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TEACHING: General Biology I, Microbial Biology, Senior Seminar, Limnology, Molecular Systematics, Phycology
My research interests fall into two main categories: aquatic ecology and systematics, both of which deal largely with algae. The algae are a polyphyletic assemblage that are the primary producers in most aquatic ecosystems. A great group of organisms, they serve as the basis of myriad aquatic ecosystems. Unfortunately, they have received a lot of publicity in the last decade as eutrophication has led to greater numbers of algal blooms, with concurrent deleterious ecosystem level problems. My lab has undertaken several projects to understand and quantify how algal communities change in response to different environmental parameters. We are currently working to elucidate the role of nutrient loads in influencing the epiphytic algal community. Further, we are working on a collaborative project to examine the role of native riparian vegetation as a method of ameliorating nutrient loads into tributaries of the St. Johns River. Second, my lab is very interested in cyanobacterial systematics (untangling evolutionary relationships). To that end we have a collected cyanobacterial strains from around the world and employ morphological (cell dimensions, divisions, ultra-structure, folding patterns of the 16-23S ITS regions), ecological and molecular (sequencing of the 16S rDNA gene, ITS regions) data sets to elucidate phylogenetic relationships. We have also recently started several projects using cyanophages (viruses which infect cyanobacteria). We are examining the distribution and occurrence of freshwater cyanophages, what taxonomic groups are present during and after bloom events, the genetic make up of the phages, and how they impact the cyanobacterial community. SELECT RECENT PUBLICATIONS: 2009. Johansen, J.R., L. Kováčik, D.A. Casamatta & J. Kaštovský. Leptolyngbya corticola sp. nov. (Pseudanabaenaceae, Cyanobacteria), an aerophytic, heteropolar taxon from the Czech Republic. Nova Hedwigia. (In Press).
2006. Verb, R.G., R.J. Bixby, D.A. Casamatta, W.B. Chiasson, N.R.Filkin, M.M.Hall, S.E.Hamsher, D.A.Taylor & M.L.Vis. Checklist of algal taxa from the unglaciated Western Allegheny Plateau exclusive of the Ohio River. Ohio Biological Survey Notes. 51 pp. 2006. Aubel, M., P. D’Aiuto, A. Chapman, D. Casamatta, A. Reich, S. Ketchen & C. William. Blue-green algae in St. John’s River, FL. Lakeline. 40-45.
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