The Biology of Dodder Host Preference
Dodder (Cuscuta spp.) is a parasitic plant that can attack many crops, and its infestations can result in 50-100% yield loss in cranberries in Massachusetts. Control of dodder is hampered by difficulties in identifying species, because dodders have no leaves or defining features due to their parasitic lifestyle. Using genomic tools we have recently determined that two species of dodder occur in Massachusetts cranberry fields. We are now trying to create tools to more easily distinguish dodder species and learn about the success of dodder attachment on different hosts. This project will involve (1) creating protocols to successfully grow dodders from seed in the UMass greenhouse environment, (2) finding an efficient way to identify dodder species using DNA markers, and (3) creating microscopy protocols to view dodder attachments, and evaluate differential attachments between dodder species and hosts.
The student working on this project will work closely with a senior who has been working with dodder in the lab in the past two years. If you are interested in this project please write a short description of your main interests in Biology so far, why this project interests you, and what are your current plans after graduation (with the understanding that plants can often change).
We are a lab that is fascinated by how weedy plants evolve. Weeds are supreme examples of rapid adaptation, and we ultimately would like to determine the genetic basis of how they so successfully adapt. Parasitic weeds like dodder are very understudied, and by working on this project you will be helping us round out our understanding of dodder biology and also help us set it up as a study system in the lab. We collaborate with the UMass Cranberry Station on this work, and the project may provide chances to meet extension scientists and see how they work, as well as possibly collect dodder samples from the field. The project will provide both wet lab opportunities in microscopy and genetics, as well as hands on work with plants.