WALII team

WALII operates as a virtual research institute that brings together scientists and trainees from nine institutions across the United States to collaborate and cross-train on nine major projects. Each project is carried out by labs at 3-7 institutions, led by a
​Co-PI from different institutes, and uses a wide range of tools, biological systems, and disciplines.

Institute Director

Seung Yon (Sue) Rhee

Director - Plant Resilience Institute, Michigan State University
Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Plant Biology, and Plant, Soil, and Microbes, Michigan State University

theme 1: surviving the solid state

​Thomas boothby, theme lead

Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology, University of Wyoming

Shahar sukenik, project lead

Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, University of California, Merced
Project: Is glass strength associated with protective capacity?

Marisa otegui, project lead

Professor of Botany, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Project: How do cellular structures change during dehydration to solid-state?

theme 2: rehydration and recovery

Christina walters, theme lead

Supervisory Plant Physiologist, USDA-National Laboratory for Genetic Resources Preservation

sterling field, associate lead

Postdoctoral Fellow, Michigan State University

Margaret (Grace) FLEMING, project lead

Assistant Professor of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences, Michigan State University
Project: What are the genetic and metabolic milestones of recovery from desiccation?

Hugo TAPIA, project lead

Assistant Professor of Biology, California State University Channel Islands
Project: How does partial re-hydration affect desiccation tolerance?

theme 3: molecular engineering

Alex HOLEHOUSE, theme lead & project lead 

Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Washington University in St. Louis
Project: Rational design of de novo proteins for desiccation tolerance in cells and organisms

Steven BOEYNAEMS, project lead 

Assistant Professor of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine
Investigator at Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital
Project: Molecular rules of membraneless organelle water responsiveness

theme 4: evolutionary dynamics

Robert VANBUREN, theme lead & project lead

Assistant Professor of Horticulture, Michigan State University
Project: Identify conserved and lineage-specific molecular responses to anhydrobiosis

Moises EXPOSITO-ALONSO, project lead 

Assistant Professor of Global Change Biology, University of California Berkeley
Freeman Hrabowski Scholar, Howard Hugues Medical Institutes (HHMI)
Project: Identify genetic determinants underlying desiccation tolerance by mining natural variation in seed germination across A. thaliana populations

Rose MARKS, project lead 

Postdoctoral Fellow, Michigan State University
Project: Developing the resurrection grass Microchloa caffra as a new system for evolutionary genetics of desiccation tolerance

Animation & Visualization

Janet IWASA

Assistant Professor of Biochemistry, University of Utah School of Medicine ​

Administrative team

Elena Lazarus

Scientific Coordinator, Michigan State University

Trainees

Senior Research Associates

Flavia Bossi

Rhee Lab
​Carnegie Science

Hannah Tetreault

​USDA-​NLGRP
​

Seif Tekaya

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Silvia Sanchez Martinez

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Postdoctoral Researchers

​Olivia Maria Silva Carmo

Boeynaems  Lab
Baylor College of Medicine

Rachel Torrez

 Iwasa Lab
Univ. of Utah

Maliheh Esfahanian

Moi Lab
​Carnegie Science

Margot Riggi

 Iwasa Lab
Univ. of Utah

Purva Karia

Rhee Lab 
​Carnegie Science

Sofia Romero

Sukenik Lab
UC Merced

Lab Managers

Lisa Hill

​USDA-​NLGRP

Matt Chansler

Flemming Lab
Michigan State Univ.

Graduate Student Researchers

Aidan Flynn

Holehouse Lab
​Washington Univ. St. Louis

Cathy Mercado

VanBuren Lab
​Michigan State Univ.

Garrett Ginell

Holehouse Lab
​Washington Univ. St. Louis

Kara Hunter

Sukenik Lab
​UC Merced

Miffy Wu

Tapia Lab
CSU Channel Islands

Shraddha KC

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Vindya Kumara

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Alison Flynt

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Chloe Grabb​

Rhee Lab
​Michigan State Univ.

Jarrod Reister

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Kenny Nguyen

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Nicolas Mendez

Boeynaems  Lab
Baylor College of Medicine

Siavash Heshmati

Flemming Lab
Michigan State Univ.

Anna Pardo

VanBuren Lab Michigan State Univ.

Ethan Weiner

Otegui Lab
Univ. of Washington Madison

Jenny Schuster

VanBuren Lab Michigan State Univ.

Manuel Cubillos

Boeynaems  Lab
Baylor College of Medicine

Robyn Zallen

Flemming Lab
Michigan State Univ.

Sourav Biswas

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Azeem Horani

Sukenik Lab
UC Merced

Evan Saldivar

Rhee Lab
​Carnegie Science

John Ramirez

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Michael Ozolins​

Flemming Lab Michigan State Univ.

Serena Lotreck

VanBuren Lab
​Michigan State Univ.

Tyler Gonzalez

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Research Assistants and Technicians

Andrew Scheil

Rhee Lab
Michigan State Univ.

Keegan Pham

Moi Lab
​Carnegie Science

Annie Walgen

Boothby Lab
​​Univ. of Wyoming
RA

Sheila Ferer

Tapia Lab
CSU Channel Islands

Jacob Gantz

Rhee Lab
Michigan State Univ.

Vincent Nicholson

Boothby Lab
​Univ. of Wyoming

Shaima Ibrahim​

USDA-​NLGRP

Undergraduate Student Researchers

Alejandra Arroyo

Tapia Lab
CSU Channel Islands

Dakarai Young

Rhee Lab
Michigan State Univ.