Graduate Research Assistant
Cornell University
Department of Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology
Ithaca, NY 14853

January 2003-present: PhD student, Molecular Plant Pathology; Department of Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology, Cornell University

2000: Bachelor of Science, Plant Biology, University of Delaware
2002: Master of Science, Plant Pathology, University of Arizona

Graduate Advisor: Alan Collmer

Research Focus    

My research is focused on the type III secretion system (T3SS) of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000, causal agent of bacterial speck on tomato. The T3SS is essential for bacterial virulence and is a conserved mechanism among many gram-negative pathogens of plants and animals. I am interested in how conserved proteins in the T3SS have specifically adapted for plant pathogenesis. I am currently exploring how one of these conserved proteins plays a role in the sorting of type III substrates, in hopes of establishing a hierarchy of substrate secretion.

Lab Home Page: http://www.plantpath.cornell.edu/Labs/Collmer_A/index.html

Honors     

2005 Travel Scholarship to attend “XII International Congress on Molecular Plant-Microbe interactions”. Merida, Mexico

2001 Travel Scholarship to attend "Rhizosphere Control Points: Molecules to Food Webs" Symposium, University of California, Davis, CA

2000 Karl Butler Fellowship in Plant Pathology, University of Arizona

2000 E.M. Rahn Award in Plant Sciences, University of Delaware

1996-2000 State of Delaware Carvel Agricultural Scholarship, University of Delaware

Elected and Appointed Offices    

2004-present Webmaster, Plant Pathology Graduate Student Association

2004-2005 Secretary, Plant Pathology Graduate Student Association

Professional Societies and Working Groups    

American Phytopathogical Society
International Society of Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions

Publications    

Kvitko, BH, AR Ramos, JE Morello, H Oh, and Alan Collmer. 2007. Identification of Harpins in Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000, Which Are Functionally Similar to HrpK1 in Promoting Translocation of Type III Secretion System Effectors. Journal of Bacteriology. 189: 8059-8072

Oh, H, BH Kvitko, JE Morello, and Alan Collmer. 2007. Pseudomonas syringae Lytic Transglycosylases Coregulated with the Type III Secretion System Contribute to the Translocation of Effector Proteins into Plant Cells. Journal of Bacteriology. 189: 8277-8289

Ramos, AR1, JE Morello¹ , S Ravindran, W Deng, H Huang, and A Collmer. 2007. Identification of Pseudomonas syringae type III secretion system Hrp proteins that can travel the type III pathway and contribute to the translocation of effector proteins into plant cells. Journal of Bacteriology. 189(15): 5773-5778.

¹ Co-first authors

Kers, JA., KD Cameron, MV Joshi, RA Bukhalid, JE Morello, MJ Wach, DM Gibson, and R Loria. 2005. A large, mobile pathogenicity island confers plant pathogenicity on Streptomyces species. Molecular Microbiology. 55(4): 1025-1033.

Morello, JE, EA Pierson, and LS Pierson III. 2004. Negative Cross-Communication among Wheat Rhizosphere Bacteria: Effect on Antibiotic Production by the Biological Control bacterium Pseudomonas aureofaciens 30-84. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 70: 3103-3109.