Achievement

Trainee Marta Bjornson is examining the general stress response in plants using a chemical genomics screen. Marta is working in the Dehesh lab, under the joint supervision of CREATE-IGERT faculty members, Abhaya Dandekar (Plant Sciences) and Katie Dehesh (Plant Biology). Marta’s research project is reliant on cross-lab collaboration with CREATE-IGERT faculty, Georgia Drakakaki (Plant Sciences) and Annaliese Franz (Chemistry). Prof. Drakakaki has expertise in chemical genomics and has allowed Marta to screen her library of plant-bioactive compounds, resulting in a co-authored research poster with Trainee Natasha Worden (Drakakaki lab). Prof. Annaliese Franz is assisting Marta in the characterization of several compounds which affect plant general stress response. Progress on Marta’s chemical genomics research project is the direct result of research collaborations, technical assistance and interdisciplinary knowledge exchange facilitated by the CREATE-IGERT program.