B.S. Biology, Harper College, SUNY-Binghamton, Binghamton, N.Y., 1980
Awards:
Behrend College Council of Fellows Excellence in Teaching Award., 1999
Teaching Interests:
Sophomore and upper level courses in Cell and Molecular Biology as well as an upper level course in Plant Developmental Biology. Sophomore level classes are intended to introduce the student to the basic knowledge and techniques associated with the field of cell and molecular biology. Students will be exposed to a problem-based laboratory exercise in order to develop critical and analytical thinking skills. Upper division courses in Molecular Biology and Plant Developmental Biology are designed to be project-oriented classes with a strong laboratory component. Students will apply class-room based knowledge to assigned projects.
Research Interests:
Physiology of perennial plants: Perennial plants, such as trees, undergo a developmental state called dormancy. This physiological state is poorly understood but it is known to be a response to an environmental cue such as the short days of winter or drought. Practical applications of this research could result in an ability to alter the length of the growing season of perennial plants and result in the development of new methods of storage of fruit and vegetable crops.
Potato Meristems: Potato tubers are an ideal system for basic studies into meristem dormancy. The meristems of potato tubers have a pronounced dormant period and are therefore ideal for examining the molecular and cellular conditions of the dormant state. Previous research examined genes associated with the regulation of cell division has shown that the arrest of cell division common in a dormant meristem is a condition that is downstream from the imposition of dormancy. Therefore the dormant state represses cell division and cell division is not a state of dormancy.
Black Cherry: In the United States the harvest of cherry wood for fine furniture is restricted to the Allegheny plateau and to a portion of the Appalachian highlands but the range black cherry extends from central regions of the Ontario province in Canada to the southern regions of Mexico. This raises some interesting questions about the genetics of this species and timber quality. Are the trees in the Allegheny genetically superior or is timber quality a factor of the environment? In addition, trees in the northern regions of the species range are subjected to a very short growing season and have a long period of meristem dormancy while trees in the southern parts of the species range have warm winters. These characteristics make black cherry an interesting system for genetic analysis. Part of research is to establish a system to examine the genetic structure and dynamics of black cherry populations in Pennsylvania.
Salamanders: Proposed highway construction on the Behrend Campus will soon result in the destruction of a number of wetlands. These wetlands are breeding sites for the salamander Ambystoma maculatum. In order to examine the impact this highway will have on these breeding populations we have started a program to establish molecular markers as a tool to measure levels of genetic diversity. This program will include the isolation of microsatellite markers to measure the breeding structure and diversity before the highway construction. This baseline information will then be used to determine the impact highway construction, and resulting wetlands mitigations, has on the population of salamanders on the Behrend campus.
Recent Publications:
Campbell, M.A. J. Patel, J.L. Meyers, L.C. Myrick, and J.L. Gustin. 2001. Genes encoding for Branched-chain amino acid aminotransferase are differentially expressed in plants. Plant Physiology and Biochemistry. 39:1-6.
Campbell, M.A., A. Woodring, J. Stidd. 1998. Isolation of a cDNA from potato with structural similarity to the AP2 gene superfamily (PGR98-129). Plant Physiology 117:1127.
Campbell, M.A., L.M. Herrmann, J. Colvin. 1998. The characterization of a gene encoding a putative germin-like protein from Solamun tuberosum (PGR98-169). Plant Physiology 118:711.
Campbell, M.A., F.Hahn, D. Poulter, T.Leustek. 1998. Analysis of the Isopentyl Diphosphate Isomerase Gene Family from Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant Molecular Biology 36:323-328.
Campbell, M.A., J.C. Suttle, and T.W. Sell. 1996. Changes in cell cycle status and expression of p34cdc2 kinase during potato tuber meristem dormancy. Physiol. Plant. 98:743-752.
Lehner, A., M.A. Campbell, N.C. Wheeler, T. Poykko, J. Glossl, J Kreike, and D.B. Neale. 1995. Identification of a RAPD marker linked to the pendula gene in Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst. f. pendula) Theor. Appl. Genetics. 91:1092-1094.
Campbell, M.A., D.B. Neale, P. Harvie, and K.W. Hutchison. 1994. Tissue Specific and Light Regulated Expression of a larch RbcS Promoter in Transgenic Tobacco. Can. J. For. Res. 24:1689-1693.
Campbell, M.A., D.B. Neale, and C.S. Kinlaw. 1993. Expression of luciferase and beta-glucuronidase in Pinus radiate suspension cells using Electroporations and particle Bombardment. Can. J. For. Res. 22:2014-2018
Campbell, M.A. and D.B. Neale. 1992. Activity of a larch small subunit promoter in transgenic tobacco. Plant Physiol. 99(1):77
Campbell, M.A., J.J. Gaynor, and E.G. Kirby. 1992. Molecular Studies of Shoot Induction in Cultured Cotyledons of Douglas-fir: Alterations in Polypeptide Profiles and mRNA Populations Physiol. Plant. 85(2):180-188.
Campbell, M.A., J.J. Gaynor, and E.G. Kirby. 1988. Changes in translatable RNA populations Isolated from Cotyledons of Douglas-fir Cultured on a Medium for the Induction of Adventitous Shoots. Plant Physiol. 86(4):42
Book Chapters
Campbell, M.A. 1991. "Tree growth: Adventitious Bud Induction." Chapter In: McGraw-Hill Yearbook of Science and Technology 1991. McGraw-Hill, Inc. New York. pp. 438-440.
Campbell, M.A., D.B. Neale. 1991. "Prospects for the study of DNA elements that confer light regulated gene expression in conifers." Chapter In: Woody Plant Biotechnology. (M.R. Ahuja, editor) Plenum Press, New York. pp. 295-306.
Kirby, E.G., M.A. Campbell, R.M. Penchel. 1989. "The isolation and culture of protoplasts from forest trees." Chapter In: Biotechnology in Agriculture and Forestry: Volume 8, Plant Protoplasts and Engineering I. (Y.P.S. Baja, editor) Springer Verlag, Berlin. pp. 262-274.
Campbell, M.A., J.J. Gaynor, and E.G. Kirby. 1987. "Changes in translatable RNA populations isolated from cotyledons of Douglas-fir." Abstract in Genetic Manipulation of Woody Plants. (J.W. Hanover and D.E. Keathley, editors) Plenum Press, New York. pg.460.
Interested persons can reach me for information at: mac17@psu.edu
Phone: 814-898-6474
This page was last updated 05 Sep 2004.