>Skip to content. Search.

People

Ascomycete Systematics Research Group

Team coordinator

Soili Stenroos, PhD, Academy Research Fellow. I have worked on lichen systematics since the 1980s. I made most of my earlier contributions to the systematics of the Cladoniaceae. Later, I also became interested in molecular systematics, which has proved to be an endless source of new insights and ideas. Major regions of field work: South America (mainly Argentina, Chile and Brazil), N Europe, Taiwan and New Zealand. My current target organims are the Lecanoromycetes and epibryophytic ascomycetous microfungi. Other interests include woody plants, tropical fruits, travel and photography. I also work as the vice-principal of the Dance Center Footlight and as the artistic director of the Irish Dance group JigIt. List of publications.

Senior researchers
Teuvo Ahti, Professor Emeritus of Cryptogamic Botany, University of Helsinki. Born 1934. Since the retirement in 1997 became Research Associate in the Botanical Museum, Finnish Museum of Natural History. In recent years mainly worked on taxonomy lichens of the genus Cladonia in little known areas such as SE Asia, Siberia, and Africa. Also participated in floristic work on lichens in Finland, Scandinavia, NW Russia, and Canada. Recent major foreign collecting trips: Xinjiang 2000; Eastern U.S. (DC, MD, NJ, NM, PA, VA, WI) 2000-2002; Russian Karelia 2000; Arctic Alaska 2004; Sakha Republic (Yakutia) 2002, 2005, 2006; Nova Scotia 2004; Manitoba 2004; Newfoundland 2000, 2007. Collections: First set in Helsinki (H).
Seppo Huhtinen, PhD. I am a "morpho-curmudgeon" with over 20 years experience in discomycetes and agarics. Ascos are my main interest. As seen from the definition, emphasis lies in morphotaxonomy and I am happy to note that such skills are still needed. Co-operation with people with other methods gives me kicks, though. My aim is to find time to describe all the taxa, which have been waiting to be processed for years. However, working as a curator of a nearly one-million-specimen-herbarium takes its toll. But, "easy does it", too. Teaching mycology and microscopy is my professional passion. Sailplanes were a passion until recent years, but winter-fishing still is. The aim is to catch a 1000 g perch and still have 10 fingers! University of Turku.
Filip Högnabba, PhD. My interest in lichens started when I was an undergraduate student at Umeå University. I had also become interested in molecular systematics. Therefore I decided to do my masters thesis on the molecular phylogeny of the Sphaerophorus globosus species complex under the supervision of dr. Mats Wedin. I continued my lichen studies at Helsinki University where I prepared my doctoral thesis under the supervision of Soili Stenroos and Jaakko Hyvönen. My current research includes the Lecanoromycetes in collaboration with Soili Stenroos. The genera Stereocaulon and Sphaerophorus are also targets of my studies. Other interests include bird watching, vascular plants, orienteering and opera. List of publications.
  Leena Myllys, PhD. I became interested in lichens under supervision of prof. Teuvo Ahti at the beginning of 1990's. I continued my studies in Stockholm, Sweden, where I defended my doctoral thesis. This era was particularly exciting with the introduction of molecular tools in lichen systematics. Sequence data has proven to be especially useful when examining the species delimitation in asexually reproducing taxa; the subject I'm particularly interested in. Currently, I am leading a research group, which examines the taxonomy and phylogeny of the genus Bryoria.

Juha Pykälä, PhD. My main research field is ecology, conservation and restoration of semi-natural grasslands and effects of livestock grazing on plant species richness and composition. Lichenological research include: effects of forestry practices on lichens, threatened lichens and their conservation, lichens of calcareous rocks, distribution and ecology of pyrenocarpous lichens (particularly Verrucaria) in Finland and search of lichens new to Finland.

Arne Thell, PhD. After my PhD (1996) I have worked as a postdoc at UBC, Vancouver (1996-1997) and as assistant curator at the herbarium HBG, Hamburg University (2000-2003). I have visited Helsinki through Large Scale Facility Grants from the European Comission (1997-1999) and actively participated in projects supported the Academy of Finland since 1999. From 2003 I have been working as a curator of cryptogams at the herbarium LD, Lund University. My research activities include systematics of the Parmeliaceae, especially cetrarioid lichens and Parmelia, Punctelia and Xanthoparmelia. My particular interests are molecular systematics and biogeography. I also work on The Nordic Parmeliaceae flora. Lund University. List of Publications.

Orvo Vitikainen, PhD. After retiring from the curatorship of lichens in Botanical Museum, University of Helsinki, I continue my studies on lichen taxonomy, especially on the genus Peltigera world-widely, and assist in maintaining the checklist of the lichens of Finland. Other fields of my interest include the life's work and herbaria of the remarkable lichenologists William Nylander and Erik Acharius.

Researchers and PhD Students

Nataliya Fedorenko, MSc. At the moment I work with my PhD thesis. I have concentrated on the study of species diversity of lichens of the Forest Steppe region in Ukraine and peculiarities in their distribution in anthropogenic and natural habitats. My thesis also includes a phylogenetic study of xanthorioid lichens which belong to the family Teloschistaceae. In addition, I am interested in lichenicolous fungi. M.G. Kholodny Institute of Botany. List of publications.

Sini Junttila, MSc. My research aims to establish a functional genomics platform for the lichen Cladonia rangiferina. This will be achieved through the construction of, and directed sequencing from cDNA libraries representing the lichen and its constituent algal and fungal species. Additionally microarray and proteomics approaches will be used to further investigate the molecular mechanisms behind anhydrobiosis and to determine the functional contributions from both species. The resulting genomics view will be compared and contrasted with contemporary knowledge from plant and fungal systems. Turku Centre for Biotechnology
Kimmo Jääskeläinen, MSc.

Tomi Laukka, Lic.Phil. My PhD studies focus on microfungi associated with bog mosses (Sphagnum). I'm researching the diversity and phylogeny of sphagnicolous ascomycete species especially in the order Helotiales. In addition to the morphological study of apothecia with an optical microscope, molecular systematics are also among the key research methods. Herbarium, University of Turku.

Mikko Lehtonen, MSc. Basal embryophytes are suitable model organisms for studies on plant pathogenity and its evolution. Embryophytes are monophyletic and accordingly it is expected that also their ontogeny and many functions are controlled by the same set of genes. I am studying the genes involved in pathogen specificity, using mosses as model organisms.
Sampsa Lommi, MSc. I got interested in lichens in 1988, when I first time saw trees with a lot of Alectoria, Bryoria and Usnea. Old-growth forests and their lichen flora is still my main interest. Some other keywords: GIS, R programming language, Linux. Hobbies: guitar, etymology, celestial navigation.
Alfredo Passo, MSc. I graduated as a biologist at Universidad del Comahue (Bariloche, Argentina). My research interests are focused on the study of the lichen biota of southern South America, including floristic studies, the role of lichens as bio-indicators and specially molecular systematics. I am currently finishing my PhD thesis on taxonomy of the genus Psoroma (Pannariaceae). I also hold a position as a teaching assistant of Botany at the University. Universidad del Comahue.
Arto Puolasmaa, MSc. In the beginning of the 1980's I was instructed in lichen identification by Unto Laine, later by Orvo Vitikainen and Teuvo Ahti. As my interest in endangerement issues grew, I found lichen biology more and more important. I started working on my PhD thesis on the genus Usnea, but as I got sick I could not continue. The work was carried on by Pekka Halonen. I have been working on lichenicolous fungi since 2003 - a whole new territory for me, but very interesting. Currently it is my primary focus of research. The studied host taxa are Peltigera and Physcia s.l. but I have moved on to other host genera as well. As a hobby I do bird-watching. University of Turku.
Mohammad Sohrabi, MSc. I have been working on biodiversity of Iranian lichenized and lichenicolous fungi since 1999. Currently I am a PhD-student at the Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, and working at the Botanical Museum. My research is focused on taxonomy of Aspicilia, particularly on terricolous vagrant forms. Major area of collecting is Iran. Other interests include, medicinal plants in Iran, biodiversity of Arasbaran, outdoor activites such as photography, mountain climbing and bird and butterfly watching. Publications : see more information about Iranian lichens www.myco-lich.com.

Saara Velmala, MSc. I became acquainted with the world of lichens during the preparation of my master's thesis under the supervision of Leena Myllys and Pekka Halonen. I concluded my studies at the University of Helsinki in 2008 systematic-ecological botany as my main subject. At the moment I am working as a PhD student concentrating on the molecular phylogeny and taxonomy of the genus Bryoria. In addition to molecular systematics, research methods include detection of chemical characters with thin-layer chromatography.

Collaborators

  • Vagn Alstrup, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
  • André Aptroot, ABL Herbarium, Soest, The Netherlands
  • Mikhail Andreev, Komarov Botanical Institute, St. Petersburg, Russia
  • Nadezhda Alexeeva, St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
  • Kansri Boonpragob, Ramkhamhaeng University, Bangkok, Thailand
  • Irwin M. Brodo, Canadian Museum of Nature, Ottawa, ON, Canada
  • Ana Rosa Burgaz, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain
  • Susana Calvelo, Comahue University, Bariloche, Argentina
  • Stephen Clayden, New Brunswick Museum, St. John, NB, Canada
  • Philippe Clerc, Conservatoire et Jardin Botanique, Geneva, Switzerland
  • Peter Döbbeler, University of Munich, Germany
  • Margarita Fadeeva, Karelian Research Centre, Petrozavodsk, Russia
  • Tassilo Feuerer, University of Hamburg, Germany
  • Trevor Goward, Enlichened Consulting Ltd., Clearwater, BC, Canada
  • Laura Guzmán-Dávalos, Universidad de Guadalajara, Zapopan, Jal., Mexico
  • Pekka Halonen, University of Oulu, Finland
  • D. L. Hawksworth, Natural History Museum, London, UK
  • Aino Henssen, Marburg, Germany
  • Dmitry Himelbrant, St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
  • Jaakko Hyvönen, University of Helsinki, Finland
  • Per Magnus Jörgensen, University of Bergen, Norway
  • Ingvar Kärnefelt, University of Lund, Sweden
  • Hiroyuki Kashiwadani, National Science Museum, Tokyo, Japan
  • Sergey Kondratyuk, N.G. Kholodny Institute of Botany, Kiev, Ukraine
  • Hördur Kristinsson, Icelandic Institute of Natural History, Akureyri, Iceland
  • Martin Kukwa, Jagellonian University, Cracow, Poland
  • Ekaterina Kuznetsova, St. Petersburg State University, Russia
  • James C. Lendemer, New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY, USA
  • Marcelo Pinto Marcelli, Instituto de Botânica, São Paulo, Brazil
  • Bruce McCune, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA
  • Roland Moberg. Museum of Evolution, Uppsala, Sweden
  • Jurga Motiejūnaitė, Institute of Botany, Academy of Sciences, Vilnius, Lithuania
  • Thomas H. Nash, Tempe, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
  • Michelle Piercey-Normore, University of Winnipeg, MN, Canada
  • Lena Poryadina, Institute for Biological Problems of Cryolithozone, Yakutsk, Russia
  • Tiina Randlane, University of Tartu, Estonia
  • Stephen Rudd, Centre for Biotechnology, Turku, Finland
  • Mark Seaward, University of Bradford, UK
  • Harrie Sipman, Botanisches Museum, Berlin, Germany
  • Anders Tehler, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, Sweden
  • Einar Timdal, University of Oslo, Norway
  • D. K. Upreti, National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India
  • Irina Urbanavichene, Komarov Botanical Institute, St. Petersburg, Russia
  • Gennadiy P. Urbanavichus, Institute of Industrial Ecology of the North, Apatity, Russia
  • Jari Valkonen, University of Helsinki, Finland
  • Mats Wedin, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, Sweden
  • Jiangchun Wei, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
  • Mikhail Zhurbenko, Komarov Botanical Institure, St. Petersburg, Russia