Dr. Michael R. McKain – Assistant Professor, The University of Alabama and Curator of The University of Alabama Herbarium (UNA)

"From Weeds to Your Table: Impacts of polyploidy on the evolution of Andropogoneae"

The Andropogoneae are an economically and ecologically valuable groups of grasses that include species like maize (Zea mays), sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum), sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) and big bluestem (Andropogon gerardi). This group has diversified in tropical portions of the world, but many lineages have found footholds in temperature climates, especially after polyploidy events. Research in my lab looks at the impact that polyploidy has from genomic, physiological, ecological, and historical perspectives by combining genome-level data with historical specimens to understand the role that diploidization places in the shaping of success after polyploidy. In this talk, I will explore the history of maize and how biodiversity sampling has opened up our understanding of this genetic model species. I will also discuss how we are using herbaria and contemporary sampling to understand how polyploidy has influenced the evolution of Johnsongrass, one of the world’s worst weeds.

Email biology.chair@uah.edu for more meeting details.