Gregory Bonito

Gregory Bonito

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Professor - Mycology, plant-fungal interactions, truffle ecology, evolution of bacterial endosymbiosis in fungi
Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences

Phone:
517-884-6958

Email:

Degrees:
Ph.D., Biology, Duke University
M.S., Conservation Ecology & Sustainable Development, University of Georgia
B.S. Ecology & Environmental Biology, Appalachian State University

Research Interests:

Our lab studies the ecology and evolution of plant-fungal-bacterial associations, with a particular interest in belowground root associated fungi including truffles, mushrooms & molds. These organisms provide important links between plants and soils, and are functionally important to plant health and nutrition as well as nutrient cycles and the flow of energy through terrestrial ecosystems.

Our research makes use of phylogenetics, high-throughput sequencing, isotope tracers and –omics approaches to better understand:

  1. Phylogenetic and functional diversity of root-associated fungi.
  2. Environmental and genetic factors that structure root microbiome communities.
  3. The evolution and functional relevance of bacterial symbionts of fungi.

Our lab research has applications pertinent to agriculture, forestry, and in the sustainability of terrestrial life support systems.

General areas of expertise:

Mycology, plant-fungal interactions, truffle ecology, evolution of bacterial endosymbiosis in fungi; Fungal systematics; truffle biology; plant-fungal-bacterial interactions.

Teaching

PLP 847/PLB 847/MMG 847 - Advanced Mycology -
Fall 2022

Course description - Advanced Mycology is a four-credit lecture and lab-based course that will provide graduate students and advanced undergraduates with current research and techniques in fungal biology, ecology, evolution, and genomics. In class sections, students will revisit foundational literature in mycology, will lead scholarly discussion and will present. Laboratories will involve classical and modern laboratory techniques in mycology, and research employing high throughput sequencing technologies, bioinformatics computation and ecological statistics to address student-driven research questions. 

Publications