[Seminar] Cellular morphogenesis during growth and development in the filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans

Seminar

Title: Cellular morphogenesis during growth and development in the filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans

Speaker: Steven Harris

Affiliation: Center for Plant Science Innovation and Dept. of Plant Pathology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, USA

Host: Cristina Silva Pereira, Applied and Environmental Mycology Lab

Abstract:

Because of its genetic tractability and amenability to post-genome analysis, A. nidulans is one of the best-established model filamentous fungi. A primary focus of research using A. nidulans has been to understand the mechanisms that direct cellular morphogenesis during hyphal growth and reproductive development. Although A. nidulans is capable of generating a variety of cell shapes, these variations likely reflect differences in the timing and location of polarized growth. Thus, elucidating the regulatory networks that determine where and when the morphogenetic machinery (i.e., the components of the cytoskeleton and vesicle trafficking complexes that enable polarized growth) is deployed should provide fundamental insight into cellular morphogenesis. Towards this end, we have focused our efforts on A. nidulans homologues of known regulators of yeast morphogenesis. Our results have revealed important functions for these homologues during conidiophore development. Notably, the homologue of the bud site marker protein Axl2 controls phialide morphogenesis and likely coordinates the transition from acropetal to basipetal growth that underlies spore formation. Collectively, our results provide new insight into the regulatory mechanisms that differentially regulate cellular morphogenesis during growth and development in A. nidulans.

Short CV:

Dr. Harris received his undergraduate degree (B.Sc. (Hon) in Biology) in 1983 from the University of Windsor in Ontario, Canada. He also obtained his M.Sc. (Biology) from the University of Windsor in 1986. His M.Sc. research focused on the regulation of trehalase activity in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Dr. Harris completed his Ph.D. (Biology) at the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI, USA) in 1992. His Ph.D. research focused on the genetic and genomic analysis of S. cerevisiae chromosome 1, and was completed under the supervision of John Pringle. Dr. Harris was a post-doctoral researcher in the lab of John Hamer at Purdue University (West Lafayette, IN, USA) between 1991 and 1994. During this time, he initiated a research program on cellular morphogenesis in the filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans, which has since been the primary focus of his research. He has held independent faculty positions at the University of Connecticut Medical School and the University of Nebraska. He has authored or co-authored 69 refereed publications and eight book chapters. He has also trained 11 (ten Ph.D. and one M.Sc.) graduate students. Dr. Harris’ has received research support from the US National Science Foundation since 1995.

Labs website: http://www.unl.edu/harrislab/home