Kathleen M. Pryer

Professor of Biology

Office:

358 Bio Sci Bldg, Durham, NC 27708

Campus Box:

Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708-0338

Phone:

(919) 660-7380

Pryer Lab Website

My research focuses on understanding the evolutionary relationships of ancient land plants, especially ferns and horsetails, by integrating evidence from morphology, molecules (DNA sequence data from multiple genes), and the fossil record. I use an explicit phylogenetic framework to examine the morphological evolution of various sporophytic and gametophytic characters within vascular plants, and to gain insight into the evolution of various life history traits and the body plans that typify vascular plants. A phylogenetic perspective also informs my molecular evolutionary studies that attempt to elucidate why we observe remarkable rate heterogeneity in chloroplast genes in land plant phylogeny.

Education

Ph.D., Duke University 1995
M.S., University of Guelph (Canada) 1981
B.S., McGill University (Canada) 1976

Smith, A. R., K. M. Pryer, E. Schuettpelz, P. Korall, H. Schneider, and P. G. Wolf. “Fern classification.” In Biology and Evolution of Ferns and Lycophytes, 417–67, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511541827.017. Full Text

Schuettpelz, E., and K. M. Pryer. “Fern phylogeny.” In Biology and Evolution of Ferns and Lycophytes, 395–416, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511541827.016. Full Text

Kao, Tzu-Tong, Kathleen M. Pryer, Forrest D. Freund, Michael D. Windham, and Carl J. Rothfels. “Low-copy nuclear sequence data confirm complex patterns of farina evolution in notholaenid ferns (Pteridaceae)..” Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 138 (September 2019): 139–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2019.05.016. Full Text

Eily, A. N., K. M. Pryer, and F. W. Li. “A first glimpse at genes important to the Azolla–Nostoc symbiosis.” Symbiosis 78, no. 2 (June 15, 2019): 149–62. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13199-019-00599-2. Full Text Open Access Copy

Yang, Emily J., Chan Yul Yoo, Jiangxin Liu, He Wang, Jun Cao, Fay-Wei Li, Kathleen M. Pryer, et al. “NCP activates chloroplast transcription by controlling phytochrome-dependent dual nuclear and plastidial switches..” Nat Commun 10, no. 1 (June 14, 2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-10517-1. Full Text

Li, Fay-Wei, Paul Brouwer, Lorenzo Carretero-Paulet, Shifeng Cheng, Jan de Vries, Pierre-Marc Delaux, Ariana Eily, et al. “Fern genomes elucidate land plant evolution and cyanobacterial symbioses..” Nature Plants 4, no. 7 (July 2, 2018): 460–72. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41477-018-0188-8. Full Text

Huiet, L., F. W. Li, T. T. Kao, J. Prado, A. R. Smith, E. Schuettpelz, and K. M. Pryer. “A worldwide phylogeny of Adiantum (Pteridaceae) reveals remarkable convergent evolution in leaf blade architecture.” Taxon 67, no. 3 (June 1, 2018): 488–502. https://doi.org/10.12705/673.3. Full Text

Schuettpelz, E., G. Rouhan, K. M. Pryer, C. J. Rothfels, J. Prado, M. A. Sundue, M. D. Windham, R. C. Moran, and A. R. Smith. “Are there too many fern genera?.” Taxon 67, no. 3 (June 1, 2018): 473–80. https://doi.org/10.12705/673.1. Full Text

Song, Michael, Li-Yaung Kuo, Layne Huiet, Kathleen M. Pryer, Carl J. Rothfels, and Fay-Wei Li. “A novel chloroplast gene reported for flagellate plants..” American Journal of Botany 105, no. 1 (January 2018): 117–21. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajb2.1010. Full Text

Sigel, Erin M., Eric Schuettpelz, Kathleen M. Pryer, and Joshua P. Der. “Overlapping Patterns of Gene Expression Between Gametophyte and Sporophyte Phases in the Fern Polypodium amorphum (Polypodiales)..” Frontiers in Plant Science 9 (January 2018). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2018.01450. Full Text

Dijkhuizen, Laura W., Paul Brouwer, Henk Bolhuis, Gert-Jan Reichart, Nils Koppers, Bruno Huettel, Anthony M. Bolger, et al. “Is there foul play in the leaf pocket? The metagenome of floating fern Azolla reveals endophytes that do not fix N2 but may denitrify..” The New Phytologist 217, no. 1 (January 2018): 453–66. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.14843. Full Text

Rothfels, Carl J., Kathleen M. Pryer, and Fay-Wei Li. “Next-generation polyploid phylogenetics: rapid resolution of hybrid polyploid complexes using PacBio single-molecule sequencing..” The New Phytologist 213, no. 1 (January 2017): 413–29. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.14111. Full Text

Pages

Windham, Michael D., Layne Huiet, Eric Schuettpelz, Amanda L. Grusz, Carl Rothfels, James Beck, George Yatskievych, and Kathleen M. Pryer. “Using Plastid and Nuclear DNA Sequences to Redraw Generic Boundaries and Demystif Species Complexes in Cheilanthoid Ferns..” In American Fern Journal, 99:128–32. AMER FERN SOC INC, 2009.

Pryer, K. M., H. Schneider, and S. Magallon. “The radiation of vascular plants.” In Assembling the Tree of Life, edited by J. Cracraft and M. J. Donoghue, 138–53. OXFORD UNIV PRESS, 2004.

Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program. National Science Foundation. 2004