Ruth Welti

Ruth Welti is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics at Kansas State University and Director of the Kansas Lipidomics Research Center (KLRC). Her research focuses on lipid and membrane biochemistry, particularly lipid changes during plant stress responses.

• Education: B.S. from University of Connecticut (1976), Ph.D. from Washington University in St. Louis (1982)
• Expertise: Lipid mass spectrometry, membrane structure/function, plant stress lipidomics

Research in the Welti lab investigates how plant lipidomes dynamically respond to environmental stresses, with a focus on phospholipase D activity and head-group acylation in Arabidopsis thaliana. The KLRC develops advanced lipid profiling technologies using mass spectrometry.

The lab's publications reveal trends in lipidomic analysis across wounding, freezing, and diurnal stress responses, emphasizing oxylipin metabolism, membrane remodeling, and computational lipidomics through tools like LipidomeDB.

The KLRC Analytical Laboratory, supported by NSF, NIH, and USDA grants, provides high-throughput lipid profiling services and training in lipidomic methodologies for students at all academic levels.