Dr. Sandra Bonetti, Chemistry
In nature, fungi and plants have developed close ecological relationships due to their co-evolution on earth. The interactions between fungi and plants are diverse and may be beneficial or detrimental depending on environmental conditions and the organisms involved. Mycorrhizal fungi are symbiotically associated plant host root systems, which provide enhanced water and nutrient absorption for the plant, while the fungi benefit from photosynthetic carbohydrate nutrients supplied by the plant.
However, many of the interactions are not positive, as many fungal species are plant pathogens, which have evolved to consume plants. The plant pathogenic fungi, among which are Penicillium species, possess an array (arsenal) of enzymes that allow the fungal mycelia to penetrate and destroy the plant cell walls and metabolize plant compounds.
In addition, many harvested plants and plant products, including those from marijuana and hemp, have been found to be contaminated with fungi. Subsequently, consumption of the fungal-contaminated materials poses a threat to human health due to ingestion of mycotoxins and the potential for fungal infection by Aspergillus species in immunocompromised individuals. In this project, the interaction of Penicillium spinu/osum, a non-human plant pathogen, with hemp will be investigated. The two specific aims of this proposal are to (1) determine how the introduction of hemp seeds affects fungal (P. spinulosum) growth and metabolism and (2) determine whether P.spinulosum metabolizes hemp compounds by identifying the fungal products.