Current Lab Members

Tyler LAIRD
Gillian BERGMANN
Eduardo RUIZ
Alycia RASMUSSEN
Mira CONYERS
Elnatan GOLAN
Yousuf MUSTAFA
Mia KARLSSON
Davis MCWILLIAMS
Kacie LUI
Conrad TANG
Clarissa WAHYUDI


Tyler LAIRD

Microbiology Ph.D. candidate, in the lab since Spring 2019
tslaird (at) ucdavis (dot) edu

Tyler’s research covers the genomics, evolution, and ecology of bacterial iac genes for the degradation and utilization of the plant hormone indole 3-acetic acid (IAA).

Gillian BERGMANN

Ecology Ph.D. candidate, in the lab since Fall 2020
gbergmann (at) ucdavis (dot) edu

Gillian is researching the contributions of floral transmission to bacterial community assembly in developing seeds. She is broadly interested in the following aspects of microbial ecology: species interactions, landscape and metacommunity ecology, relationships with functional traits and community assembly. Website: gebergmann.weebly.com.

top

Eduardo RUIZ

Microbiology Ph.D. candidate, in the lab since Spring 2021
emruiz (at) ucdavis (dot) edu

Eduardo is interested in the biology and ecology of bacterial symplasmata and multicellularity, in the context of phyllosphere microbiology.

top

Alycia RASMUSSEN

Microbiology Ph.D. candidate, in the lab since Spring 2022
arrasmussen (at) ucdavis (dot) edu

Aly studies the photodegradation of bacterially produced indole 3-acetic acid (IAA).

top

Mira CONYERS

Microbiology Ph.D. candidate, in the lab since Spring 2022
mmconyers (at) ucdavis (dot) edu

For her project, Mira tests a range of microbials, including Collimonas strains, for their ability to protect strawberry and other plants against pathogens.

top

Elnatan GOLAN

Visiting Ph.D. student from the Gilat Research Center in Israel; in the lab since Summer 2023
Elnatan’s project involves the isolation and characterization of phosphate-solubilizing bacteria from the phyllosphere.

top

Mia KARLSSON

UC Davis student majoring in Microbiology, in the lab since Summer 2022

Mia is working with Aly Rasmussen on a project to elucidate the benefit of IAA production to bacterial colonizers of the phyllosphere.

top

Yousuf MUSTAFA

UC Davis student majoring in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, in the lab since Fall 2022
Yousuf M. is a former student (2021) in COSMOS Cluster 7. He is working with Eduardo Ruiz on the isolation of bacteriophages from the phyllosphere.

top

Kacie LUI

UC Davis Honors student majoring in Human Biology, in the lab since Fall 2022

For her Honors thesis, Kacie is working with Gillian Bergmann on how different Bacillus strains reduce the effects of Fusarium wilt in watermelon seedlings.

top

Davis MCWILLIAMS

UC Davis student majoring in Global Disease Biology, in the lab since Fall 2023

Davis works with Mira Conyers to determine if and how the bacterial biocontrol strain Paraburkholderia phytofirmans PsJN offers protection against Fusarium wilt in strawberry.

top

Conrad TANG

UC Davis student majoring in Human Biology, in the lab since Winter 2024

Conrad works with Aly Rasmussen to eludicate the mechanism(s) by which the phyllosphere-native bacterium Pseudomonas putida 1290 responds to indole 3-acetic acid (IAA).

top

Clarissa WAHYUDI

UC Davis student majoring in Psychology, in the lab since Winter 2024

Clarissa works with Aly Rasmussen to eludicate the mechanism(s) by which the phyllosphere-native bacterium Pseudomonas putida 1290 responds to indole 3-acetic acid (IAA).

top