November 1, 2018
Division of Biology Seminar Nov. 2 welcomes University of Kentucky's Rebecca McCulley
Submitted by Division of Biology
Rebecca McCulley, chair and professor from the University of Kentucky department of plant and soil sciences, will present "Grass-fungal interactions: The good, the bad, the ugly" as part of the Division of Biology Seminar Series at 4 p.m. Friday, Nov. 2, in 221 Ackert Hall.
McCulley will lecture on plant microbiomes that can alter host fitness, community dynamics and ecosystem processes. Well-known examples of such wide-ranging ecological effects resulting from plant-microbe interactions exists within cool-season grasses and their vertically transmitted Epichloë fungi. In this seminar, McCulley will illustrate how the tall fescue — Epichloë coenophiala relationship is altered by host genotype, fungal strain, and climatic conditions, and how the symbiosis can alter fescue invasive potential into restored native tallgrass prairie and interactions with belowground fungi.
If you would like to visit with McCulley, please contact Jesse Nippert at nippert@k-state.edu.