Shawn Brown, Ph.D.

Affiliate Faculty - Cross-domain Microbial Ecology
spbrown2@memphis.edu

Bio

Dr. Brown’s research focuses on cross-domain microbial ecology with specific attention paid to the mechanisms of community assembly. Cross-domain microbial ecology included the integration of all microbes (fungal, bacterial, archaeal, algal, and other microorganisms) into ecological studies. Microbes are incredibly important drivers of ecosystem processes and play very influential roles in driving macro-ecological patterns and interactions. Dr. Brown’s research combines traditional ecological measures with Next-Generation sequencing (NGS) to elucidate host-microbe and microbe-microbe interactions. He teaches BIOL 3050 Ecology, BIOL4450/6450 Microbial Ecology, and BIOL 7701/8701 Host-Microbe Interactions. For more information on his lab go to: The Brown Lab

Education

Postdoc, University of Illinois

Postdoc, Oregon State University

Biology, PhD, Kansas State University

Biology, BS, University of Oregon

Selected Publications

* denotes undergraduate authors

# denotes contributed equally

  • #Smith B, #Brown SP, Frampton J, Braham A, Stokes CE, Baird R (2023). Optimizing select Fraser fir (Abies fraseri) reforestation methods within an artifical bald at Mount Buckley, Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Southeastern Naturalist 22(3): 333-351 ~ DOI: 10.1656/058.022.0305. 
  • Shahrtash M, Tucker AE, Weaver MA, Brown SP (2023). Control stratagies for the invasive plant kudzu (Pueraria montana) only minimally impacts soil activity, chemistry, and bacterial and fungal communities. Pedobiologia 101: 150897 ~ DOI: 10.1016/j.pedobi.2023.150897
  • Shahrtash M, Brown SP (2023). Interactions between fungal endophytes and pathogens isolated from the invasive plant kudzu (Puerarua montana var. lobata). Archives of Phytopathology and Plant Protection  56(2): 87-107 ~ DOI:10.1080/03235408.2023.2178055
  • Brown SP, Clark SL, Ford E, Mirza N, *Odeh A, Schlarbaum SE, Jumpponen A, Biard R (2023). Convergent shifts in soil fungal communities assocatied with Fagaceae reforestation in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. Forest Ecology and Management 531: 120805 ~ DOI:10.1016/j.foreco.2023.120805
  • *James JJ, Bach EM, Baker K, Barver NA, Buck R, Shahrtash M, Brown SP (2022). Herbicide control of the invasive Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii) does not alter soil microbial communities or activity. Ecological Solutions and Evidence 3: e12157 ~ DOI: 10.1002/2688-8319.12157
  • Brown SP, Clark SL, Ford E, Jumpponen A, Saxton AM, Schlarbaum SE, Baird R (2022). Comparisons of interspecies field performance of Fagaceae (Castanea and Quercus) planted in the southeastern United States with attention to soil fungal impacts on plant performance. Forest Ecology and Management 525: 120569 ~ DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2022.120569
  • Tucker AW, Brown SP (2022). Sampling a gradient of red snow algae bloom density reveals novel connections between microbial communities and environmental features. Scientific Reports 12: 10536 ~ DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-13914-7
  • Shor EK, Brown SP, Freeman DA (2022). Bacteria and bellicosity: photoperiodic shifts in gut microbiota drive seasonal aggressive behavior in male Siberian hamsters. Journal of Bioligical Rhythms 37: 296-309 ~ DOI: 10.1177/07487304221092105
  • Fox A, Sikes BA, Brown SP, Cripps CL, Glassman SI, Hughes K, Semenova-Nelsen T, Jumpponen A (2022). Fire as a driver of fungal diveristy – A systhesis of current knowledge. Mycologia 114: 215-241 ~ DOI: 10.1080/00275514.2021.2024422
  • Weaver MA, Mirza N, Mandel JR, Boyette CD, Brown SP (2022). Whole-genome sequence and draft assembly of the biocontrol fungal pathogen Albifimbria verrucaria CABI-IMI 368023. Microbiology Resources Announcements 11: e00909-21 ~ DOI: 10.1128/MRA.00909-21
  • Brown, S.P., Shahrtash, M., Tucker, A.E., Knoepp, J., Stokes, C.E., Baird, R. (2022). Seasonal disconnects between saprobic and mycorrhizal sporocarp communities in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. Fungal Ecology 55: 101125 ~ DOI: 10.1016/j.funeco.2021.101125
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