Research Initiation Award: Integrating Ecological Discovery, Conservation, and Undergraduate Genomics Education

The Historically Black Colleges and Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP) through Research Initiation Awards (RIA) provide support for junior and mid-career faculty at Historically Black Colleges and Universities who are building new research programs or redirecting and rebuilding existing research programs. It is expected that the award will help to further the faculty member's research capability and effectiveness and improve research and teaching at the home institution. This award will advance ecological research capacity and genomics education at Tuskegee University. There is a critical need to preserve natural history collections, document the rich variety of life, and provide pathways for training the next generation of ecologists and environmental scientists. Fungi and slime molds are foundational components of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, contributing to decomposition, nutrient cycling, and organic matter transformation. Despite their ecological importance, these organisms remain largely underexplored, with numerous unknown species that play essential roles in ecosystem function and hold potential for agricultural, ecological, and biotechnological applications. Advances in genome sequencing, comparative genomics, and bioinformatics provide powerful tools to reconstruct evolutionary relationships, investigate ecological interactions, and understand responses to environmental change. The purpose of this project is to explore understudied local and preserved fungal, botanical, and slime mold (myxomycete) to advance natural product discovery while strengthening documentation, conservation, and preservation. By integrating ecological exploration, genomics, conservation, natural history collections, and undergraduate research training, this initiative advances fundamental biological knowledge, expands research capacity, and prepares the next generation of scientists to address challenges in environmental sustainability, agriculture, and biotechnology. The project will also improve access to genomic education and computational resources, supporting the development of a versatile STEM workforce. This project integrates genomic, chemical, and ecological approaches to characterize understudied fungal, botanical, and cryptic myxomycete taxa from environmental habitats, including Camp Atkins Forest (CA)and Tuskegee National Forest (TNF), located in Macon County, Alabama. In addition, preserved specimens from the L. Frederick Collection will be incorporated. The project will connect historical natural resources with modern genomic technologies to improve evaluations, conservation efforts, and inquiry-based research. The specific aims are to: (1) establish genomic workflows for a collection of specimens to assess the biomining capacity of CA and TNF, (2) develop chemical characterization workflows to evaluate natural product variety, specialized metabolic pathways, and ecological traits, (3) expand undergraduate research capacity by training students in microbial ecology, comparative genomics, bioinformatics, conservation biology, and specimen preservation through authentic discovery-based research experiences. The exploration of novel metabolic pathways may reveal new opportunities for sustainable natural products, biomaterials, biocatalysis, and environmental applications, including strategies for pollutant transformation and ecosystem restoration. This project will reduce sampling biases by integrating newly collected specimens with historical collections, improving representation of understudied organisms within the Tree of Life. Through the integration of genomics education, ecological research, and natural history collections, this project will advance scientific discovery, increase access to computational biology training, and prepare students with the interdisciplinary skills necessary for careers in ecology, conservation, biotechnology, and environmental science. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.