Cristina Toapanta

My principal research involves the biochemical mechanisms during degradation by five species of brown rot fungi and their specificity on different substrates, as well as morphological investigations of the decay process using light and confocal microscopy as well as scanning electron microscopy. In addition, a study of Ecuadorian polypores is underway. These fungi are unique organisms from the Yasuni National Park in the Ecuadorean Amazon. These new taxa are being identified using molecular methods and studies are being done on the biology and ecology of these little-known fungi.