Helen Miller Alexander
Natural Sciences and Mathematics - Ecology & Evolutionary BiologyDr. Helen Alexander studies the ecology and evolution of plant-pathogen interactions; hybridization between crop and wild plants; and long-term demography of rare prairie plants.
Education
Ph.D., Botany and Genetics, Duke University
B.S., Botany, University of Wisconsin
Teaching Interests
- Conservation Biology
- Introduction to Biostatistics
- Research Methods
- Kansas Plants and Landscapes
Research
As a researcher, I am fascinated by the population biology of plants. My work has primarily been in three areas: 1) studies of the ecology and evolution of plant-fungus and plant-virus interactions, 2) research on the population dynamics of wild sunflowers, and the ecology and genetics of hybridization between crop and wild plants, and 3) long-term demographic studies of a rare prairie plant, Mead’s milkweed, including using “mark recapture” models to estimate population size, detectability, and probability of survival. As an educator, I teach courses in conservation biology, biostatistics, and research methods. I have been fortunate to win several teaching awards, including a Chancellors Club Teaching Professorship. Finally, my outreach and service activities often involve outdoor education and interactions with secondary school science and math teachers.
Research Interests
- Ecology and evolution of plant-pathogen interactions
- Hybridization between crop and wild plants
- Long-term demography of rare prairie plants
Selected Publications
Dendy, S. P., Tong, B., Alexander, H. M., Fay, P. A., Murray, L., Xing, Y., & Garrett, K. A. (in press). A long-term study of burning effects on a plant pathogen in tallgrass prairie. Plant Pathology.
Alexander, H. M., Bruns, E., Schebor, H., & Malmstrom, C. M. (in press). Crop-associated virus infection in a native perennial grass: reduction in plant fitness and dynamic patterns of virus detection. Journal of Ecology.
Pace, B. A, Alexander, H. M, Emry, D. J, & Mercer, K. L (2016). Reliable Method for Assessing Seed Germination, Dormancy, and Mortality under Field Conditions. Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE,(117). DOI:10.3791/54663
Malmstrom, C. M, & Alexander, H. M (2016). Effects of crop viruses on wild plants. Current opinion in virology, 19, 30-6. DOI:10.1016/j.coviro.2016.06.008
Bever, J. D., Mangan, S. A., & Alexander, H. M. (2015). Maintenance of Plant Species Diversity by Pathogens. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics, 46, 305-325. DOI:10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-112414-054306
Kost, M. A., Alexander, H. M., Emry, D. Jason, & Mercer, K. L. (2015). Life history traits and phenotypic selection among sunflower crop-wild hybrids and their wild counterpart: implications for crop allele introgression. EVOLUTIONARY APPLICATIONS, 8(5), 510-524. DOI:10.1111/eva.12261
Alexander, H. M. (2015). ECOLOGY Shared ancestry predicts disease levels. NATURE, 520(7548), 446-447.
Pace, B. A., Alexander, H. M., Emry, J. D., & Mercer, K. L. (2015). Seed fates in crop-wild hybrid sunflower: crop allele and maternal effects. EVOLUTIONARY APPLICATIONS, 8(2), 121-132. DOI:10.1111/eva.12236
Roy, B. A., Alexander, H. M., Davidson, J., Campbell, F. T., Burdon, J. J., Sniezko, R., & Brasier, C. (2014). Increasing forest loss worldwide from invasive pests requires new trade regulations. FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT, 12(8), 457-465. DOI:10.1890/130240
Alexander, H. M., Emry, D. Jason, Pace, B. A., Kost, M. A., Sparks, K. A., & Mercer, K. L. (2014). ROLES OF MATERNAL EFFECTS AND NUCLEAR GENETIC COMPOSITION CHANGE ACROSS THE LIFE CYCLE OF CROP-WILD HYBRIDS . AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY, 101(7), 1176-1188. DOI:10.3732/ajb.1400088
Alexander, H. M., Mauck, K. E., Whitfield, A. E., Garrett, K. A., & Malmstrom, C. M. (2014). Plant-virus interactions and the agro-ecological interface. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PLANT PATHOLOGY, 138(3, SI), 529-547. DOI:10.1007/s10658-013-0317-1
Mercer, K. L, Emry, D. J, Snow, A. A, Kost, M. A, Pace, B. A, & Alexander, H. M (2014). Fitness of crop-wild hybrid sunflower under competitive conditions: implications for crop-to-wild introgression. PloS one, 9(10), e109001. DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0109001
Alexander, H. M., Reed, A. W., Kettle, W. D., Slade, N. A., Bodbyl-Roels, S. A., Collins, C. D., & Salisbury, V. (2012). Detection and plant monitoring programs: lessons from an intensive survey of Asclepias meadii with five observers. PLoS ONE, 7(12), e52762. DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0052762 http://hdl.handle.net/1808/13354
Alexander, H. M., Foster, B. L., Ballantyne, F., Collins, C. D., Antonovics, J., & Holt, R. D. (2012). Metapopulations and metacommunities: combining spatial and temporal perspectives in plant ecology. Journal of Ecology, 100, 88-103.
