Current personnel in the Baum Lab as of Spring 2008.  Click on their name to see their research interests and personal information.

Former Personnel in the Baum Lab:

Postdoctoral Researchers:
Dr. Martin Wubben; January 2005 – October 2005; genetic analyses of cyst nematode parasitism.

Dr. Zhuping Yang; October 2004 – May 2005; in planta gene silencing to interfere with cyst nematode parasitism.

Dr. Cathy Katsar; October 2003 – May 2004; in planta gene silencing to interfere with cyst nematode parasitism.

Dr. Mitra Mazarei; December 1997 – December 2006; characterization of soybean and Arabidopsis genes involved in cyst nematode parasitism.

Dr. Kristen Lennon; September 2000 – August 2002; histochemical analyses of cyst nematode-plant interactions.

Dr. David Puthoff; September 2000 – August 2002; expression profile analyses of cyst nematode-plant interactions.

Dr. Jan de Boer; September 1996 – August 2001; characterization of Heterodera glycines secretion genes.

Dr. Axel Schwekendiek; January 1999 – December 1999; identification and characterization of cyst nematode secretions and their genes.

Dr. Jennifer Hart; July 1998 - May 1999; characterization of Arabidopsis thaliana genes by in situ hybridization in cyst nematode-infected roots.

Dr. Marina Byzova; October 1997 - April 1998; characterization of Arabidopsis thaliana genes involved in cyst nematode parasitism.

Dr. Dennis Byrne; October 1996 - December 1998; identification of differentially regulated Heterodera glycines genes.

Dr. Dieter Hermsmeier; September 1995 - November 1997; molecular analyses of the Glycine max-Heterodera glycines interaction.

Graduate Students:

Axel Elling; August 2001 – August 2006; Ph.D.-student in the Interdepartmental Genetics program; research program was the molecular characterization of cyst nematode secretion genes and functional genomics of cyst nematode biology.  Currently working as a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology at Yale University.

Martin J. E. Wubben II;August 1998 – December 2004; Ph.D.-student in the Interdepartmental Genetics program; research project was the genetic analyses of the Arabidopsis – cyst nematode interaction.  Currently employed as a Research Molecular Geneticist, USDA/ARS, Crop Science Research Laboratory, Genetics and Precision Agriculture Research Unit, Mississippi State, MS.

Hong Su;July 1996 – March 2000; M.S.-student in the Interdepartmental Genetics program; research project was screening of Arabidopsis thaliana mutants for altered susceptibility to Heterodera schachtii and characterization of the rhd1 mutant.  In March 2000, Hong Su left the Genetics program and completed an M.S. in the Statistics Department at Iowa State University.

Keith A. Hardy;January 1996 - August 1998; M.S.-student in Plant Pathology; thesis title: ‘Arabidopsis thaliana mutants with altered susceptibility to Heterodera schachtii’.  Keith Hardy currently is employed with Novartis Seed Company.

Staff:

Jeff McDermott, former Research Associate, now a Researcher in Molecular and Integrative Physiology at the Kansas University Medical Center, Kansas City, Missouri

Natalie Walter, former Research Associate, attended Drake University to attain Masters of Public Administration in healthcare administration

 Current Undergraduate Research Assistants:

• Luis Alvarez, Junior, Horticulture
• Ryan Drum, Junior, Microbiology
• Rashiem Gilkes, Sophomore, Pre-Business
• Tonda Hadden , Senior, Forestry
• Julie Hallman, Junior, Dietetics
• Rachel Kreis, Sophomore, Horticulture