Biology Department

Tom Arnold
Ph.D. University of Delaware

I am a biochemist who studies the secondary metabolic pathways and bioactive natural products of plants and marine organisms.  I’m particularly interested in how plants respond to herbivores and microbial pathogens by producing toxins, deterrents, and airborne / waterborne chemical cues.  My lab has studied anti-microbial secondary metabolites in brown algae, saltmarsh plants, and seagrasses, the synthesis of anti-feedants, such as phenolics and alkaloids, in forest trees and crop plants, and the phenomenon of “talking trees”, which may communicate using airborne signals.  

I grew up on the Chesapeake Bay and received my B.A. Biology from St. Mary’s College of Maryland and a doctorate at the University of Delaware’s College of Marine Studies.  I completed two post-doctoral positions, one at Delaware and another at Penn State, and taught for several years in South Carolina before coming to Dickinson in 2003.  I enjoy SCUBA diving and underwater photography.

I teach Plant Physiology (spring), Metabolism (fall), Changing Ocean Ecosystems(fall / spring), and Chemical Ecology (fall).

For more information about undergraduate
student research at Dickinson or about our
view of plant defense responses
CHECK OUT THE SPRING 2006
STUDENT RESEARCH UPDATE (PDF file)