Plantopia
The American Phytopathological Society (APS)
Recent Episodes
In this episode, Dr. Lina Quesada, William Neil Reynolds Distinguished Professor of Vegetable Pathology at North Carolina State University joins host Matt Kasson to discuss her lab’s research program on downy mildews and sweet potato diseases. She also discusses her love of extension and how she connects her basic science research with growers’ needs.
*Show Notes
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Dr. Quesada’s NC State University profile: https://cals.ncsu.edu/entomology-and-plant-pathology/people/lmquesad/
Dr. Quesada’s google scholar page: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=im2J9VIAAAAJ
2023 APS Syngenta Award write-up: https://www.apsnet.org/members/give-awards/awards/Syngenta/Pages/2023-Syngenta_Quesada.aspx
This episode is produced by Association Briefings.
Special Guest: Lina Quesada.
In this episode, Dr. Jim Westwood, Professor of Plant and Environmental Sciences at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University joins host Matt Kasson to discuss parasitic plants and his lab’s work on their novel structures and mechanisms for information exchange with their hosts. He also discusses his time in the Peace Corps in Mauritania and as a Fulbright Scholar in France along with management strategies used against parasitic plants both in the U.S. and abroad.
Show Notes
Dr. Westwood’s Virginia Tech profile: https://spes.vt.edu/faculty-staff/faculty/westwood-james.html
Dr. Westwood’s lab website: https://spes.vt.edu/faculty-staff/faculty/westwood-james/westwood-lab.html
Dr. Westwood’s google scholar page: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=_Q1dozYAAAAJ&hl=en
Virginia Tech write-up on Dr. Westwood’s NSF Plant Genome Grant using parasitic plants to edit host plant genomes: https://news.vt.edu/articles/2024/12/parasitic-weeds-tool-for-altering-plant-genomics-collaboration-nsf.html
This episode is produced by Association Briefings.
Special Guest: Jim Westwood.
In this episode, Dr. Libby Cieniewicz, Associate Professor of Plant Virology in the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences at Clemson University joins host Matt Kasson to discuss general plant virology and her lab’s work in plant virus ecology and epidemiology across diverse fruit production systems. She also discusses the challenges of managing plant viruses and their disease vectors and advocating for grad student-led associations.
Show Notes
Dr. Cieniewicz’s Clemson profile: https://www.clemson.edu/cafls/faculty_staff/profiles/ecienie
Dr. Cieniewicz’s lab website: https://cieniewiczviruslab.weebly.com/
Dr. Cieniewicz’s google scholar page: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=U_Vq9cEAAAAJ
SeedWorld article on Dr. Cieniewicz’s collaborative work on peach diseases: https://www.seedworld.com/us/2023/07/18/climate-change-isnt-the-only-challenge-south-carolinas-peaches-have-faced/
This episode is produced by Association Briefings.
Special Guest: Libby Cieniewicz.
In this episode, PhD student Isako (Izzi) Di Tomassi from the Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology Program in the School of Integrative Plant Science at Cornell University joins host Matt Kasson to discuss her formative research experiences as an early career plant pathologist, the challenges of losing her graduate advisor due to unprecedented reorganization across the USDA, and her motivation for co-creating and co-organizing the McClintock Letters Initiative. She also discusses her love of teaching and the importance of effective science communication in modern day academia.
Show Notes
Izzi Di Tomassi’s Cornell profile: https://cals.cornell.edu/people/isako-di-tomassi
Izzi Di Tomassi’s website: https://blogs.cornell.edu/isakoditomassi/
Science article on the McClintock Letters Initiative: https://www.science.org/content/article/u-s-researchers-are-speaking-science-local-newspapers
This episode is produced by Association Briefings.
Special Guest: Isako Di Tomassi.
In this episode, Dr. Bob Kemerait, Professor of Plant Pathology at the University of Georgia, Tipton joins host Matt Kasson to discuss his long career as an extension plant pathologist working primarily on peanut and cotton diseases both across the southeastern U.S. and internationally in the Philippines, Haiti and Guyana. He discusses the busy life of an extension plant pathologist, the importance of international research in providing perspective, and the value of building long-term working relationships with growers and producers. Dr. Kemerait also discusses the future of extension and his hopes for the future of our profession.
Show Notes
Dr. Bob Kemerait's University of Nebraska academic profile: https://plantpath.caes.uga.edu/people/faculty/bob-kemerait.html
Dr. Bob Kemerait's Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=huyXlmwAAAAJ&hl=en
Dr. Bob Kemerait's recent article for Farm Progress 'It may be quiet, but peanut diseases aren’t sleeping': https://www.farmprogress.com/peanut/it-may-be-quiet-but-peanut-diseases-aren-t-sleeping
This episode is produced by Association Briefings.
Special Guest: Bob Kemerait.