The Connecticut State Museum of Natural History, part of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at UConn, presents “Fungus-Growing Ants and the Eco-Evolution of Antibiotics,” a lecture by Dr. Jonathan Klassen, UConn Department of Molecular and Cell Biology. The lecture will be held at the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History on the UConn Storrs Campus, Saturday, March 14 at 1 pm.
Fungal-growing ants have evolved a symbiotic relationship with a fungus that provides them a ready food source. The relative simplicity of this relationship has made it a model for understanding how symbiotic microbial communities function and evolve, and has offered new understandings of more complicated systems, including the human microbiome. For example, we have learned that microbes depend on a variety of natural chemical products, such as antibiotics, to function within these systems. By better understanding microbial ecosystems, we are creating opportunities to discover potential new drug molecules and generate better management strategies for drug resistance.
This program is free and advanced registration is not required. To contact the Museum, visit http://www.cac.uconn.edu/mnhcurrentcalendar.html or call 860-486-4460.
Presented by the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History and Connecticut Archaeology Center, part of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at UConn.
For more information, contact: Natural History Museum at 860.486.4460