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Introduction
Publications
Publications (19)
Fungi asymptomatically infect all terrestrial vegetation, but the structure and assembly of these fungal communities are poorly understood. Smilax rotundifolia, a common woody vine of the northeastern United States, was used as a model to study endophytic (internal colonizing) and epiphytic (surface colonizing) fungal communities, from the perspect...
Draft of article for 'Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Biology'
Endophytic and epiphytic fungal assemblages from stems of S. rotundifolia, a shrubby vine, were studied in order to (1) quantify differences and the degree of overlap between fungal communities of both micro-habitats, and (2) examine whether fungal assemblages are spatially correlated at the local scale (tens to hundreds of meters), in order to und...
It has long been suspected that lichens increase the rate of physical and chemical weathering of rock surfaces, thus playing a role in biogeochemical cycles. However, the relative weathering flux of elements from lichen-colonized rock versus bare rock has been minimally studied; previous attempts to quantify the effect of lichen-cover on weathering...
Saikonnen (2007) has argued that the most basic role of endophytes, without further assumptions, is as competing plant consumers. We proceed from this viewpoint of endophytes as plant consumers that must disperse, survive in their environment, compete for common resources with other endophytes, and produce propagules to complete their life cycles....
Endophytes are universally present in plants in natural situations. Recent research has demonstrated that endophytes form communities in plants and positively affect ecological fitness of host plants. The ecological diversity, biology, and evolutionary development of two ecological classes of microbial endophytes are discussed. A mechanism for how...
Endophytes consist of diverse microbes and have been shown to be present in a diverse range of plants. It is likely that plants do not exist in nature without endophytic microbes. Some endophytes have been shown to increase productivity and overall fitness of host plants, especially under biotic or abiotic stresses. It will be to our advantage to u...
Over the past several decades we have come to appreciate that healthy plants host, within and on the surfaces of their tissues, endophytic and epiphytic fungi and bacteria that do not cause disease. Individual components/species of the microbiome of plants have been found to fall into one or more of three major functional groups: 1.) Microbes that...
Over the past several decades it has become clear that plants harbor non-pathogenic microbes (endophytes) within their tissues. Microbial endophytes (predominantly bacteria and fungi) have been shown to alter the ecologies of host plants, often increasing overall growth and tolerances to biotic stresses (insects, nematodes and disease agents) and a...
Over the past several decades we have come to appreciate that healthy plants host, within and on the surfaces of their tissues, endophytic and epiphytic fungi and bacteria that do not cause disease. Instead, these microbes have been shown to secrete secondary metabolites and benefit host plants by the following: 1.) Alleviate abiotic stress of the...
These slides summarize suggested mechanisms for endophyte-mediated enhanced abiotic stress tolerance in plants. Hypothesized mechanisms listed include: 1) 'Oxidative stress protection due to production of antioxidants by endophytes or up-regulation in host'; and 2) 'Endophyte-mediated ammonia detoxification/oxidative stress avoidance'. The later hy...
Presentation: Endophytic microbes have untapped potential to significantly alter agriculture globally. Endophytes may be used in place of agrochemicals to promote crop growth and reduce affects of pathogens and pests with significant benefits to the environment. The capacity of endophytes to enhance stress tolerance of host plants suggests their po...
Student participation in floristics at the university
level is essential for the longevity and expansion of
botany, plant ecology, and their many associated
fields, but knowledge and college course options
have been decreasing. In many cases students are
unaware of the botanical biodiversity that is right
in front of their eyes. We started a projec...
Presentation for Annual Meeting of USDA NIFA Multistate Project W3147: Managing Plant Microbe Interactions to Promote Sustainable Agriculture held in Riverside, California on Dec. 6, 2013.� This presentation covers some of the work we are doing with regard to bacterial endophytes of plants. The vanilla orchid endophyte and blue agave research are d...
A comparison of endophytic versus epiphytic fungal assemblages of Smilax rotundifolia across three different environments (Presentation at Mid-Atlantic States Mycology Conference, 34th Annual Meeting
April 26-28, 2013)
Zambell, Christopher B.1 and White, James F.1
1 Rutgers University New Brunswick, Department of Plant Biology and Pathology, 59 D...
Questions
Question (1)
I am familiar only with the literature on fungal endophytes. For this group, in temperate regions, within about 50 to 100 km, colonization frequency may vary but the same core group of dominant species typically appears wherever a plant is sampled. Furthermore, the core of dominant endophytic species is particular to each plant species.
I am interested in contrasting this with other groups of organisms that can colonize the aerial surfaces (i.e. leaves, twigs, bark) of plants. These include epiphytic vascular plants such as orchids and bromeliads, mosses, lichens, algae, filamentous fungi, yeasts, bacteria, and archaea (each with its own group of experts). Can anyone provide references or information about the degree of variation in assemblages of these epiphytic organisms when the same plant species is sampled at different localities?
