Since 2009, the Blair Lab has utilized culture-based and environmental DNA sequencing methods to quantify oomycete biodiversity within diverse environments, including agricultural soils and freshwater sources. Check out Coffua et al (2016) for our work on oomycete biodiversity associated with asymptomatic soybean in south-central Pennsylvania. 

A fundamental component of evolutionary research is the formal description of new species. The Blair Lab has described two new species, Pythium yorkense (Veterano et al, 2018) and Pythium wohlseniorum (Blair 2018), with several more in the pipeline. Molecular phylogenetics is also the core analytical tool we use in the Blair Lab to understand the evolutionary history of this diverse group.

Environmental sampling has opened up many new lines of research in the Blair Lab, including a deep-dive into the evolutionary genomics of hybridization. We continue to work with a set of aquatic isolates, utilizing molecular cloning, flow cytometry, and morphological assays to characterize the impacts of genomic hybridization on oomycetes.

In collaboration with wildlife biologists and naturalists at ZooAmerica and Fort Indiantown Gap National Guard Training Center, the Blair Lab has been studying the genetic diversity and pathogen load of the critically endangered regal fritillary butterfly, Argynnis idalia, and its sympatric sister species. Check out our latest paper on this work: Rutins et al (2022)

The Blair Lab is also interested in optimizing existing and developing new molecular methods for the detection of pathogenic organisms in the environment. Check out Butler et al (2020) for our work on Aphanomyces crayfish pathogens. Maria Meriwether '21 (above) and Kyra Caffrey '23 both earned Honors in Biology for piloting our current work on the detection of Naegleria species in local Lancaster County waterways.

We are always open to new projects involving DNA sequencing, phylogenetic analysis, and genomics. Given the rapid evolution of genome sequencing technologies and analysis platforms, our next project may be completely different from our current work. Stay tuned!