Department of Biological Sciences: Leading the way to Prominence

Kirk Czymmek, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Czymmek

Phone: (302) 831-3450
Fax: (302) 831-2281
Email: kirk@udel.edu
Office: 117B DBI

Address:
Department of Biological Sciences
Wolf Hall
University of Delaware
Newark, DE 19716

Download vCard

Education

B.S. - State University of New York, Oswego
Ph.D. - Michigan State University
Postdoctoral - Plant Molecular Genetics, Central Research and Development, DuPont Company

Research Interests

My lab is interested in using contemporary molecular cytology, preparation and imaging technologies to understand aspects of fungal cell biology, namely fungal-plant pathogenic interactions and mechanisms of fungal hyphal tip growth. Our model systems include the rice pathogen Magnaporthe grisea, which is the causal agent of rice blast disease and is of worldwide economic importance, and Phytophthora phaseoli, which is the causal agent of downy mildew in lima bean a very important processing crop in the Delmarva Peninsula. Currently, my lab, in collaboration with DuPont Ag Biotech, is utilizing spectral variants of green fluorescent protein (GFP) tagged fungal hyphae and four-dimensional imaging techniques to visualize entire host-pathogen encounter sites in planta, over time. In addition, my lab is involved with in vivo time-course imaging of the effect of fungicides on specific fungal structures and organelles with specific fusion proteins.

Research Group

Elizabeth Adams, Ph.D. - Associate Scientist (Ph.D., University of East Anglia, United Kingdom).
Shannon Modla, M.S. - Research Associate I (M.S., University of North Carolina Wilmington). Interested in the ultrastructure of the blue crab exoskeleton and its role in the calcification of crustacean cuticle. Recent interests have been in developing new techniques and applications for correlating biological structures by confocal and electron microscopy.
Deborah Powell, B.S., MT(ASCP) - Research Associate II (B.S., University of Delaware).
David Scheiblin, B.A. - Confocal Teaching Assistant (B.A., University of Delaware).
Kalyani Telu, B.S. - Graduate Student (B.S., Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University, India). Investigating differential mRNA localization of fusarium hyphal tips in order to understand differences in gene expression at the very apex from the nuclear zone of Fusarium oxysporum pathogen.

Selected Publications

Morgan-Kiss RM, Chan L-K, Modla S, et al. Chlorobaculum tepidum regulates chlorosome structure and function in response to temperature and electron donor availability. Photosynth Res. 2009;99(1):11–21.
Olszewski MW, Pill WG, Scheiblin DA, Czymmek KJ. Use of confocal microscopy to relate germination vigour to embryo morphology of dormant and non-dormant purpletop (Tridens flavus). Seed Sci Technol. 2009;37(1):52–58.
Shao Y, Czymmek KJ, Jones PA, et al. Dynamic interactions between L-type voltage sensitive calcium channel (VSCC) Cav1.2 ({alpha}1C) subunits and ahnak in osteoblastic cells. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol. 2009;296(5):C1067–C1078.
Caplan JL, Mamillapalli P, Burch-Smith TM, Czymmek K, Dinesh-Kumar SP. Chloroplastic protein NRIP1 mediates innate immune receptor recognition of a viral effector. Cell. 2008;132(3):449–462.
Cooper CR, Graves B, Pruitt F, et al. Novel surface expression of reticulocalbin 1 on bone endothelial cells and human prostate cancer cells is regulated by TNF-alpha. J Cell Biochem. 2008;104(6):2298–2309.
Danysh BP, Czymmek KJ, Olurin PT, Sivak JG, Duncan MK. Contributions of mouse genetic background and age on anterior lens capsule thickness. Anat Rec (Hoboken). 2008;291(12):1619–1627.
Kumar A, Kamboj S, Malone BM, et al. Analysis of protein domains and Rett syndrome mutations indicate that multiple regions influence chromatin-binding dynamics of the chromatin-associated protein MECP2 in vivo. J Cell Sci. 2008;121(Pt 7):1128–1137.
Morgan-Kiss RM, Ivanov AG, Modla S, et al. Identity and physiology of a new psychrophilic eukaryotic green alga, Chlorella sp., strain BI, isolated from a transitory pond near Bratina Island, Antarctica. Extremophiles. 2008;12(5):701–711.
Rudrappa T, Czymmek KJ, Pare PW, Bais HP. Root-secreted malic acid recruits beneficial soil bacteria. Plant Physiol. 2008;148(3):1547–1556.
Adams EL, Czymmek K. The combined application of AFM and LSCM: Changing the way we look at innate immunity. In: Méndez-Vilas A, Díaz J, eds. Modern Research and Education Topics in Microscopy. Vol. 1. Spain: Formatex; 2007:68–76.
Burch-Smith TM, Schiff M, Caplan JL, Tsao J, Czymmek K, Dinesh-Kumar SP. A novel role for the TIR domain in association with pathogen-derived elicitors. PLoS Biol. 2007;5(3):e68.
Catalano CM, Czymmek KJ, Gann JG, Sherrier DJ. Medicago truncatula syntaxin SYP132 defines the symbiosome membrane and infection droplet membrane in root nodules. Planta. 2007;225(3):541–550.
Czymmek KJ, Fogg M, Powell DH, Sweigard J, Park S-Y, Kang S. In vivo time-lapse documentation using confocal and multi-photon microscopy reveals the mechanisms of invasion into the Arabidopsis root vascular system by Fusarium oxysporum. Fungal Genet Biol. 2007;44(10):1011–1023.
Fondong VN, Reddy RVC, Lu C, et al. The consensus N-myristoylation motif of a geminivirus AC4 protein is required for membrane binding and pathogenicity. Mol Plant Microbe Interact. 2007;20(4):380–391.
Kang LI, Wang Y, Suckow AT, et al. Deletion of JAM-A causes morphological defects in the corneal epithelium. Int J Biochem Cell Biol. 2007;39(3):576–585.
Kankanala P, Czymmek K, Valent B. Roles for rice membrane dynamics and plasmodesmata during biotrophic invasion by the blast fungus. Plant Cell. 2007;19(2):706–724.
Anobile JM, Arumugaswami V, Downs D, Czymmek K, Parcells M, Schmidt CJ. Nuclear localization and dynamic properties of the Marek's disease virus oncogene products Meq and Meq/vIL8. J Virol. 2006;80(3):1160–1166.
Wagner RC, Czymmek K, Hossler FE. Confocal microscopy, computer modeling, and quantification of glomerular vascular corrosion casts. Microsc Microanal. 2006;12(3):262–268.
Yao Y, Czymmek KJ, Pazhianur R, Lenhoff AM. Three-dimensional pore structure of chromatographic adsorbents from electron tomography. Langmuir. 2006;22(26):11148–11157.
Czymmek KJ. Exploring fungal activity with confocal and multiphoton microscopy. In: Dighton J, Wicklow DT, eds. The Fungal Community. Boca Raton: CRC Press; 2005.
Czymmek KJ, Bourett TM, Shao Y, DeZwaan TM, Sweigard JA, Howard RJ. Live-cell imaging of tubulin in the filamentous fungus Magnaporthe grisea treated with anti-microtubule and anti-microfilament agents. Protoplasma. 2005;225(1-2):23–32.
Liu Y, Schiff M, Czymmek K, Talloczy Z, Levine B, Dinesh-Kumar SP. Autophagy regulates programmed cell death during the plant innate immune response. Cell. 2005;121(4):567–577.
Czymmek KJ, Bourett TM, Howard RJ. Fluorescent Protein Probes in Fungi. In: Savidge JC, Pothulakis C, eds. Microbiol Imaging. Vol. 34. London: Elsevier; 2004:27–62. Methods in Microbiology.
Fuchs U, Czymmek KJ, Sweigard JA. Five hydrophobin genes in Fusarium verticillioides include two required for microconidial chain formation. Fungal Genet Biol. 2004;41(9):852–864.
Haynes JG, Czymmek KJ, Carlson CA, Veereshlingam H, Dickstein R, Sherrier DJ. Rapid analysis of legume root nodule development using confocal microscopy. New Phytol. 2004;163(3):661–668.