2022 April General Meeting - Brian Perry: Illuminating Fungi - the Science of Fungal Bioluminescence
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Please join us for our April Meeting at the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History or on Zoom.
If you plan to come in person, please RSVP via this Google Form. For those of you who would prefer to join us via Zoom, Please Join Here. The session will be opened at 6:30 pm for those who would like to socialize and chat with fellow mycophiles before the main meeting, which will start at 7:00 pm. Zoom participants will be able to chat among themselves until the start of main meeting. After the business part of the meeting, join Brian Perry PhD, Associate Professor of Biology at California State University for his talk: Illuminating Fungi - the Science of Fungal Bioluminescence.
Fungal bioluminescence was first described by Aristotle (384-322 B.C.E.), and continues to fascinate and puzzle scientists today. While over 100 species of fungi are known to produce luminescent mushrooms or mycelium, the chemical and genetic basis of the light-producing reaction was only recently discovered, and the reason these fungi glow remains somewhat of a mystery. Come learn about our current understanding of the evolution, ecology and biochemistry of this phenomenon. And yes, there will be lots of pictures of glowing mushrooms!
Brian Perry is an Associate Professor of Biology at California State University, East Bay. He received his Master's Degree from San Francisco State University under the guidance of Dr. Dennis E. Desjardin, and his Ph.D. from Harvard University where he studied with Dr. Donald H. Pfister. Brian has been studying fungi since 1995, and has published over 40 papers in scientific journals. In addition to studying the evolution of fungal bioluminescence, he also conducts research on mushrooms and other fungi of Vanuatu, the assembly and biogeography of island fungal communities, endophytic fungi of Hawaiian plants, and the systematics of Mycena and allied genera. Brian teaches several mycology courses at Cal State East Bay and the Sierra Nevada Field Campus.