A study by MSI PI Jonathan Schilling (Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering) was recently featured in the OVPR’s Inquiry blog. The study examines two kinds of fungi that decompose wood, called “white rot” and “brown rot” fungi. These different fungi thrive in different condition and cause different amounts of carbon to be released to the atmosphere as they degrade wood. The results from this work may allow researchers to better predict carbon emissions from decaying wood.
OVPR’s story can be found on the Inquiry blog: War of the Rots. The study can be found on the Functional Ecology website: Fungal endophytes as priority colonizers initiating wood decomposition.
Professor Schilling uses MSI resources to perform RNA-seq studies of wood-rot fungi.