John Romeo
John Romeo
Professor Emeritus
Contact
Office: BSF 207
Phone: 813/974-2336
Email:
Links
Education
Ph.D., University of Texas at Austin, 1973.
Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Texas.
Research
Chemical Ecology, Phytochemistry
Chemical ecology, phytochemistry, plant/insect interactions, environmental stress,
allelopathy.
My research interests lie in three areas: the isolation and characterization of
natural products, particularly nonprotein amino acids and alkaloids; the biosynthesis,
metabolism, and distribution of such compounds in tropical plants; and the study
of the chemical ecology of these allelochemicals. Plant/insect interactions, plant
chemistry responses to environmental stress, and allelopathy are foci. Multiple
ecological roles for natural products increasingly are being recognized. These are
of particular interest in my studies with the nitrogen chemistry of Mimosoid legumes.
The nature of chemical ecology is multidisciplinary. My work is based both in the
laboratory (bioassays, behavioral, nutritional studies, field simulations) and in
the field (collecting, monitoring, manipulations). I look for students with backgrounds
in one or more of the following disciplines: botany, entomology, ecology, chemistry,
or biochemistry.
Recent Publications
Romeo, J.T. (ed.) 2006. Integrative Plant Biochemistry. Elsevier, Oxford 333.p
Weidenhamer, J.D., and J.T. Romeo. 2005. Allelopathy as a mechanism for resisting invasions: The case of Polygonella myriophylla. pp. 167-177 in Inderjit (ed.) Invasive Plant: Ecological and Agricultural Aspects. Birkhauser, Berlin.
Lane, N.K. Weidenhamer, J. and J.T. Romeo, 2004. Phytochemistry of Zapoteca formosa. J. Chem. Ecol. 30:425-437
Romeo, J.T. (ed.) 2004. Secondary Metabolism in Model Systems. Elsevier, Oxford 270 p.
Weidenhamer, J. and J.T. Romeo. 2004 Allelochemicals of Polygonella myriophylla: Chemistry and Soil Degradation. J. Chem. Ecol. 30: 1067-1082