Diana J. Davis
, Professor of Chemistry, College of Mount St. Joseph; Adjunct Professor of Botany
http://www.msj.edu/academics/faculty/faculty/chemistry/
Ph.D.
(1995) Colorado State University
Areas of Expertise
Biochemistry of fungal growth, reproduction, and dispersal
Research Interests
Biochemistry of Fungal Dispersal. Fungi use a remarkable array of dispersal devices to launch their spores. A mechanism referred to as the surface tension catapult is utilized by 30,000 basidiomycete fungi, including mushroom-forming species. This relies upon the secretion of minuscule quantities of sugars and ions, and the subsequent condensation of water to generate a droplet of fluid at the base of each spore. The motion of this droplet is responsible for catapulting the spore into the air. Ascomycete fungi operate in a different fashion, squirting their spores from cells called asci that are pressurized by the accumulation of sugars and salts. To understand how spore discharge operates in both groups of fungi I am using a variety of techniques, including GC/MS, ICP-OES, and ICP-MS, to study the chemical composition of fluid samples obtained from diverse species. Differences in the composition and concentration of osmolytes in these samples are critical to the operation of spore discharge mechanisms and our work is offering new insights about the evolutionary history of terrestrial fungi.
Selected Publications
Davis, D. J., Lanter, K., Makselan, S., Bonati, C., Asbrock, P., Ravishankar, J. P., and Money, N. P. 2006. Relationship between temperature optima and secreted protease activities of three Pythium species (Oomycota) and pathogenicity toward plant and animal hosts. Mycological Research 110:96-103.
Fischer, M., Cox, J., Davis, D. J., Wagner, A., Taylor, R., Huerta, A. J., and Money, N. P. 2004. New information on the mechanism of forcible ascospore discharge from Ascobolus immersus. Fungal Genetics and Biology 41: 698-707.
Ravishankar, J. P., Davis, C. M., Davis, D. J., MacDonald, E., Makselan, S. D., Millward, L., and Money, N. P. 2001. Mechanics of solid tissue invasion by the mammalian pathogen Pythium insidiosum. Fungal Genetics and Biology 34: 167-175.
Davis, D. J., Burlak, C., and Money, N. P. 2000. Osmotic pressure of fungal compatible osmolytes. Mycological Research 104: 800-804.
Davis, D. J., Burlak, C., and Money, N. P. 2000. Biochemical and biomechanical aspects of appressorial development in Magnaporthe grisea. In: Tharreau, D., Lebrun, M. H., Talbot, N. J., and Notteghem, J. L., eds., Advances in Rice Blast Research. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, pp. 248-256.