The research objective of this project is to test four theoretical mechanisms for invasiveness in a model invasive plant species by application of metabolic fingerprinting and metabolic flux analysis from the field of Metabolomics. While generalizations may not be fully informative across the field of invasive species biology as a whole, subsets of invasive species exhibit characteristics that have lead to the formulation of theories that require further testing of underlying assumptions regarding resource allocation and associated costs at the level of metabolism. We have chosen Lythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife), a marsh perennial native to Eurasia that was introduced into North America in the early 1800s and has become a noxious invasive species in wetlands across large portions of the United States, and Canada (Thompson et al., 1987).
Links:
Will Menzel’s poster