Lab members
Dr. Matthew Bakker
Principal investigator.
Matthew completed his PhD in Plant Pathology at the University of
Minnesota. He did a post-doc at Colorado State University and worked as a staff
scientist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture before joining the Department of
Microbiology at the University of Manitoba. Matthew teaches Microbes
In Our Environment, Introductory Biogeochemistry, and
contributes to Graduate Microbiology and to Evolution of
Fungal Pathogens.
Anuradha Jayathissa
PhD candidate (co-advised with Dr. Dilantha Fernando).
Anuradha is studying impacts of Fusarium spp. on malt quality,
and investigating hydrophobin proteins produced by Fusarium.
Anuradha is an alumnus of the EvoFunPath
training program.
M. Shimosh Kurera
PhD student (co-advised with Dr. Sean Walkowiak).
Shimosh is developing methods for rapidly identifying unknown
Fusarium and rust strains via MALDI biotyping. Shimosh is an
alumnus of the EvoFunPath training program.
Brian Harrison
MSc student.
Brian is researching trichothecene mycotoxins that are produced by the
fungal plant pathogen Fusarium graminearum. Brian is an alumnus
of the EvoFunPath training program.
Kelsey Wog
MSc student (co-advised with Dr. Aleeza
Gerstein).
Kelsey is studying the evolution of resistance towards fungicides in
Fusarium graminearum. Kelsey is a fellow of the EvoFunPath
training program.
Raveena Manikku Badu
Technician.
Raveena helps keep the lab running smoothly, and works on soil bacterial
isolations & genomics.
Anna Volakaki
PhD student (co-advised with Dr. Olivia
Wilkins).
Anna is characterizing effects of different soil bacteria on plant
physiology and nutrient uptake.
Laura Los
Technician.
Laura is contributing to several research projects, including profiling
mixed oomycete communities from soil and diseased roots, characterizing
impacts of Fusarium on malt quality, and screening wild
populations of Fusarium graminearum for resistance to
fungicides.
Ambroise Loeb
Mitacs Globalink visiting scholar.
Ambroise is working with CRISPR gene editing in Fusarium
graminearum.
Hariniha Selvarajan
MSc student.
Hariniha is investigating interactions between Fusarium
graminearum and bioactive compounds in barley.
Lab alumni
Kyle Remillard, Undergraduate summer research
Guénaël Artus, Mitacs Globalink visiting scholar
Atheena Quilal-lan, Undergraduate research project
Mehrdad Mohammadiani, MSc “Response of soil fungal communities associated with different soil fractions to tillage practices and crop rotation”
Tarin Farhana, MSc “How Fusarium graminearum affects intermediate wheatgrass and its mycobiome”
Ridhima Arora, Undergraduate
Robin Nelson, Co-op
Raveena Manikku Badu, Co-op
Linh Le, Undergraduate summer research
Gillian Mitchell-Lawson, Co-op
Mailly Pham, Co-op
Daksh Patel, Co-op
Janice Fajardo, MSc “Relationships among Fusarium graminearum infection, phenolic acid content, and the presence of a competing fungus in malting barley”
Natasha Melnichuk, PhD student intern
Danielle Pascual, Co-op
Athena Monayao, Co-op
Jenny Solanki, Undergraduate summer research
Urim Iyasere, Co-op
Arshani Alukumbura, MSc
Minimal impacts on the wheat microbiome when
Trichoderma gamsii T6085 is applied as a biocontrol agent to
manage fusarium head blight disease
Heidi Ahrenholtz, Co-op
Damian Elizalde Amezcua, Undergraduate honours
Meagan Smith, Undergraduate summer research
Shana Mann, Indigenous Summer Student Intern
Heather Inglis, Undergraduate
Shaima Eissa, Lab Technician III
Lab alumni from US Department of Agriculture
Dr. Hina Shanakhat, PhD student
intern
Modification of deoxynivalenol by a fungal laccase
paired with redox mediator TEMPO
Dr. Briana Whitaker, PhD student
intern
Bacterial endophyte antagonism toward a fungal pathogen
in vitro does not predict protection in live plant
tissue
Jake Brown, Technician
Nathan Kemp, Research Associate
Sarocladium zeae is a systemic endophyte of
wheat and an effective biocontrol agent against fusarium head
blight
Kelsey Roberts, Undergraduate summer research