.....Schilling's Lab......Biodeterioration & Biodegradation

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Hello. I'm Jonathan Schilling, PI in the Biodeterioration/Biodegradation Lab at Univ. Minnesota. I am a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the Dept. of Bioproducts & Biosystems Engineering (BBE), I am adjunct faculty in the Dept. of Plant Pathology, and I am an Associate Fellow in the Institute on the Environment. My BBE appointment is 50/50 research/teaching.

My research is focused on biodegradation of lignocellulosic tissues, primarly wood. My emphasis is on the fungi, the primary agents of wood decay. I am dedicated to advancing wood protection and durability from forest trees to in-service products. I am also utilizing the large body of information generated from over a century of wood biodegradation research to apply to other lignocellulosics (corn stover, prairie grasses, etc.) in order to realize novel products from renewable bioresources. Biodegradation is a process not a product. As I say in my classes, if we want to deconstruct a plant tissue to yield the ingredients for products like fuels, let's first take a look at how the 'pros' do it.

I received my PhD from the University of Maine where my thesis centered on mechanisms of wood-degrading brown rot fungi. I was trained primarily in wood science, mycology, and ecology. I also have an Environmental Studies Masters from Longwood College, and I received my Bachelors in Biology from Rhodes College in Memphis. You can find more info in my CV.

I was born in Charlotte, NC and grew up in the southern Appalachian mountains (WV, TN, and VA). I through-hiked the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine over six months in 1996. I paddle, I fish, and more recently I xc ski. I like brewing and drinking good beer. I love bluegrass, and of course I build wooden things. My wife Emily is a 'foodie', and a sailor of J/boats. She has a Ph.D., too, in aquatic ecology. We are at our best when traveling or bargain hunting. We were married by my dad Fritz on 10-6-01 in Brooklyn, ME. We have a daughter, Madeleine 'Maddy' (3-4-06), and mut, Ziggy (11-10-01). Here we are...

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