Aspergillus fumigatus P4 SB was isolated from a
Pinus ponderosa needle on the University of Colorado
Denver campus by Sara Branco as part of the MycoEd program. MycoEd
(Mycological Curriculum for Education and Discovery) is a
Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) which seeks
to enhance fungal biology and genomics training in undergraduate
teaching labs. In this program, students isolate environmental
fungi, phenotype them and analyze results in the lab. Then, through
a collaborative effort between the Arizona Genomics
Institute and the JGI, genomes from a subset of those cultures
are produced. The genomes are then used by students to learn the
basics of comparative genomics and navigation of big data
platforms. Beyond -omics training, the data generated as part of
this work will improve the quality and breadth of publicly
available fungal genomes, and allow students to directly contribute
to impactful genome science. This CURE is designed to be both
accessible and flexible. Regardless of institutional facilities,
instructors can participate at any stage of the MycoEd workflow and
all protocols/training modules are freely available.
Students are welcome to pursue honors theses or research for
peer-review publication using any MycoEd produced genome. If
this is the case, to facilitate coordination amongst participants
please contact Stephen Mondo ([email protected]), the student who
isolated the genome(s) and their instructor (see the Collaborators
section on the Info page for contact details).
Interested in getting involved in MycoEd? Please contact Stephen
Mondo ([email protected]) to
learn more!
