I am a Professor of Biology and Systematics of Fungi in the Department of General and Applied Biology at São Paulo State University (UNESP), in Rio Claro, Brazil. I hold a degree in Biology from the Federal University of São Carlos, a Master's and PhD in Applied Microbiology from UNESP, visiting scholar at the University of Texas at Austin, USA. I completed post-doctorate studies at the University of Florida, Gainesville, USA, and at UNESP in collaboration with UNICAMP. I am an affiliate member of the Academy of Sciences of the State of São Paulo (ACIESP). As a mycologist, my research interests include insect-fungus associations and the evolutionary mechanisms behind these interactions. I focus on the taxonomy, diversity, and evolution of fungi associated with ant colonies (such as saúvas and quenquéns) and other insects. My team at the Fungal Ecology and Systematics Laboratory supports projects on the taxonomy and systematics of various fungal groups. Besides teaching and research activities, I'm also the curator the culture collection at the UNESP Microbial Resources Center (CRM-UNESP), (Source: Lattes Curriculum)
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Overview: Species interactions can drive diversification. This is particularly true in cases of coevolved symbioses, where coevolutionary processes can lead to the generation and maintenance of novel functional and genetic diversity as organisms respond to each over microevolutionary timescales. Furthermore, such evolutionary coupling can lead to taxonomic diversification, as one or more …
(Only some records are available in English at this moment)
The fungus genus Escovopsis (Ascomycota, Hypocreaceae) shares an evolutionary history with the fungus-growing attine ants (Attini, Attina). For several years, studies on Escovopsis were focused solely on its ecological interaction with fungi cultivated by the attines. However, recent studies have shown that attine colonies has a great taxonomic diversity of Escovopsis spp. Colonies of Apt…
This outreach project covers the symbiosis of fungus-farming ants, a notorious example of interactions between organisms. In this mutualistic relationship, ants provide shelter and substrate for the growth of fungi, which in turn, are consumed as a food source. In addition to disseminating the basic principles of this symbiosis, this proposal intends to explore the relationships of these …
(Only some records are available in English at this moment)
Due to the stable chemical nature and great durability of plastic polymers, tons of this waste that accumulate annually is an environmental challenge to be faced. One strategy that has received attention employs the metabolic capacity of microorganisms in the degradation of plastics. These polymers have structural components with physicochemical properties similar to plant polymers, such …
Leafcutter ants are fungus-growing insects that forage for fresh plant material to nourish the mutualistic fungus. In turn, the fungus is the food source for the colony. Due to the large amounts of leaves these insects forage, leaf-cutting ants can become pests, especially in anthropized environments, such as reforestation and agricultural areas. Control of leaf-cutting ants is utilizing …
(Only some records are available in English at this moment)
Fungus-growing attine ants cultivate Basidiomycota fungi for food. The relationship between attineants, such as Apterostigma, and their cultivated fungus is a multipartite symbiosis that involves many other fungi such as those in the Hypocreaceae family (Ascomycota). Our research group found new phylogenetic Hypocreaceae genera living in association with Apterostigma colonies. These linea…
Mutualisms as an outcome of host-virus interactions have been observed in some cases, despite the notable harmful outcomes expected for these interactions. Yeasts are often infected by double stranded RNA (dsRNA) viruses, that enable the secretion of toxins with positive outcomes for host survival and competitiveness. Originally observed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the phenotype named "k…
Symbiotic interactions play an important role in the evolution of life and allow structuring of complex systems in nature. Multipartite symbiotic associations with microbes enabled the evolutionary success of fungus-farming 'attine' ants. These insects collect various substrates for feeding a mutualistic fungus, which is cultured as a food source for their colonies. The fungal genus Escov…
Fungus-growing ants in the tribe Attini maintain mutualistic association with fungi that are cultivated for food. Fungus gardens of these insects harbors a complex microbiome, including yeasts, filamentous fungi and bacteria. Several lines of evidence suggest that the bacterial community found in the fungus garden perform physiological functions for the colony, such as nitrogen fixation, …
(Only some records are available in English at this moment)
| 1 / 1 | Ongoing grants |
| 9 / 7 | Completed research grants |
| 6 / 6 | Ongoing scholarships in Brazil |
| 32 / 27 | Completed scholarships in Brazil |
| 1 / 1 | Ongoing scholarships abroad |
| 5 / 5 | Completed scholarships abroad |
| 54 / 47 | All research grants and scholarships |
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