Welcome to the Grillo lab!Located at Loyola University of Chicago, the Grillo lab brings together investigators at numerous career stages that are fascinated by the incredible diversity of life on Earth. The goal of our research is to understand the mechanisms of adaptation. Most of our work is focused on adaptation of plants to abiotic and/or biotic (microbes) selective forces in the environment. Our research employs an integrative evolutionary genetic approach which incorporates evolutionary ecology experiments with quantitative-, population- and molecular- genetic/genomic techniques, in both model and natural study systems. The Grillo lab is dedicated to fostering a vibrant, diverse, safe, and inclusive research environment that empowers undergraduates, graduate students, K-12 teachers, and postdocs to achieve their short- and long-term career goals. Please explore this website to learn more about our work and ways to get involved! Feel free to email PI-Mike Grillo with any questions, mgrillo1 at luc.edu
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Astragalus images from our field work in 2019 in the southwest USA depicting some of the variation in habitats and plant phenotypes. Astragalus, commonly known as milkvetch or locoweed (due to various toxic compounds that many produce), is the most species rich genus of plants with over 3,000 species. Much of our work focuses on A. lentiginosus which is the most taxonomically diverse species in the North American flora with over 40 named varieties. We want to know what is driving the extraordinary diversity in this system.
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