Assistant Professor of Biology Dr. James Russell has recently learned that research he co-authored has been published in PLoS ONE, an inclusive, peer-reviewed, open-access resource from the Public Library of Science. Russell's piece, "Evolutionary instability of symbiotic function in Bradyrhizobia japonicum" was published in the November 2011 edition of the journal. He shares authorship with University of California scientists Dr. Joe L. Sachs and Dr. Amanda C. Hollowell.

"This organism, Bradyrhizobia japonicum, is one of a group of organisms that have one of the most important ecological functions in the world: they give the world nitrogen," says Russell, who used a technique known as 'experimental evolution' to grow the organisms in the laboratory.

Any sort of pea, bean or other legume can serve as a symbiotic host for the bacteria to fix nitrogen, Russell explains.

"We were interested in this because like the plants, humans acquire symbiotic relationships, in and on our bodies. By studying this mutualistic relationship in plants, we can look at how these relationships are maintained and how they break down, going from a mutualistic to a parasitic relationship. Some of the relationships that humans have with organisms that live in and on our bodies is governed by similar evolutionary forces."