6th Annual CanFunNet Fungal Biology Conference

Fungal pathogens, transcription, stress responses, drug resistance
X: @patounet80

Linda studies variation in metabolism and stress responses across diverse yeast species and seeks to understand how we can take advantage of yeast metabolism for the betterment of society. This can include harnessing yeast metabolism for bioproduction of foods, beverages, fuels, or other valuable products or targeting divergent components of yeast metabolism to thwart pathogenic yeasts.

Biodiversity and genomic dynamics of fungal–plant interactions, including the detection of pathogenic and symbiotic fungi and the development of integrated management strategies to support plant health and sustainable agriculture.

Viola works on fungal biotechnology and synthetic biology using Aspergillus niger as a model system. Her focus is on developing high-throughput automated workflows for genetic engineering and screening to improve the production of enzymes, proteins, and small metabolites, and she has also designed phenotypic assays to link genetic changes to functional outcomes.

Dr. Matthias Kretschmer is a Research Associate in the Michael Smith Laboratories at the University of British Columbia. He is a member of the laboratory of Dr. Jim Kronstad and focuses his research on nutrient acquisition strategies of pathogenic fungi of humans and plants and how these contribute to fungal virulence. The primary pathogen and host used for his research are the biotrophic model Ustilago maydis and its host Zea mays.

Fungal pathogens of humans; fungal morphogenesis and development; cell cycle regulation; Candida albicans; Aspergillus nidulans

Noah studies the biogeography of soil organisms by integrating optimization techniques and remote sensing to build robust species distribution models and guide soil conservation planning.

David is using genomic approaches to understand the evolution of drug resistance and other virulence traits in Candida auris

Joanna is an aquatic ecologist interested in the effects of anthropogenic activities on freshwater ecosystems. She currently works on determining the ecological functions of aquatic fungi in lakes and streams across a land use gradient. In applying a combination of genomic approaches, her goal is to understand the roles of aquatic fungi in nutrient cycling in freshwater ecosystems.

Gavin studies the ecology of fungi, including mycorrhizal fungi, fungal endophytes, pathogens, and yeasts, and the interactions with their host plants and abiotic environments.