My past and current research has primarily focused on systematics and evolution of the genus of “Magic mushrooms” Psilocybe, which produce psychoactive compounds with high therapeutic potential for the treatment of myriad mental health issues. However, more broadly, I am is interested in exploring the complexity and evolution of fungal secondary metabolites, which have been utilized by humans throughout history for food, medicine, and in reclaiming polluted environments. Embracing the breadth of biological and chemical diversity that Fungi exhibit is paramount to understanding their role in nature, how they shape the environment around them, and how they influence the organisms the interact with.
Another unexplored realm of mycology is the functional development of morphology, such as how a mushroom is produced. For my post-doctoral research, I am working with Dr. David Hibbett and Dr. Javier Tabima, studying the systematics, functional genetics, and population structures of the gilled, and sometimes secotioid, polypore mushroom, Lentinus tigrinus.
What are your career goals/plans for after you’re done with your current position?
I am looking toward the future of starting my own research group, focusing on Fungal Diversity, Evolution, and development incorporating fieldwork and museum voucher collections.
What is core value that you apply to your science
Interdisciplinary collaboration is essential in the scientific world. My work has afforded me the opportunity to work with amazing people across the globe, including professional scientists, invaluably knowledgeable mycological enthusiasts, inquisitive member of the public, and numerous others from nearly every background imaginable. In an ever-growing complex landscape of scientific research and global connectivity, collaboration and open mindedness to new ideas is critical to the growth of future scientists.
What is something inspiring or useful that you learned from your experiences in mycology?
Mentorship and teaching are core values of the philosophy of science. As members of the scientific community, we are part of a social contract that obligates us to teach others. Good mentorship is critical to the education of students and the development of new career-oriented scientists. . Good mentorship goes beyond teaching scientific and laboratory skills to include life skills such as time management, communication, scientific communication, self-advocacy, work-life balance, mental and physical health, and ethics. These values can often be overlooked in academic mentorship; however, they are essential and unique to each student.
Pronouns: He/HimPursuing: PhDFirst Generation College StudentMultilingualInternational: Africa/Europe
Where did you grow up?
Saint-Affrique, south of France
Where are you currently doing research?
Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue
Who are you working with?
Maxence Martin (Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue – Quebec, Canada) and Mélanie Roy (Université Paul Sabatier – France, Universidad de Buenos Aires – Argentina)
Describe your research project.
In my current doctoral research, I aim to explore soil fungal diversity in old-growth boreal forests in eastern Canada and the specific implications of ectomycorrhizal fungi in carbon storage. Using environmental DNA sequencing, we plan to investigate this hidden diversity and try to understand how natural disturbance histories have shaped belowground fungal communities and the resulting spatial heterogeneity. We also want to determine whether soil ectomycorrhizal communities contribute to higher carbon storage as forests age. Another exciting aspect of my doctoral research is testing the potential of new tools, such as remote sensing technologies (i.e., LiDAR), to predict, model, and monitor soil fungal diversity across Quebec’s boreal forests. We are fortunate to have access to a unique network of old-growth boreal stand plots across Quebec to achieve these objectives, including a 264-year-old fire chronosequence at Lake Duparquet Research and Teaching Forest (near the Quebec-Ontario border). This dispositive allows us to compare soil fungal communities in old-growth versus younger stands. If I get to resume this whole project briefly, I’d say that we seek to figure out what fungal diversity is there, what it is doing, and how we can predict it. Ultimately, my project aims to improve our understanding of fungal diversity in old-growth forest ecosystems and promote the integration of funga into conservation strategies and sustainable, ecosystem-based forest management in Quebec. We hope this project will inspire similar initiatives across Canada and beyond!
Which awards would you like to brag about?
I recently received a doctoral research fellowship from the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Nature et technologies (FRQNT). Beyond my gratefulness for the support of my doctoral research, I’m especially pleased to see financial institutions funding projects related to fungi. That said, out of over 319 doctoral projects funded by FRQNT for the 2024-2025 period at the Quebec provincial level, only three focus exclusively on fungi-related research—just under 1%! I’m sure you’d agree this is still far from enough, but there is hope for increased funding in mycological research in the future.
What are your career goals/plans for after you’re done with your current position?
My main goal is to continue research in fungal molecular ecology, taxonomy and conservation. I’m especially looking forward to axing my research work on filling knowledge shortfalls of poorly known fungal groups in understudied ecosystems and habitats through postdocs and, hopefully, a permanent researcher position, wherever my mycological adventure will take me!
Who is your mycology role model?
Many mycologists have shaped my vision of mycology and research at present, but I’d like to especially mention three of them that have been, and still are, important sources of inspiration and mentoring through the years in research: Dr. Danny Haelewaters, Pr. Monique Gardes, and Dr. Mélanie Roy. Pr. Marc-André Selosse is also a role model for its dedication to science communication and popular science, which are two pillars of research I’m sensible to and deeply involved in.
What is your favorite fungus and why?
Instead of mentioning a single fungus, I’d like to highlight an entire fungal group that has profoundly captured my curiosity: the Laboulbeniomycetes. These microfungi are fascinating to me because they represent a textbook of neglected, poorly known organisms with numerous heavy knowledge shortfalls. Their wide diversity of otherworldly morphologies, their dependence on one of the most species-rich groups of organisms (arthropods) to complete their life cycle, and their involvement in multitrophic interactions make them outstandingly intriguing!
Any great stories from field work (funny/interesting/something that stuck out to you)?
One of the most memorable aspects of my fieldwork during my master’s was searching for study sites. I was working on the soil fungal diversity in natural jack pine stands in the Abitibi region (Quebec, Canada). Since these stands are highly sought after by local forestry industries, we spent countless hours prospecting potential sites, hoping they hadn’t already been logged. After months of searching, we found enough sites, some of which were particularly hard to access! I remember one site where we had to drive for 45 minutes in a truck from the lab, then another 40 minutes by ATV, only to realize that the final step to reach our forest was crossing… a river! In such cases, I sincerely thank the beavers from this region for the dams that allowed us to access some of our sites! The fieldwork for my Ph.D. will partly take place in old-growth boreal forest plots accessible only by boat. Plenty of field adventures await me ahead! That’s the price to pay for documenting the fungal diversity in such exceptional ecosystems and hoping to make a difference in biodiversity conservation policies and sustainable forest management.
What is something inspiring or useful that you learned from your experiences in mycology?
One thing that you get to know as you gain experience in mycology is that fungi are always challenging our assumptions and preconceived knowledge about them. They cut through the walls of the conceptual boxes we put them in. The most recent example that comes to my mind is the delimitation between some fungal lifestyles, which is becoming less and less clear and relevant. This is what researchers have realized with evidence that some ectomycorrhizal fungi can actually behave facultatively as endophytes in host tissues. This is just one example among a myriad!
I’m using genomics to explore the how the evolutionary development and cryptic diversity of Amanita muscaria and its closest relatives in section Amanita.
Which awards would you like to brag about?
I had the excellent opportunity to attend an NSF funded workshop on the genomics of plant-fungal co-invasions in South Africa.
What are your career goals/plans for after you’re done with your current position?
I’d like to pursue a postdoctoral position and continue my work on genus Amanita!
What do you like to do in your free time? What are your hobbies?
In my spare time I enjoy playing country tunes on my guitar and fishing in Madison’s lakes.
What is your favorite fact/thing about fungi?
The first fact that got me interested in fungi is that they are more closely related to animals than plants. This blew my mind when I first found out. They are so much more complex than we have yet discovered. I love the fact that there are even fungi that parasitize algae too!
Pronouns: She/HerPursuing: Bachelor of ArtsFirst Generation College StudentMultilingual
Where did you grow up?
Arlington, Virginia
Where are you currently doing research?
Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (Beltsville, MD)
Who are you working with?
Dr. Megan Romberg in USDA APHIS National Identification Services
Describe your research project.
I’m currently working with the USDA in Agricultural Research Services through an internship program under the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. Since January, I’ve been shadowing national identifiers in diagnosing plant samples intercepted at US borders as well as documenting specimens of the US National Fungus Collections using Mycoportal. I’ve also pursued a research investigation study on the potential synonymy between Uredo calotropidis and Uromyces asclepiadis, both heteroecious rust fungal pathogens found in Apocynaceae hosts. I even presented my work at the Mid-Atlantic States Mycology Conference held at Duke University!
Which awards would you like to brag about?
This past September, I was awarded the Sequanota Foray Scholarship which allowed me to attend the annual Sequanota foray hosted by the Mycological Association of DC! I met a lot of wonderful people there, including my current internship advisor, Megan. I’ve also recently received an award from MSA’s photo contest for my image of a Pholiota terrestris, acceptance into the SPORES program which will allow me to attend this year’s MSA conference, and the Plants Grant award from the Botanical Society of America which will allow me to attend the Botany 2024 conference.
What are your career goals/plans for after you’re done with your current position?
This summer I will be working at Mt. Rainier National Park as a biology assistant documenting sensitive plant species within the park. I’m very excited for this position through Environment for the Americas in collaboration with the National Park Service, and hope to bring some of my mycology knowledge to the botany work I’ll be doing!
Who is your mycology role model?
Dr. Megan Romberg, who’s determination to keep learning new things impacts me everyday. I also look up to Dr. Bitty Roy and Heather Dawson, who were wonderful educators during my first internship, allowing me to ask questions and grow an interest in academia.
What is your favorite fungus and why?
I’m a big fan of entomopathogenic fungi, I find their evolution and function to be both neat and terrifying. I’d like to see (or even carry out) more research on anamorphic entomopathogenic fungi beyond their application to biopesticides, like their distribution patterns and evolutionary characteristics. At Sequanota, we found an Akanthomyces and I was encapsulated by the idea that something could consume an entire organism in such an interesting and spiky way. Learning about entomopathogenic fungi such as Beauveria, Pandora, or Cordyceps, is such a treat, let alone the thrill of finding one. It always reminds me of how ruthless fungi can be.
Any great stories from field work (funny/interesting/something that stuck out to you)?
Seeing Rye, the truffle hunting retriever, in action was definitely the highlight of my internship last summer. Watching him sniff around the forest and digging up truffles was so cute, and funny as Heather tried to keep him from eating the new-found treasure. That’s a good boy if I’ve ever seen one!
What do you like to do in your free time? What are your hobbies?
Photography tends to take up most of my time (certainly most of my bank account), especially during mushroom season. In August I bought a macro lens for my Canon Rebel T5 and I’ve been passionate about photography ever since. I enjoy using my Asahi Pentax film camera as well, which also has a macro lens that gives me cool macro-film shots! Outside of macro I like to use my Fujifilm XT-20 to capture moments of everyday life, which typically includes friends, family, and my environment.
Vinson Doyle, Jonathan Richards and Sara Thomas-Sharma
Describe your research project.
In my research project, my focus is on delving into the complexities of Cercospora cf. flagellaris, a pivotal player in Cercospora leaf blight (CLB) disease in soybeans. With a host range which extends from agriculture to nonagricultural plants, C. cf. flagellaris challenges conventional notions of host specificity. My investigation comprises two primary objectives: firstly, conducting a comprehensive analysis of the pathogen’s dispersal dynamics and population structure. This involves strategic sampling across soybean producing states and utilizing whole-genome sequencing to unravel genetic diversity and adaptation strategies. Secondly, I aim to explore the genomic signatures of adaptation within C. cf. flagellaris. This includes creating annotated reference genomes from diverse host species to identify candidate genes associated with virulence and pathogenicity. Through this research, I aim to deepen our understanding of the pathogen’s responses, contributing crucial insights for effective disease management in soybean production
What are your career goals after you’re done with your current position?
My career goal is to establish myself as a Professor/Researcher, aspiring not only to make significant scientific contributions but also to play a pivotal role in cultivating the next generation of scientists. I am driven by the passion to foster a learning environment where budding researchers not only ask insightful questions but also gain the expertise to navigate the intricate process of developing those questions into impactful research projects. My vision extends beyond personal accomplishments to encompass the mentorship and guidance of emerging talents, equipping them with the skills and mindset essential for advancing scientific knowledge and making meaningful contributions to their respective fields.
What is something inspiring or useful that you learned from your experiences in mycology?
From my journey in mycology, I’ve gleaned not only knowledge about fungi but also a profound appreciation for the interconnectedness of scientific disciplines. My initiation into mycology marked my foray into the realm of science, serving as a gateway to diverse fields such as bioinformatics and plant breeding. What captivates me is the versatility of fungi, their ability to heal, decompose, cause damage and diseases. Mycology has instilled in me a keen sense of observation, emphasizing the importance of scrutinizing details with precision. This skill, akin to looking through an accurate lens, has proven invaluable in shaping my approach as a scientist, enabling me to delve deeper into various scientific domains with a discerning eye.
I have been working on uncovering how Phyllachora maydis colonizes maize leaf tissue.
Which awards would you like to brag about?
The one in which I am the proudest is the Purdue University College of Agriculture Mentoring Award.
What are your career goals/plans for after you’re done with your current position?
I am waiting to see what avenues open up to me once that time gets closer.
What is your favorite fungus and why?
Phyllachora maydis, undoubtedly! While my usual focus is on bacteria, the moment I observed the meticulous arrangement within what I initially perceived as a cluster of dead leaf tissue under the microscope, it left me utterly amazed. Complex reproductive structures unfolded within the lesion, an intriguing manifestation of Phyllachora maydis‘s remarkable adaptability and biological ingenuity.
What is your favorite fact/thing about fungi?
In the remarkable adaptability of fungi lies a valuable lesson for us—a reminder that, just like these organisms, we too should embrace and learn from the art of adaptation.
Who is your mycology role model?
Dr. Catherine Aime
What is something inspiring or useful that you learned from your experiences in mycology?
Despite my outward appearance of chaos, a hidden layer of highly organized structure lies beneath.
What do you like to do in your free time? What are your hobbies?
I work on fungal immune responses to antagonistic bacteria, using Rhizopus microsporus and Mycetohabitans spp. as a model.
I’m currently using florescence microscopy and flow cytometry to quantify the role of cell wall remodeling in the fungal innate immune response. The mechanism of immunity, particularly in early divergent fungi, is not well understood, but my preliminary work suggests that the cell wall plays an important role.
What is your favorite fungus and why?
Massospora cicadina, the lifestyle is fascinating and super weird!
Who is your mycology role model?
My undergraduate PI, Matt Kasson, who went out of his way to create a supportive and nurturing lab where students were able to be themselves.
What do you do outside of research?
Outside of research, I work as a DEI educator through the Cornell chapter of Project Biodiversify. We focus on promoting inclusive practices in STEM research and education. I highly recommend checking out the national organization or a local chapter!
Pronouns: She/HerPursuing: Master of ScienceLGBTQIA+
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Limerick Maine
Where are you currently doing your research?
Clark University
Who is your advisor?
David Hibbett and Javier Tabima
What are your career goals/plans for after you’re done with your current position?
I’m not sure yet! I’m passionate about research, agriculture, and environmental education, so we will see where I end up!
What is something inspiring or useful that you learned from your experiences in mycology?
Resilience (whether its biological, societal, emotional) can come in many different forms
Which awards would you like to brag about?
I received the LEEP fellowship in spring of 2022
What is your favorite fungus and why?
Ophiocordyceps sinensis! I think the history is cool, and I like the idea of a parasitic fungus having potential health benefits!
What is your favorite fact/thing about fungi?
I love how diverse their morphology and reproductive methods can be
Tell us about your project!
My research project focuses on the species Lentinus tigrinus, a white-rot wood decaying fungus. Interestingly, this species occurs along riverbeds and on partially submerged logs within the rivers themselves. This fungus has two different phenotypic forms, one secotioid (veiled gilled) and one agaricoid (gilled). The secotioid form has only been described in North America, where the two forms can be found within the same population. I am currently looking to see if there is structuring within the population that can be found along the Ipswich River in MA, as well as using the ratio of heterozygous to homozygous individuals to determine if assortative mating is occurring within the same population.
What do you like to do in your free time? What are your hobbies?
I enjoy hiking, photography, and cooking! I also love my part time job coaching kids at a local rock climbing gym.
Any great stories from field work?
Most of my fieldwork happens while canoeing on the Ipswich river, leading to lots of little adventures! My favorite routine happens consistently in early summer, when the Canada geese and swans begin to bring their babies out and about into the world! Whenever they swim past us (and after we fully appreciate their adorableness, of course) there is always a battle among lab members as some of us furiously row towards the babies to get a better view, and the rest of us furiously row away, trying to steer clear of angry parents!
Bioaccumulation of trace metals in the fungal genus Morchella. The purpose of this research is to contrast trace metal composition of morel mushrooms to the trace metal composition of the surrounding soil substrate in the canyonlands of Utah where soil geochemical composition can vary based on altitude and geophysical location. We hypothesize that by analyzing the trace metal composition of morel mushrooms and their surrounding soil substrate we can determine if morel mushrooms absorb and concentrate trace metals from their habitat. This is important because these data will determine if there is a health risk for humans and animals who consume morel mushrooms from different locations.
Awards you’d like to brag about
So many! I guess URSCA grant Primary Investigator: Water Variable Effects on Plant Biomass.
What is your favorite fungus?
Morchella, because they are both delicious and mysterious.
What is your favorite fungus fact?
I admire their capacity for adaptation and biosynthesis.
What are your career goals/plans for after you’re done with your current position?
I am currently applying to PhD mycology programs at universities in the United states.
Any great stories from field work (funny/interesting/something that stuck out to you)?
I could not find morels for years, then a professor of mine gave me a tip and since then I have found thousands and shared that experience with over 100 people by hosting morel mushroom hunt events.
What do you like to do in your free time? What are your hobbies?
I create educational content focused on fungi. Mentor college students in how to use fungi in composting. Host events for organizations like the mushroom society of Utah, the boy scouts of America and teach classes for the UVU community education department. On weekends, I bring professors, students and citizen scientists to the mountains for mycological research.
Who is your mycology role model?
Alan Rockafellar
What is something inspiring or useful that you learned from your experiences in mycology?
I was working on my botany degree when I started to realize how fundamentally critical fungi are to vascular plants. The more I learned the more fascinated I became. Now fungi are my favorite taxa, I focus now on how plants, fungi and their environmental chemistry interact.
Anything else you’d like to talk about?
I am a scientist, a chef and a photographer. I enjoy documenting my scientific research and culinary creations. To me botany, mycology and environmental chemistry are the same topic. These sciences can be combined to improve the quality of life on earth by transforming soil quality in agricultural and natural habitats.
