My research focuses on the characterization of endophytic fungi in healthy and environmentally-stressed plant populations with the goal of identifying novel, beneficial plant-microbe symbioses. This work is currently being conducted in an intercropping system involving native shrubs and millet in Senegal.
NSF Partnerships for International Research Education (PIRE) for Tropical Microbial Ecology in Senegal > Read More
> CFAES on Sustainability article
> What I Did This Summer > OSU website feature
Hometown
Ballwin, Missouri
Awards
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Distinguished University Fellowship, Ohio State
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Excellence in Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Graduate Fellowship
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Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (FAES) Environmental Fellowship
Publications
Debeport SJ, Assigbetse K, Bayalac R, Chapuis-Lardy L, Dick RP, McSpadden Gardener BB. 2015. Association of Shifting Populations in the Root Zone Microbiome of Millet with Enhanced Crop Productivity in the Sahel Region (Africa). Appl. Environ. Microbiol 81:8 2841-2851
Presentations
- Investigating the soil microbiome of two native shrubs with plant growth promoting activity in an intercropping system with millet in Senegal. SPENCER DEBENPORT, R. Bayala, K. Assigbetse, L. Chapuis-Lardy, R. P. Dick, B. McSpadden Gardener. Poster, American Phytopathological Society Annual Meeting, Aug. 9-14, 2014, Minneapolis, Minn.
- Microbial Community Analysis Using the Illimina MiDeq Platform, Wooster Area Molecular Biology Association (WAMBA), Feb. 21, 2014
- Metagenomic identification of bacterial merkers associated with increased plant growth in Senegal, Center for Applied Plant Sciences (CAPS) Annua Meeting, Dec. 13, 2013
