RESEARCH
My research interests focus on how organisms, particularly plants, respond to the conditions in which they are growing. This research has spanned biology from molecular to organismal to population approaches to better understand how organisms respond to their environment. Please explore below some of my areas of focus.
Natural variation and light sensing As sessile organisms, plants are unable to move to more favorable environments and must instead adjust to the conditions in which they are growing. My postdoctoral research focuses on using natural variation to determine genes important for the shade avoidance response in plants. Read more... |
Native plants and their environment Plants face changes in their environment on both a long-term scale, such as warming temperatures and altered rainfall, to acute events such as forest fires. I am currently participating in several projects that address how native plants in California respond to these challenging conditions. Read more... |
Transcriptional regulation and iron-deficiency Iron is critical for plant survival and yet can be toxic in excess, necessitating tight regulation within the plant. My doctoral research focused on how plants regulate proper expression of genes required for survival and productivity under iron deficiency. Read more... |
Corepressors and DNA damage Corepressors are known to play a role in negative transcriptional regulation. In my master's research, I investigated a less traditional role of corepressors in the DNA damage response pathway. Read more... |