate Director of Operations, Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences; Professor of Biology How physiological variation within species affects their ecology and evolution. Primarily with insects, but recently also with plants, and a particular interest in allelic variation in the pathogen resistance genes of tropical trees.
Harland Patch
Assistant Research Professor; Research Associate of Entomology
Tanya Renner
Assistant Professor of Entomology Evolution of chemical and structural defense. Molecular evolution, evolutionary genomics, and transcriptomics. Origins and evolution of carnivorous plants.
Rudolf Schilder
Associate Professor of Entomology and Biology Comparative & ecological physiology of insect and mammalian locomotion.
Ming Tien
Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology Characterization and biochemical analysis of cellulose synthesis in a variety of organisms. Mechanism and regulation of fungal degradation of lignin. Dissimilatory Iron reduction.
Yinong Yang
Professor, Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology Signal perception and transduction in rice-pathogen interactions. Molecular and genomic strategies for increasing disease resistance and drought tolerance in cereal crops.
Fang (Rose) Zhu
Assistant Professor of Entomology Understanding the mechanisms and evolution of insects’ adaptation to chemical stresses in their environment.