A.A. (Dré) Kampfraath
My research focuses on how interactions between organisms are influenced and altered, since this is a field of science that in my opinion should be better explored. A better understanding of these interactions can for example lead to better ways of pests control, better understanding of ecosystem functioning and co-evolutionary drivers.
Throughout my master I looked at the effects of pesticides on the interactions within a tritrophic system. In addition, I also studied the influence of combining fictionally different groups of organisms on decomposition. During this second internship we also developed a tool to assess the decomposition rate in aquatic environments called the DECOTAB.
During my PhD I am studying the loss of traits due to interactions between the springtail Folsomia candida and bacteria Wolbachia pipientis. This springtail has become dependent on Wolbachia for its reproduction. Using a combination of lab-experiments and genomics I search for the phenotypic and genotypic loss of traits that led to this obligate relationship.
Selected Publications
Kampfraath AA, Giesen D, van Gestel CA, Le Lann C (2017) Pesticide stress on plants negatively affects parasitoid fitness through a bypass of their phytophage hosts. Ecotoxicology. 26:383.
Faddeeva-Vakhrusheva A, Kraaijeveld K, Derks MF, Anvar SY, Agamennone V, Suring W, Kampfraath AA, Ellers J, Le Ngoc G, Gestel CA, Mariën J (2017) Coping with living in the soil: the genome of the parthenogenetic springtail Folsomia candida. BMC genomics. 18:493.
Hunting ER, Kampfraath AA (2013) Contribution of bacteria to redox potential (Eh) measurements in sediments. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology. 10:55.
Kampfraath AA, Hunting ER, Mulder C, Breure AM, Gessner MO, Kraak MH, Admiraal W (2012) DECOTAB: a multipurpose standard substrate to assess effects of litter quality on microbial decomposition and invertebrate consumption. Freshwater Science. 31:1156