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Dr. Len D. Pysh

Professor, Director of the Center for Health Careers

Department:
Biology
Location:
406 Life Science
Phone:
(540)375-2466

Degrees

  • Ph.D., University of California, San Diego, 1994
  • A.B., Wabash College, 1988

Research & Teaching Interests

  • Plant Biology
  • Cell Biology
  • Molecular Biology
  • History of Biology
  • History of Infectious Diseases

Publications

  • Jefferies C, Dorgan K, and Pysh L (2021) Promoting a more integrated approach to structure and function. Integrative & Comparative Biology 61:2020-2030. https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icab144.
  • Li, Y, Kim, JI, Pysh, L, and Chapple, C. (2015) Four isoforms of Arabidopsis 4-Coumarate:CoA Ligase have overlapping yet distinct roles in phenylpropanoid metabolism. Plant Physiology 169:2409-2421.
  • Pysh, LD (2015) Two alleles of the AtCesA3 gene in Arabidopsis thaliana display intragenic complementation. American Journal of Botany 102:1443-1451.
  • Pysh, L., Alexander, N., Swatzyna, L., and Harbert, R. (2012) Four alleles of AtCESA3 form an allelic series with respect to root phenotype in Arabidopsis thaliana. Physiologia Plantarum 144:369-381.

Extracurricular

  • Cycling
  • Gardening
  • Reading

Statement of Research Interests

  • The general aim of the research conducted by my students and me is to understand how the shapes of cells are determined. Cell shape is an important aspect of cell function (because form determines function in biological systems), yet little is known about how cell shape is determined in any organism. The fact that cell shape is remarkably consistent from generation to generation suggests that the process has genetic and molecular components.
  • We use a combination of molecular, genetic, and cellular approaches to identify the molecules that play a role in determining the shapes of cells in the roots of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, with the expectation that the molecules and principles we identify in this plant will be more broadly applicable to all plants.