João Araújo

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I am a fourth-year PhD student in the Biology Program at Penn State, where I work on Taxonomy, Ecology and Evolution of Ophiocordyceps fungi on ants, the so-called “Zombie Ant Fungus”. These fungi have the ability to manipulate the host’s behavior, leading them to climb onto plants and die biting on leaves, ensuring the proper microclimate condition for the fungal development. I am interested in understanding their diversity, relationships with the environment and their evolutionary history with their hosts. These pathogens are very diverse and different species (infecting different groups of ants) seems to have evolved in totally different manners, from Host-jumping events to coevolution relationships along millions of years. I have been working intensively in the Brazilian Amazon along 5 years and also different countries like Colombia, USA, Costa Rica and Ghana.
Besides working on this amazing organism I like to spend my time drawing and playing guitar. I’m also a big fan of Jethro Tull.