Principal Investigator
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Madelaine Bartlett
Associate Professor, Biology Department, UMass Amherst Director, UMass Natural History Collections email: mbartlett[at]bio.umass.edu phone: 413.545.2235 CV My lab is focused on figuring out the molecular biology underlying the evolution of plant development. I am particularly intrigued by floral development, and the evolution of the genes and gene networks that underly floral morphology. |
Postdoctoral Researchers
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Joseph Gallagher
Postdoc USDA NIFA postdoctoral fellow email: jpg[at]umass.edu One of my principal research goals is to integrate genetic, genomic, and molecular biology tools to increase our understanding of plant evolution and development. I completed my PhD at Iowa State University in Dr. Jonathan Wendel’s lab working on the evolution of duplicated gene networks in polyploid cotton. In the Bartlett lab, I study the evolution, regulation, and function of CLAVATA-network genes in the angiosperms. |
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Jamie Kostyun
Postdoc email: jkostyun[at]umass.edu My research aims to connect underlying genetic and developmental mechanisms with broader patterns of biodiversity, with a focus on the angiosperms (flowering plants). I completed my dissertation at Indiana University with Leonie Moyle, in which I examined potential overlap between floral trait variation and speciation in a florally-diverse genus called Jaltomata (tomato family). In the Bartlett lab, I aim to investigate floral development on a more molecular level, including characterizing maize mutants with different flower related phenotypes. |
Graduate Students
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Amber De Neve
PhD Student email: adeneve[at]umass.edu I'm interested in the genetic pathways underlying plant form and function. Plants are amazing at adapting their growth to their environments, and sometimes this means being flexible with the sexuality of their flowers. Trillium grandiflorium, for example, grows wild in Amherst and has size-dependent floral sexual specification. Interestingly, many mutations in maize also cause changes to both plant architecture and floral sexuality. I'm currently using mutants and evolutionary analysis to see how these two aspects are related in the grass family. |
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Harry Klein
PhD Student email: hrklein[at]umass.edu About 10% of angiosperms have some form of monoecy (separated male and female flowers on the same individual) or dioecy (male and female flowers on different individuals). Floral sexuality is particularly diverse in the grasses, where I am interested in discovering how sex determination is regulated at a molecular level. In particular, I am studying the genetics of the development of monoecious flowers in maize. |
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Jarrett Man
PhD Student email: jaman[at]umass.edu I study the genetics of meristem development in maize, and how meristems give rise to mature plant organs. As a domesticated crop, maize can also provide insight into the human influence on plant evolution. Insights into these problems will support further understanding of developmental pathways, genetic networks, and evolution, and could be used to support crop improvement efforts. |
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Erin Patterson
PhD Student email: elpatterson[at]umass.edu I’m interested in exploring the evolution of development in plants. As Dobzhansky said, “nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution”, and this holds true for development. I’m currently studying a mutation in an unidentified gene in Brachypodium distachyon that results in highly pleiotropic phenotypic changes. This system will allow us to examine the mechanisms by which a single gene is able to affect multiple developmental processes. |
Undergraduate Students
Callan Carr
Isabella Higgins
Chloe Li
Isabella Rozza
Katie Tumang
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Adriana Chiaramida
Karen Huang
Benedikt Nuesslein
Noel Taylor
Maya Watanabe
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High School Interns
Amanda Dee
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Maya Evans
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Abigail Meunier
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Ella Strzegowski
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Kirsten Szala-Krotkov
Lab Alumni
María Jazmín
Abraham Juárez Postdoc Current Position: CONACYT Chair Researcher IPICYT, San Luis Potosi, Mexico |
Pubudu Handakumbura
Postdoc Current Position: Staff Scientist Pacific Northwest National Laboratories |
Amanda Schrager Lavelle
Postdoc Current Position: Tenure-track faculty Colorado Mesa University |
Robert Del Gizzi
MSc Student Current Position: Conagen Inc. |
Thompson Zhang
MSc Student Current Position: Xenobiotic Laboratories |
Diego Arroyo
Undergraduate |
Mackenzie Barber
Undergraduate Current Position: Anokion |
Jessica Brass
Undergraduate |
Ryan Desrochers
Undergraduate 
Rebecca Goldberg
Undergraduate Current Position: Grad student (UMass Public Health) 
Tiffany Ma
Undergraduate Current Position: Pfizer 
Jennifer Pereira Badjii
Undergraduate 
Morgan PowellUndergraduate
Julianna Rushdi
Undergraduate Current Position: Massachusetts General Hospital |
Jeffrey Heithmar
Undergraduate 
Michelle Heeney
Undergraduate Current Position: Inari 
Mondonna Mojahed
Undergraduate 
Grace Pisano
Undergraduate Current Position: Grad student (Harvard OEB) 
Jamie Richards
Undergraduate 
Kevin White
Undergraduate Current Position: UMass Med School |
Interested in joining the lab?
If you're interesting in joining the lab as a grad student, consider applying through the plant biology, molecular and cellular biology, or organismal and evolutionary biology graduate programs at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. If you're a postdoc or an undergraduate wanting to work in the Bartlett lab, please get in touch via email.