Ecological risk assessments for grass species with novel traits are advisable, or required, in order to identify potential environmental harms prior to large-scale cultivation. Credible risk assessments are built upon knowledge of the communities that could be negatively affected by crop-to-wild gene flow, new weeds, or invasive plants. This study focused on two cultivated grasses with different life histories: the exotic, weedy Agrostis stolonifera (creeping bentgrass) and the native Panicum virgatum (switchgrass). Vascular plant communities were analyzed in 190 transects (50 m) in ten habitat types across two ecoregions (inland and coastal) in the northeastern U.S. Ordination plots and dendrogram analysis showed clustering of inland plant community assemblages within habitat types, while coastal plant communities were similar across the habitats studied. Agrostis and Panicum species had unequal distribution across the habitat types and ecoregions. Agrostis species were more common in the inland ecoregion and habitats receiving moderate management or disturbance events. In both ecoregions, A. stolonifera had high co-occurrence values with other exotic Agrostis species, suggesting potential for interspecific gene flow. P. virgatum was most common in inland roadside and wasteland habitats, but was distributed equally in the three coastal habitats. Co-occurrence between P. virgatum and congenerics was infrequent, although one transect had both P. virgatum and the state-listed coastal species Panicum amarum. This is the first study to characterize Agrostis and Panicum plant communities and distribution providing the basis for ecological risk assessments, coexistencestrategies, and geographic exclusion zones.

Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) is a North American grass that is being improved through conventional breeding and genetic engineering to create a biofuel feedstock. However, the introduction of novel traits has created concerns about pollen‐mediated gene flow and negative environmental impacts. The objective of this study was to model switchgrass pollen dispersal using a Lagrangian approach informed by data on pollen longevity and size. With outdoor exposure, the viability of pollen from three cultivars declined over 60 min, but rare events showed pollen longevity of up to 100 min. To model pollen dispersal, wind fields were measured in two locations and on two dates to create case studies representing light wind conditions with buoyant turbulence or stronger winds with pressure‐driven, nonturbulent conditions. In the first case study, switchgrass pollen entrained in light wind conditions with buoyancy‐driven turbulence moved up to approximately 3.5 km from the source with a maximum flight time of 6000 s. In the second case study, pollen released in stronger winds with pressure‐driven conditions moved up to approximately 6.5 km with a maximum flight time of approximately 1300 s. In both cases, the majority of pollen grains were deposited closer to the source. These case studies provide information helpful for predicting pollen‐mediated transgene flow, isolating field trials, creating containment and coexistence strategies, and conserving valued switchgrass populations in coastal areas and prairies.

Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) is a North American grass that exhibits vast genetic diversity across its geographic range. In the Northeastern US, local switchgrass populations were restricted to a narrow coastal zone before European settlement, but current populations inhabit inland road verges raising questions about their origin and genetics. These questions are important because switchgrass lines with novel traits are being cultivated as a biofuel feedstock, and gene flow could impact the genetic integrity and distribution of local populations. This study was designed to determine if: 1) switchgrass plants collected in the Long Island Sound Coastal Lowland coastal Level IV ecoregion represented local populations, and 2) switchgrass plants collected from road verges in the adjacent inland regions were most closely related to local coastal populations or switchgrass from other geographic regions. The study used 18 microsatellite markers to infer the genetic relationships between 122 collected switchgrass plants and a reference dataset consisting of 28 cultivars representing ecotypes, ploidy levels, and lineages from North America. Results showed that 84% of 88 plants collected in the coastal plants were most closely aligned with the Lowland tetraploid genetic pool. Among this group, 61 coastal plants were similar to, but distinct from, all Lowland tetraploid cultivars in the reference dataset leading to the designation of a genetic sub-population called the Southern New England Lowland Tetraploids. In contrast, 67% of 34 plants collected in road verges in the inland ecoregions were most similar to two Upland octoploid cultivars; only 24% of roadside plants were Lowland tetraploid. These results suggest that cryptic, non-local genotypes exist in road verges and that gene flow from biofuels plantations could contribute to further changes in switchgrass population genetics in the Northeast.

Field symptoms, host distribution, pathogen morphology, and phylogenetic analyses clearly demonstrated that the rust fungus infecting alder buckthorn in Connecticut is Puccinia coronata var. coronata sensu stricto. To our knowledge, this is the first report and confirmation of P. coronata var. coronata s.s. in the United States. Additional collections from purported aecial and telial hosts of P. coronata var. coronata s.s. are necessary to determine its host range, geographic distribution, and incidence within the United States and elsewhere in North America.

Global changes in the epigenetic landscape are hallmarks of cancer and many other diseases. One component of cancer epigenetics is DNA methylation. DNA methylation is responsible for regular biological processes, but decreased methylation leads to changes in gene expression which leads to an increase in cancerous activity. Methylation analysis allows insights into gene regulation and disease predispositions. Many different technologies are able to analyze DNA methylation through DNA/RNA sequencing. Nanopore Technology is used to analyze, in real time, long nucleotide fragments. The technology works by monitoring changes in electrical current through the membrane within the flow cell. Tissue samples were collected, and DNA was extracted using the Monarch Genomic DNA Purification Kit. Nanopore’s Rapid Sequencing Kit/Protocol was used to carry out the DNA extraction steps before sequencing. Real time DNA sequencing was conducted using Nanopore’s MINION and Flongle Cell. Epigenetic analysis was performed using secondary softwares Megalodon, Guppy basecaller, and EPI2ME. Studying epigenetic environments can furtherer understanding of disease etiology and understanding the function of diagnostic biomarkers.