Home Department: Bioengineering
Mentor: Kabir Peay (Biology and Earth Systems Science)

"Building a Protoplasting-Based Transformation Toolkit for the Ectomycorrhizal Model Fungus Suillus pungens"

Ectomycorrhizal fungi form partnerships with the root networks of trees and plants, exchanging critical nutrients for plant-derived carbon. Such fungi are central to the health and shaping of forest ecosystems. Studying ectomycorrhizal fungi at the genetic level has long proven difficult, with tools for introducing DNA into their cells being particularly challenging. Suillus pungens is rapidly emerging as a model organism for the group, but genetic studies in this organism are limited by the lack of a reliable genetic transformation protocol. This project works to build such a protocol by optimizing protoplasting, the process of gently dissolving the fungal cell walls to allow them to take up new DNA, and the subsequent challenge of regenerating the protoplasts into healthy mycelium after transformation. By establishing a reliable process for protoplast generation and recovery, the work aims to enable genetic modifications of Suillus pungens—ultimately providing the toolkit for future studies into the complex workings of how ectomycorrhizal fungi interact with and shape their ecosystems.