Dr. Vogel’s research is focused on developing plant functional genomic resources and utilizing these resources to understand genome organization and regulation, abiotic stress tolerance and the molecular basis of perenniality. Most projects in his lab utilize B. distachyon and related species as model systems to develop knowledge that will ultimately be used to improve biomass crops like switchgrass. Major projects currently underway include: 1) Using a trio of Brachypodium species as a model for polyploidy in order to understand polyploidy genome evolution and regulation 2) Determining the molecular mechanism of engineered resistance to multiple abiotic stresses and the molecular basis of perenniality using the perennial model grass Brachypodium sylvaticum 3) Developing a comprehensive collection of grass mutants by sequencing chemical and radiation induced mutants.