Dr. González Aparicio is joining Biology in Fall 2025!
Dr. González Aparicio works with minus-sense RNA viruses such as RSV. She has studied diversity in RNA virus genome copies and induction of host responses to "copyback" virus genomes.
- Selection of non-standard viral genomes during the evolution of RNA viruses: A virus survival strategy or a pesky inconvenience? Adv. Virus Res. 119:39 (2024).
- Copy-back viral genomes induce a cellular stress response that interferes with viral protein expression without affecting antiviral immunity. PLoS Biol. 21:e3002381 (2023).
- A virus is a community: Diversity within negative-sense RNA virus. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 86:e0008621 (2022).
- Phenotypic assessment of Cox10 variants and their implications for Leigh Syndrome. BMC Res. Notes 17:228 (2024).
- CURE on yeast genes of unknown function increases students' bioinformatics proficiency and research confidence. J. Microbiol. Biol. Educ. 25:e0016523 (2024).
- House cricket males reared at different perceived acoustic population densities differ in adult behaviour but not physiology. Ecol. Entomol. 49:798. (2024).
- Effects of sodium puddling on male mating success, courtship and flight in a swallowtail butterfly. Animal. Behav. 114:203 (2016).
- Fed males increase oviposition in female hawkmoths via non-nutritive direct benefits. Animal Behav. 112:111 (2016).
Emerging infectious diseases are responsible for mass amphibian declines and extinctions around the world. Dr. Ruthig's lab focuses on several emerging pathogens of amphibians, including ranaviruses, water molds, and the amphibian chytrid fungus.
Dr. Ruthig studies these pathogens on multiple scales, ranging from field surveys to laboratory experiments and molecular genetics. This research approach allow undergraduates with diverse interests to work on a system that encompasses the fields of zoology, ecology, medicine, disease biology, genetics, and conservation biology.
- Cholera rages in Africa and the Middle East: A narrative review on challenges and solutions. Health Sci. Rep. 12:e2013 (2024).
- Risks and preventions for pregnant women and their preterm infants in a world with COVID-19: A narrative review. Vaccines 11:640 (2023).
- Dead mink frogs (Lithobates septentionalis) found in Northern Minnesota were infected with both Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis and Ranavirus. 2020. Herpetol. Rev. 51:744 (2020).
- Aggregations of olive ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea Eschholtz, 1829) nests is associated with increased human predation during an arribada event. Herpetol. Notes 12:1 (2019).
- Mutations in Drosophila crinkled/Myosin VIIA disrupt denticle morphogenesis. Dev. Biol. 470:121 (2021).
- Density-enhanced phosphatase 1 regulates phosphorylation of tight junction proteins and enhances barrier function of epithelial cells. J. Biol. Chem. 284:14997 (2009).
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi are symbiotic, root-inhabiting fungi that associate with the majority of plants in the world and can interconnect plants when hyphae from one root system forage for mineral nutrients throughout the soil, then encounter and colonize the roots of another plant, forming a common mycorrhizal network (CMN).
To understand how these fungi contribute to plants’ competitive abilities and consequent species dominance, "Dr. W" and her lab investigate the influence of CMNs on plant mineral nutrition, plant interactions, and nutrient movement. Their research incorporates cutting-edge tools such as stable isotopes, in vitro root organ cultures, and next-generation sequencing.
- Common mycorrhizal networks improve survival and mediate facilitative plant interactions of Andropogon gerardii seedlings under drought stress. Mycorrhiza 35:8 (2025).
- Nutrient exchange within common mycorrhizal networks is altered in a multispecies environment. Func. Ecol. 39:418 (2024).
- Investigation of plant interactions across common mycorrhizal networks using rotated cores. J. Vis. Exp. 26:145 (2019).
- Adding authenticity to inquiry in a first-year, research-based, biology laboratory course. CBE-LSE 18:ar38 (2019).