WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PHENOTYPES AND EVOLUTION?

Professor Philip Bergmann's lab studies how phenotype influences function in amphibians and reptiles. The lab integrates functional morphology with ecology in an evolutionary context.

HOW DOES POST-GLACIAL RADIATION IMPACT THE EVOLUTION OF FISH?

Professor Susan Foster and Professor John Baker and their students are studying a small fish called the stickleback, hoping to learn more about how organisms descending from common ancestors evolve into species.

WHAT IS THE EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY AND ECOLOGY OF FUNGI?

Professor David Hibbett's lab studies evolution of mushrooms and other fungi using molecular methods.

HOW DO CELLS DIVIDE?

Professor Denis Larochelle and his lab group study the mechanisms and regulation of cell division. They take advantage of the molecular/genetic tractability of the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum to identify and characterize proteins that play important roles related to this.

HOW DO MOSQUITOS GUARD THEIR NATIVE HABITAT?

Professor Todd Livdahl and his research students study the impact of mosquito invasions and factors effecting egg hatch in mosquitos..

WHY ARE ANIMAL NERVOUS SYSTEMS ORGANIZED THE WAY THAT THEY ARE?

Professor Neva Meyer's research group studies nervous system development in the annelid Capitella teleta with the goal of understanding how a centralized organization of neurons (brain and nerve cord) came about in different animal lineages, and how it has contributed to organismal diversity.

WHAT REGULATES MARINE ALGAL PRODUCTIVITY?

Professor Deb Robertson's research group learns about the importance of these organisms.

HOW DO FLIES RELATE TO THE GENOME?

Professor Justin Thackeray studies fruit flies. How do organisms end up with the right number of cells and all their tissues properly organized? The Thackeray lab uses the fruit fly Drosophila to help answer these questions related to how the genome regulates development.

HOW CAN MICROBES REDUCE METAL TOXICITY IN OUR ENVIRONMENT?

Professor Heather Wiatrowski and her students study the interactions between microorganisms and toxic metals in anoxic environments.