W. DENNIS CLARK is an associate professor in the Department of Plant Biology at Arizona State University, where he has conducted research and taught since 1976. He received his B.A. in biological sciences from Sacramento State College in 1970 and his Ph.D. in botany, with a specialization in plant chemistry, from the University of Texas at Austin in 1977. He has also been a Visiting Professor and Humboldt Research Fellow at the University of Heidelberg and a Visiting Scientist at the University of California at Riverside.
Dr. Clark's research involves the chemistry of plant secondary metabolism and its responses to environmental stimuli. Current envirnomentally-related projects include the functions of phenolics in UV-autofluorescence and the effects of UV radiation, methanol, and elevated levels of carbon dioxide and ozone on secondary metabolism. In addition, Dr. Clark is working with the chemistry of plant natural products, particularly flavonoids, as applied to pharmacology, to medical botany, and to the roles of natural products in response to biological stresses. Specific projects include the quality control evaluation of herbal medicines and the efficacy of plant natural products in treating herpes. Recent research in Dr. Clark's laborotory has also included the molecular phylogenetics of DNA sequence data, the transformation and regeneration of plants from hairy-root culture, and the analysis of cultivated hybrids by DNA fingerprinting.
Dr. Clark has published numerous scientific articles and a college-level, introductory botany textbook. His work has been supported over the years by grants from the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation