Jim Tokuhisa
Jim Tokuhisa, Assistant Professor
B.S., University of Illinois-Urbana/Champaign
Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison
Postdoctorals - CSIRO Division of Plant Industry, Washington State University,
Max Planck Institute-Jena
The laboratory of Professor Tokuhisa seeks to understand the biochemistry and biology of specialized compounds that plants produce for their survival against pathogens and herbivores. Plants have the ability to produce many different chemical compounds that function in their defense against insect herbivores and plant pathogenic microbes. The basic questions posed are how are these compounds made and why are there so many different ones? Many of these compounds are important for human nutrition, dietary diversity and health.
The laboratory uses tools of biochemistry, molecular biology and ecology (bioassays) to address these questions. Professor Tokuhisa has an extensive background in plant adaptation to the physical and biological environment and has expertise in plant molecular genetics, Arabidopsis biology and high pressure liquid chromatography.
Professor Tokuhisa has had
teaching duties in BCHM6024 (Topics in Molecular Cell Biology and Biotechnology)
and BIOL5064 (Seminar in Molecular Cell Biotechnology). He has taught
a module in PPWS5304 (Plant Stress Physiology) and a lecture in HORT2224
(Intro to Horticulture). He will teach HORT4004 (Horticulture Seminar)
in Fall 2006.
