I am a plant biologist with a strong background and interest in biodiversity and conservation of North American lichens and bryophytes. With climate change and increasing human alteration of the environment it is critical that we understand all the components of a healthy ecosystem. Bryophytes and lichens can serve as important indicators of air quality and ecosystem change, as they respond much more rapidly than vascular plants. Related to my interest in plant biodiversity and conservation is my passion for studying plant secondary metabolism (i.e. phytochemistry). In particular, I’m interested in studying the chemical interactions between plants, bacteria and fungi and cataloging biologically and taxonomically useful compounds found in plants and fungi. I use a multidisciplinary approach to investigate these topics including floristic surveys, ecological studies, herbarium-based research, phytochemical isolation and structural elucidation techniques including chromatography, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and mass spectrometry (MS). Below I outline three main areas for undergraduate research with examples of past, current and future research projects that I am prepared to supervise and that integrate my overarching research themes.

Below are some examples of a few ongoing and future research projects involving undergraduate students.

I. Bryophyte and Lichen Diversity and Conservation in Pacific Northwest Prairies

Funded by grants from the Washington Native Plant Society, The Evergreen Foundation, Kutter Fund, S.U.R.F. and The Center for Natural Lands Management

The Evergreen State College serves as a nexus for Puget Sound prairie education and research. For decades, faculty and students have been actively involved in prairie ecological research, floristics and restoration projects in partnership with state and federal agencies and local conservation organizations. Since 2010, my research group has been a part of these efforts with our primary focus on documenting prairie bryophyte and lichen diversity and understanding the impacts of current management practices on rare species. Undergraduate students have been involved in all of these projects. Several of my former students co-authored peer-reviewed publications from this work, in addition to presenting talks and posters at regional conferences. Below are a few examples of projects that have been conducted or are currently underway involving undergraduate students (please also see my CV for publications and funding details):

a. Developing a checklist of soil-dwelling bryophytes and lichens of the South Puget Sound prairies of western Washington. Undergraduate students participated in a multi-year study to develop a checklist of ground-dwelling bryophytes and lichens from seven Puget Sound prairie sites over the period of 2012-2014. In addition to providing the first published comprehensive species list for bryophyte and lichen taxa for this habitat, we also reported the presence of four State-listed lichens considered rare by the Washington Natural Heritage Program. Undergraduate students identified all voucher specimens for this project with the help of regional experts and also participated in curating these specimens, which are now deposited in the Evergreen Herbarium. This study provides a starting point for assessing the current and future conservation status of soil-dwelling bryophyte and lichen communities of the south Puget Sound prairies.

b. Examining the effects of prescribed fire on lichen and bryophyte biomass and functional group composition in Pacific Northwest prairies. In this study, undergraduate students worked with prairie researchers and land managers to investigate the effects of fire on ground-dwelling bryophytes and lichens in burned and unburned plots at five prairie sites located in the south Puget Sound bioregion of Washington State. Students had the opportunity to learn field sampling methods for estimating standing biomass, cover, mat depth and functional group diversity of bryophytes and lichens. Some students continued with the data analysis and scientific writing for this project.

c. Examining seasonal fluctuations in N-fixation rates in moss-cyanobacterial associations of Puget Sound prairies. During Fall 2015, undergraduate research students collected bryophyte specimens from several prairies sites in Thurston County, WA and evaluated the specimens for the presence of cyanobacteria using bright field, phase, and epifluorescence microscopy. Preliminary observations indicated the presence of cyanobacteria colonies on all four species tested. Having established the presence of target cyanobacteria species on prairie bryophytes, students helped to initiate a project examining seasonal fluctuation of n-fixation rates in prairie moss-cyanobacteria symbiosis. This is one of the few published studies of moss-cyanobacterial associations in temperate regions, with fewer still in the Pacific Northwest and none in prairie ecosystems. In addition to learning advanced microscopy techniques students have the opportunity to become proficient with a variety of laboratory and field methods for analyzing biological nitrogen fixation including gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and nitrogen fixation assays.

 

II. Herbarium-Based Research: Pacific Northwest Bryophytes, Lichens and Fungi

Funded by Washington Native Plant Society and Evergreen Foundation Activity grants

The Evergreen State College is a logical place to serve as a center for bryophyte, lichen and fungi education and research. Our campus, with its 1,000 acres, supports a rich non-vascular plant and fungi that can be easily collected and curated. Surrounding lands—state, federal, and private—provide other areas rich for collecting, documenting and ecological study. The Evergreen Herbarium (EVE) represents a significant resource for conducting floristic research on plant diversity, ecology, and conservation of native plants in Washington.

Under my supervision, undergraduate research students began the process of curating the existing bryophyte collection in the Evergreen Herbarium. This important regional collection of about 600 bryophytes from the Pacific Northwest was in critical need of rehousing and preservation. Over the course of two years, I worked with students to accomplish several important goals of the project including the conversion of ~300 specimens of bryophytes, 450 lichens and 1000 fungi, from newspaper packets to archival paper, updating taxonomic nomenclature and databasing specimens. These specimens are now available to students, researchers and the public to study the biodiversity, taxonomy and ecology of regional bryophytes, fungi and lichens. Much work remains, providing an excellent undergraduate research opportunity to improve the overall quality and accessibility of this historic bryophyte collection. For example, Shelly Evans (Evergreen ’77, now a research scientists at U. Washington) collected ~350 Washington bryophyte specimens while a student. Her collection resides in the Evergreen herbarium and is in excellent condition. Many specimens are undetermined or need nomenclature updates, imaging, and databasing. Students could also contribute to preparing a manuscript describing the diversity and distribution of Washington bryophytes for our local Native Plant Society journal. Understanding the historic distribution of bryophytes will aid land managers in effectively monitoring changes in bryophyte communities and in developing conservation strategies to protect sensitive species and diversity hotspots in Washington State.

III. Discovering New Biologically Active Compounds from Pacific Northwest Native Plants and Fungi

As a phytochemist and lichenologist, I’m excited to start a phytochemical research program focusing on Pacific Northwest native plants and fungi. Phytochemistry is highly interdisciplinary and provides students with an opportunity to learn skills applicable to chemistry, biology and botany. Students engaging in phytochemical research have the potential to gain experience in field and laboratory methods for studying plants and fungi, microbiology methods such as culturing and sterile technique, and analytical chemistry and instrumentation methods. Below are examples of potential phytochemical research projects for undergraduate students

a. Antiproliferative, Antibacterial and Antifungal Activity of the Pacific Northwest Lichen Extracts. Lichens produce a diverse array of secondary metabolites, many of which function as defense compounds against pathogens, fungi and bacteria. The biological activities of lichen compounds are well recognized but many species remain unstudied. Several different avenues of lichen secondary metabolism could be explored by undergraduate students including testing bioactivities of different lichen extracts on bacterial and fungal cultures or cancer cell lines to explore potential sources of new therapeutic agents such as antibacterial and anti-cancer compounds. Undergraduate students could also design experiments to elucidate the ecological function of these compounds in the lichen by measuring the effects of abiotic factors (light, temperature or elevation gradients) or biotic factors (herbivory, infection with pathogens) that influence secondary metabolite production.

b Isolation and characterization of novel, biologically active compounds from Pacific Northwest native plants and fungi. If plant or lichen extract with potent anti-proliferative or anti-bacterial properties is detected during initial investigations, students may have the opportunity to attempt to isolate and identify the target compound. This process often involves assay-guided fractionation, chromatography and structural elucidation techniques such as NMR spectroscopy and Mass spectrometry. Evergreen is uniquely well-suited to provides students with the opportunity to learn these techniques because we have an instrumentation training program and support available to undergraduate students- these opportunities are rare among undergraduate institutions. Moreover, we have a strong chemistry program with faculty expertise in organic and analytical methods and regular, repeating academic programs that incorporate the use of instrumentation.

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