 | | Dan Schlatter |
Dan Schlatter
Department of Plant Pathology
University of Minnesota 495 Borlaug Hall
1991 Upper Buford Circle
St. Paul, MN, 55108 Graduate Advisor: Linda Kinkel
| 2007-Present | Ph.D. Student
Department of Plant Pathology
University of Minnesota | | 2002-2006 | BA, Biology, French
University of Minnesota-Morris. |
Research Focus
I am interested in the soil microbial community, often regarded as a “black box” of which only ~1% of a given community can be readily cultured. There are innumerable unknown traits and functions to be discovered from these communities that may be relevant to plant health as well as many other scientific fields. I am currently developing a qPCR technique for quantifying the competitive dynamics of antibiotic producing vs. susceptible Streptomyces strains in soil. Microbial interactions in a highly structured and variable soil environment are very difficult to explore. Using molecular techniques rather than culturing will provide an alternate, and possibly more accurate, tool for quantifying the interactions of these organisms in their natural environment. Knowledge in this area has important implications for successful bio-control techniques, understanding disease suppressive soils, and elucidating the generally cryptic microbial interactions that cannot be studied outside of soil.
Professional Experience
| 2007-Present | Research Assistant
Department of Plant Pathology
University of Minnesota | | 2006-2007 | Junior Scientist
Department of Plant Pathology
University of Minnesota | | 2005 | Intern
CNRS-CEFE, Montpellier, France | | 2005 | Summer Research Student
Department of Plant Pathology
University of Minnesota | | 2004-2005 | Undergraduate Research Assistant
University of Minnesota-Morris |
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