Research Interests

The main interest of our research is to learn more about the enzymes and the genes in the honey mushroom Armillaria gallica (pictured at left), that allow this fungus to degrade the root of infested trees. We have started to assay cultures of Armillaria gallica to determine which specific enzymes (i.e. cellulases, laccases, lignin peroxidase, and/or manganese-independent peroxidases) are present in this white-rot fungus. Our hope is that we will be able to isolate each of these enzymes and compare their enzymatic activities to those found in other fungi.

Our research is also interested in cloning and sequencing the genes that code for these degradative enzymes and study their expression and regulation under different growth conditions.