Ph.D
Assistant Professor
Division of Plant Science & Technology
Research at a glance
Area(s) of Expertise
Research Summary
Dr. Lynch studies the production of specialized metabolites that enable plants to not just survive, but thrive in diverse environments. Many of these compounds have properties that make them valuable to us humans, and understanding their natural metabolism can help make their production for human use more sustainable both environmentally and financially.
Dr. Lynch grew up in rural Washington State and received his BS in Biology from Gonzaga University. He then earned his PhD from Washington State University in the Molecular Plant Sciences program, with his graduate research in the lab of Dr. Sanja Roje focusing on the metabolism of flavin cofactors. After completion of his degree, he took a postdoctoral position in Dr. Natalia Dudareva’s lab at Purdue University studying the production and release of phenylpropanoid/benzenoid volatiles in plants. During his postdoc, he helped elucidate a cytosolic pathway for synthesis of the amino acid phenylalanine in plants that operates in parallel to the canonical plastidial biosynthetic pathway, and contributed to the characterization of membrane-bound transporters that shuttle metabolites throughout the cell.
His current research focuses on the intercompartmental nature of plant metabolism, with a particular interest in how apparent functional redundancy of pathways sustains and regulates specialized metabolism. The overarching goals of this research are to better understand agriculturally and ecologically relevant stress responses, and to enable enhanced production of beneficial phytochemicals.
Educational background
- Ph.D., Molecular Plant Sciences, Washington State University