Member Institutions:

• Bowling Green State U.
• Cleveland State U.
• Kent State U.
• Medical College of Ohio
• Miami U.
• The Ohio State U.
• Ohio U.
• University of Cincinnati
• University of Toledo
• Wright State U.
• Youngstown State U.

Research Interests

My research program primarily focuses on Plant Systematics, using molecular data. I have concentrated my efforts in the Asteraceae (sunflower family), one of the largest families of flowering plants. I am currently examining generic relationships in the Old World Tribe Anthemideae, composed of 109 genera and 1740 species. Over 50% of the species in this large tribe of daisies, chrysanthemums, and sagebrush occur in five large, core genera. The major lineages are strongly correlated with biogeography, rather than current taxonomy that is based on morphology. Ongoing projects in the Anthemideae include understanding a major radiation in the Mediterranean Region, a disjunction between North and South Africa, and the relationship of Southern Hemisphere representatives to New World sister tribe - Astereae. I also examine patterns and processes at the species level, such as polyploidy, ecotypic differentiation, and island biogeography of taxa endemic to the Caribbean Basin. While most of my research has been in the Asteraceae, others in my research group specialize in the Fabaceae, Eriocaulaceae, and Rubiaceae.

Selected References

• Kornkven, Amy B., Linda E. Watson, and James R. Estes. 1999. Molecular phylogeny of Artemisia; sect. Tridentatae (Asteraceae) based on chloroplast DNA restriction site variation. Systematic Botany 24(1):69-84.
• Kornkven, Amy B., Linda E. Watson, and James R. Estes. 1998. Phylogenetic analysis of Artemisia sect. Tridentatae (Asteraceae) based on sequences from internal transcribed spacers (ITS) of nuclear ribosomal DNA. American Journal of Botany. 85: 1787-1795
• Daugherty, John, Timothy B. Evans, Tally Skillom, Linda E. Watson, and Nicholas P. Money. 1998. Evolution of spore release mechanisms in the Saprolegniaceae (Oomycetes): evidence from a phylogenetic analysis of ITS sequences. Fungal Genetics and Biology 24:354-363.
• Wolfe, Andrea D., Wayne J. Elisens, Linda E. Watson, and Claude W. dePamphilis. 1997. Using restriction site variation of PCR-amplified cpDNA genes for phylogenetic analysis: a case study of Cheloneae (Scrophulariaceae). American Journal of Botany. 84:555-564.
• Watson, Linda E. 1996. Molecular systematics of Tribe Anthemideae (Asteraceae). Pp. 341-348, In: Proceedings of the 1994 Kew International Compositae Conference, C. N. Hind (ed.). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
• Watson, Linda E., Gordon E. Uno, Newell McCarty, and Amy B. Kornkven. 1994. Conservation biology of a rare plant species, Eriocaulon kornickianum (Eriocaulaceae). American Journal of Botany 81:980-986.
• Vezey, Edward L., Linda E. Watson, John J. Skvarla, and James R. Estes. 1994. Plesiomorphic and apomorphic pollen structure characteristics of Anthemideae (Asteroideae: Asteraceae). American Journal of Botany 81:648-657.

Dr. Watson's homepage
Miami University Department of Botany
Miami University homepage
Back to Scientists