Tobin L. Peever
Associate Professor,
Associate Plant Pathologist
View Peever Lab | Center for Reproductive Biology
Research Specialty and Interests
My research program is focused on the evolution of plant-pathogenic fungi. My goal is to understand how evolution has shaped pathogen populations and to use this knowledge to design more stable and environmentally sound management strategies to control plant disease. Current research efforts in my lab are focused on the evolutionary genetics of host specificity and the role of host specificity in fungal speciation. In order to address these questions, we use two pathosystems, Ascochyta spp. which cause Ascochyta blights of a number of commercially important food legumes and Alternaria alternata, which causes brown spot of citrus. In the former pathosystem, we are developing multilocus phylogenies of Ascochyta spp. sampled from wild and cultivated legumes, performing genetic crosses between closely related, host-specific forms and testing the fitness of hybrids using experimental inoculations. Additional projects include the population structure of Ascochyta rabiei on chickpea in California, Tunisia and worldwide, the epidemiology of A. rabiei ascospore dispersal, the role of wheat as an alternate host for Ascochyta spp., and the histology of non-host infection using GFP-tagged strains. With the A. alternata/citrus pathosystem, we are interested in the ecology and evolution of citrus-associated isolates including pathogenic, non-pathogenic and putatively endophytic strains, the evolution of host-specific toxins and their role in host specificity and mechanisms of horizontal gene exchange. We are also studying the molecular systematics of A. alternata and closely related small-spored Alternaria species on citrus and other hosts and are using Alternaria species as a model to determine the role of mating genes in asexual fungi. I collaborate extensively with WSU researchers as well with numerous others around the globe.
Professional Experience
- 2005-present, Associate Professor Plant Pathology, WSU
- 1998-2005, Assistant Professor of Plant Pathology, WSU
- 1996-1998, Visiting Assistant in Plant Pathology, University of Florida
- 1994-1996, Post Doctoral Research Associate, Cornell University
Awards/Honors/Memberships
- Center for Integrated Biotechnology - WSU
- Center for Reproductive Biology - WSU/UI
- Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Fellow (2000)
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
- Graduate Scholarships (1985-1990)
- American Phytopathological Society
- Mycological Society of America
Selected Representative Publications
(see Peever lab page for complete list & downloadable pdf files)
Peever, T.L. 2007. Role of Host Specificity in the Speciation of Ascochyta Pathogens of Cool Season Food Legumes. European Journal of Plant Pathology 119: 119-126.
Peever, T.L., M.P. Barve, L.J. Stone and W.J. Kaiser. 2007. Evolutionary relationships among Ascochyta species infecting wild and cultivated hosts in the legume tribes Cicereae and Vicieae. Mycologia 99: 59-77.
Hernandez-Bello, M.A., M.I. Chilvers, H. Akamatsu, and T.L. Peever. 2006. Host specificity of Ascochyta species infecting legumes of the Viciae and Cicerae tribes and the pathogenicity of an interspecific hybrid. Phytopathology 96: 1148-1156.
Peever, T.L., L. Carpenter-Boggs, L.M. Carris, L.W. Timmer and A. Bhatia. 2005. Citrus black rot is caused by phylogenetically distinct lineages of Alternaria alternata. Phytopathology 95: 512-518.
Peever, T.L., S. Salimath, G. Su, W.J. Kaiser and F.J. Muehlbauer. 2004. Historical and contemporary multilocus population structure of Ascochyta rabiei (teleomorph: Didymella rabiei) in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Molecular Ecology 13: 291-309.
Peever, T.L., G. Su, L. Carpenter-Boggs and L.W. Timmer. 2004. Molecular systematics of citrus-associated Alternaria species. Mycologia 96: 119-134.
Barve, M.P., T. Arie, S.S. Salimath, F.J. Muehlbauer and T.L. Peever. 2003. Cloning and characterization of the mating type (MAT) locus from Ascochyta rabiei (teleomorph: Didymella rabiei) and a MAT phylogeny of legume-associated Ascochyta spp. Fungal Genetics and Biology 39:151-167.
Johnson
Hall 357 (office) &
Vogel Plant Bioscience 219 (lab)
Tel.: (509)335-3754
Fax: (509)335-9581
E-mail: tpeever@wsu.edu
Teaching:
Fungal Genetics - PLP 534 (GenCB 534). 4 credits. A graduate-level course covering classical, molecular and population genetics of fungi. Offered in alternate years.
General Plant Pathology - PLP429/529 (Biol 429). 3 credits. An undergraduate/graduate course introducing students to the biology of plant disease and disease control.
Professional Activities:
Associate Editor, European Journal of Plant Pathology 2007-present
Heading using the h3tag
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