Sequencing the Fungi of the Ecuadorian Andes

Discussion

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Great news!!!!

Jan 30, 20181

It's awesome that you guys took the initiative to crowdfund this project, and even better that you reached the goal. Congratulations and looking forward to you sharing your results!

Jan 17, 20181

Danny NewmanResearcher

Thanks Chase! We're over the moon on the success of the campaign and very excited to get things published as well.

Jan 25, 20180

Debra and Harvey NewmanBacker

Way to go Danny and Roo!!! Can’t wait to see the results of your hard work. BEYOND well deserved!!

Jan 10, 20182

Danny NewmanResearcher

Thanks Mom & Dad!

Jan 25, 20180

Ksenia K TretiakovaBacker

Keep it up, guys <3

Jan 10, 20182

Danny NewmanResearcher

Thank you Ksenia!

Jan 25, 20180

Audrey NoguchiBacker

I've been fascinated by mushrooms most of my life and took a mycology class in college. I'm so excited at the prospect of the new discoveries you'll make in the Andes!! Thank you for all the work that you do!

Jan 09, 20182

Danny NewmanResearcher

Thank you Audrey! Fungi forever!

Jan 25, 20180

Eden EwaltBacker

The work you two are doing is awesome! Good luck, can't wait to see what you guys discover.

Jan 08, 20182

Danny NewmanResearcher

Thanks Eden!

Jan 25, 20180

Louis MielkeBacker

Let me know if you need any help preparing libraries!! Woooo!

Jan 07, 20182

Roo VandegriftResearcher

Thanks Louis! I think we've got our workflow all set up for this project, but we'll keep that incredibly kind offer in mind!

Jan 11, 20180

Cristina Toapanta AlbanBacker

Hope the project get funded and looking forward to see all the magnificent fungal diversity from the Ecuadorian Andes. Good luck Danny.

Jan 03, 20182

Danny NewmanResearcher

Thank you, Cristina!

Jan 04, 20180

Richard Honour

Excellent work, not sufficiently covered anywhere - ever. By reviewing their images, the similarities to my own work here in the temperate rain forests of the western slopes/foothills of the Cascades of eastern King County, WA, are remarkable. If these images were presented to me as from my own region here, I would agree. Their contribution by this work is very important. We are working in the dark, from the perspective of fungal taxonomic genomics. Part of my work explores novel metabolites expressed by similar fungi in these watersheds that have been buried for decades with Land-Disposed Toxic Sewage Sludge, and that are now yielding novel compounds, likely as defensive chemicals against the tens of thousands of toxic compounds and the myriad of other microbes found in any toxic sewage sludge. I am certain there are new and valuable candidate pharmaceutical compounds in there, never expressed under 'normal' environmental conditions. The endless global searches for novel compounds from harsh environment microbes need go no further than the artificial harsh environments dumped on all of us in the form of Toxic Sewage Sludge, as generated by nearly any Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant, anywhere in the US or elsewhere. The Hypholoma, Mycena and other genera and spp. I see in their images are spot-on to what we see elsewhere. Fungi are chemical factories, just waiting for an inciting agent or environmental change to cause a shift their production machinery to make yet new compounds. At present we are focused on the microbiomics of urine from cancer patients, but plan to target the microbiomics of toxic sewage sludge soon - they are related. Thank you greatly for this fine contribution. Richard Honour, Kenmore, WA

Jan 03, 20181

Roo VandegriftResearcher

Thanks for that, Richard. Very interesting stuff!

Jan 04, 20180

TimGBacker

Will the results be made available via Open Access?

Jan 03, 20181

Roo VandegriftResearcher

Absolutely! We're extremely committed to open access publication, of both data resources like sequences and photos, and of any papers that result from the project. In particular, working with Ecuadorians on Ecuadorian material, it's very important that there not be barriers to access of information for members of the scientific community in Ecuador — pay walls are one of the ways that modern colonialism plays out in science! We're committed to fighting that relic of cultural imperialism, and making sure that the science we do benefits EVERYONE, particularly those working in developing countries like Ecuador. All sequence data will be fully annotated and made available via GenBank, and all photos are already available on Mushroom Observer. All microscopic data and final IDs will also be posted to Mushroom Observer, and all collections are vouchered in duplicate at the Ecuadorian National Herbarium in Quito and at Oregon State University's OSC herbarium, save collections with only a single specimen (those few collections are only at Quito). We haven't discussed were we'll publish, but I can assure you that it will be open access.

Jan 03, 20184

TimGBacker

Awesome! I'm now a backer ;) Thanks for the great work!

Jan 03, 20182