Falk, Bryce W.

Professor of Plant Pathology
Office Phone: 530-752-0302
FAX: 530-752-5674
E-Mail: bwfalk@ucdavis.edu

Biography

B.S. Cal Poly State University, San Luis Obispo 1974 Biological Sciences
M.S. University of California, Berkeley 1976 Plant Pathology
Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley 1978 Plant Pathology

Area of Specialization

Plant virology; virus vector and virus plant interactions, controlling virus infections.

Research

My lab is involved in studying the molecular and cell biology, and molecular genetics of the plant viruses. Our efforts are towards identification and analysis of viral genes/gene products which confer the ability of the viruses to replicate and spread within plants, and to be transmitted from plant to plant by their insect vectors. My lab also is taking molecular epidemiological approaches to assess virus population genetic and biological diversity. We are using information from these studies to then design biotechnological approaches for plant virus disease control based on genetic conservation found in the virus population. A final area of our research combines plant molecular biology, chemical engineering and plant virology. We are engineering plant viruses to be used as specific agents to express desirable nucleic acids/proteins in plants and plant cells. We hope to use viruses to produce desirable proteins, and for reverse genetic analysis of specific plant types.

Selected Publications:

Quantitative parameters determining whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) transmission of Lettuce infectious yellows virus (LIYV) and an engineered defective RNA. Ng, C. K. J., Tian, T., and Falk, B. W. 2004. Journal of General Virology 85: 2697 - 2707.

Molecular population genetics of Cucumber mosaic virus in California: evidence for founder effects and reassortment. Lin, H. X., Rubio, L., Smythe, A. B., and Falk, B. W. 2004. Journal of Virology 78: 6666-6675.

Genetic diversity and biological variation among California Cucumber mosaic virus isolates. Lin, H., Rubio, L., Smythe, A., Jiminez, M., and Falk, B. W. 2003. J. Gen. Virol. 84: 249-258.

Expression of recombinant trichosanthin, a ribosome-inactivating protein, in transgenic tobacco. Krishnan, R., McDonald, K. A., Dandekar, A. M., Jackman, A. P., and Falk, B. 2002. J. Biotechnology 97: 69 - 88.

De novo generation of Lettuce infectious yellows virus defective RNAs in protoplasts. Rubio, L., Tian, T., Yeh, H.-H, Livieratos, Y., and Falk, B. W. 2002. Molecular Plant Pathol. 3: 321 327.

Green Fluorescent Protein Expression from Recombinant Lettuce Infectious Yellows Virus RNA 2 Defective RNAs. Yeh, H-H., Tian, T., Medina, V. and B.W. Falk. 2001. Virology 289:54-62.

Genetic Variation of Citrus Tristeza Virus (CTV) in California and Spain: Evidence for Mixed infections and Recombination. Rubio, L., Ayllon, M.A., Kong, P., Fernandez, A. Poled, M., Guerri, J., Morenao, P., and B.W. Falk. 2001. Journal of Virology 75:8054-8062.

Asynchronous Temporal Accumulation of Lettuce Infectious Yellows Virus (LIYU) RNAs 1 and 2, and Identification of a RNA 1 trans enhancer of RNA 2 accumulation. Yeh, H.-H., Tian, T., Rubio, L., Crawford, B. and B.W. Falk. 2000. Journal of Virology 74:5762-5768.

A heterogeneous population of defective RNAs is associated with Lettuce infectious yellows (LIYV). Rubio, L., H-H Yeh, T. Tian, and B. W. Falk. 2000. Virology 271:205-212.

Lettuce infectious yellows virus: in vitro acquisition analysis using partially purified virions and the whitefly Bemisia tabaci. Tian, T., L. Rubio, H.-H. Yeh, B. Crawford, and B. W. Falk. 1999. J. Gen. Virol 80:1111-1117.

Specific inclusion bodies are associated with replication of lettuce infectious yellows virus (LIYV) RNAs in Nicotiana benthamiana protoplasts. Medina, V.,T. Tian, J. Wierzchos, and B. W. Falk. 1998. J. Gen. Virol. 78:2325-2329.

Molecular population genetics of Cucumber mosaic virus in California: evidence for founder effects and reassortment. Lin, H. X., Rubio, L., Smythe, A. B., and Falk, B. W. 2004. Journal of Virology 78: 6666-6675.

Quantitative parameters determining whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) transmission of Lettuce infectious yellows virus (LIYV) and an engineered defective RNA. Ng, C. K. J., Tian, T., and Falk, B. W. 2004. Journal of General Virology 85: 2697 – 2707.

Three distinct suppressors of RNA silencing encoded by a 20-kb viral RNA genome. Lu R, Folimonov A, Shintaku M, Li WX, Falk BW, Dawson WO, & Ding SW. 2004. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 101: 15742 – 15747.

The Lettuce infectious yellows virus (LIYV)-encoded P26 is associated with plasmalemma deposits within LIYV-infected cells. Medina, V., Sudarshana, M. R., Tian, T., Ralston, K. S., Yeh, H.-H., and Falk, B. W. 2005. Virology 333: 367 – 373.