CHEESEMAN, John M.

Department of Plant Biology
Ph.D. (1975) Duke University

   Research Topics

• Genetic Manipulation of Nitrate Reductase (NR) Activity in Plants and its Physiological Consequences
• Photosynthesis and Photoprotection in Mangroves 

    Research Interests  

   The primary focus of my laboratory is the control and integration of resource acquisition and allocation by plants. Our current research topics are just two aspects of work which has ranged from studies of salinity and control of ion transport and partitioning, integration of photosynthesis, nutrient acquisition and growth, and field studies of plant performance in challenging environments, to mathematical modeling of processes contributing to overall organismal integration. The NR project, in which NR-free mutants are transformed with NR under the control of different promoters, is exploring the importance of location, activity and control of NR to overall plant growth and reproductive output.  The Rangrove Project is centered around on of the first grants from the new NSF Biocompexity Program.  Our objective is to understand the interactions between integrated plant and other Ecosystem Processes in an isolated tropical system.

    Key Words  Introduction of DNA into Plant Cells, Membrane Structure and Function, Protein Purification and Characterization, Plant Cell and/or Tissue Culture, Photosynthesis and Biophysical Techniques, Plant Transformation

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