LAWRENCE A. ALICE, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Plant Systematics

Department of Biology
Western Kentucky University
1906 College Heights Blvd. #11080
Bowling Green, KY 42101-1080
Phone: (270) 745-7029
Fax: 270-745-6856
Email: lawrence.alice@wku.edu

Office Hours

Academic Degrees:

• Ph.D. - Plant Science, University of Maine 1997
• M.A. - Botany, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale 1989
• B.A. - Botany, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale 1986

Courses:

• Current Semester Courses
• BIOL 122 - BIOLOGICAL CONCEPTS: EVOLUTION, DIVERSITY & ECOLOGY
• BIOL 222 - PLANT BIOLOGY & DIVERSITY
• BIOL 223 - PLANT BIOLOGY & DIVERSITY LABORATORY
• BIOL 348 - PLANT TAXONOMY
• BIOL 522 - SYSTEMATICS AND EVOLUTION:

Schedule:

Research:

My general research interests include the systematics of the economically important plant genera Rubus, which includes blackberries and raspberries, and Mentha, including spearmint and peppermint. These groups have long been considered taxonomically difficult due in part to polyploidy (more than two sets of chromosomes), agamospermy (asexual seed production) in Rubus, and hybridization.

I primarily use molecular techniques, in particular DNA sequencing, to address evolutionary biology questions. These data can be used, for example, to infer evolutionary relationships (phylogeny reconstruction), test hypotheses of hybridization, examine biogeographic patterns, and consider modes of speciation especially in polyploid taxa. I am also interested in systematics of subfamily Rosoideae and the Rose family (Rosaceae), tribe Mentheae of the mint family (Lamiaceae), and subfamily Chloridoideae of the grass family (Poaceae).

Rubus database

Current Research Projects:

Plant Protection Research Institute - "Taxonomic Status and Phylogenetic Affinity of an Invasive Blackberry in South Africa"

Flora of North America & Jepson Flora - Rubus

National Science Foundation - "RUI: Molecular Phylogenetics and Allopolyploidization in Rubus (Rosaceae)"

Students in the Lab:
Ashley Wint: Genetic Diversity in introduced and invasive Rubus phoenicolasius and native R. occidentalis
Yinu Wang:

List of Recent Publications: