Animal Health & Production

July 30, 2018

Kristin Bilyeu

The project involves a molecular genetic approach for analysis and modification of soybean seed development and composition. Important gene targets for genetic modification include factors that have an impact on soybean oil and meal quality, such as fatty acid composition and oligosaccharide and phytic acid content. Included are elucidation of gene products and their control through forward and reverse genetics, interactions among themselves and the environment, and variation in expression in plant growth. The approach emphasizes developing molecular genetic and biochemical information to identify and characterize structural and regulatory genes that influence seed composition. The overall goal of the project…

March 7, 2018

Michal Zigo

My field of research is reproductive biology with a specific focus on male fertility, sperm function, and fertilization. Besides reproductive medicine, this work profoundly affects policy making, informing major decisions concerning human reproductive health, contraception, and individuals’ reproductive rights. I have been advancing our understanding of how the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS), the universal protein recycling machinery, regulates the process of sperm capacitation necessary for sperm ability to fertilize eggs in humans and animals. I described the UPS-regulated, capacitation-induced re-modeling of the sperm proteome. I identified new UPS-regulated sperm proteins and developed a new protocol for selective, compartment-specific isolation of proteins…

March 5, 2018

Jordan Thomas

Jordan Thomas is an assistant professor in the Division of Animal Sciences at the University of Missouri. Dr. Thomas is a Missouri native and University of Missouri alumnus, having earned his Ph.D. in Animal Sciences with an emphasis in Reproductive Physiology in 2017. Dr. Thomas maintains an active applied research program in reproductive management of beef cattle, coordinating the breeding program for cattle across the University of Missouri Agricultural Experiment Station Research Center herds. Additionally, Dr. Thomas is active in collaborative efforts in education and outreach, such as the Show-Me-Select Replacement Heifer Program, the National Center for Applied Reproduction and…

Nov. 13, 2017

Eric Bailey

Eric Bailey is an Associate Professor and State Beef Nutrition Specialist at the University of Missouri. Bailey holds a Ph.D. in Beef Cattle Nutrition from Kansas State University. Bailey leads applied research on backgrounding and stocker cattle, with an emphasis on management of them on tall fescue pasture systems. Bailey leads the MU Extension Feedlot School program, is co-coordinator of the Missouri Grazing Schools, and the co-director of the Forage-Livestock Program of Distinction. Educational background Ph.D., Kansas State University…

Nov. 10, 2017

Thomas Spencer

Spencer’s laboratory seeks to define critical physiological and genetic pathways that regulate uterine development, function, and regeneration in order to improve reproduction and health of women and animals. His earlier work established that the glands of the uterus are essential for embryo survival and growth using the ovine uterine gland knockout model. Subsequent research revealed fundamental aspects of postnatal uterine development and uterine receptivity as well as illuminated the evolutionary biology and functional role of endogenous retroviruses in placental development. Current research foci in his lab include: cellular and molecular mechanisms governing development of the uterus; maternal and paternal regulation…

Nov. 10, 2017

Jared E. Decker

IDENTIFYING LOCI RESPONDING TO SELECTIONIn 2012 Decker published a method, now called Generation-Proxy Selection Mapping, to identify loci responding to current selection. In this analysis, birth date (as a surrogate to generation number) is fit as the dependent variable in a mixed model equation. Variants that have changed in frequency rapidly due to selection are strongly associated with birth date, thus the method identifies regions under selection. The mixed model equations correct for demography, relatedness, and population structure within the data. We have previously used this method in Angus cattle using approximately 45,000 SNPs. In 2021, Decker’s group published…

Nov. 1, 2017

Matthew Lucy

Lucy is known for his work on the reproductive physiology of high-producing dairy cows. His current research program examines the physiological processes regulating fertility in dairy cows and explores practical methods that evolve from this research. Early embryonic loss is one of the most-pressing reproductive problems facing the dairy industry today. His current work, therefore, focuses on early embryonic development and how uterine disease early postpartum leads to early embryonic loss. Studies range from basic (transcriptomics) to applied (whole animal field trials). Educational background Ph.D., University of Florida…

Aug. 16, 2017

Susanta Behura

Our lab uses multi-omics data including transcriptomics, epigenetics, metabolomics, proteomics, and single-cell genomics to address fundamental questions relating to Animal Genetics, Genomics and Reproductive Biology. Currently, our research aims are to better understand the regulation of fetal brain development in animals. Our future plans are to investigate how early-life stress and abnormalities impact brain health and diseases later in life. The overarching goals of the lab is to expand our understanding of fundamental biological questions and accelerate the transition from basic science to translational research. Educational background Ph.D., Utkal University, India Courses taught An_Sci 8443: Functional Genomics of Mammals…

Aug. 14, 2017

Peter Sutovsky

Peter Sutovsky is a Professor of Animal Science in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, University of Missouri, also appointed as Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health at the School of Medicine, University of Missouri Health System. Since the early 90’s, Sutovsky has studied mammalian gametogenesis, fertilization, and pre-implantation embryonic development with special emphasis on the gamete and zygotic ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS), publishing his work in Nature, Nature Communications, Nature Medicine, PNAS and other prestigious journals. He was the first to describe the role of UPS in the regulation of mitochondrial inheritance and introduced a novel concept…

July 20, 2017

Jianfeng Zhou

Zhou is an Associate Professor of Agricultural Systems Technology at the Division of Plant Science and Technology. He received PhD degree in Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Washington State University in 2014. He joined the University of Missouri in 2016 with a research and teaching appointment. Dr. Zhou teaches courses related to sensors, control and internet of things technology in agricultural systems. His research interests mainly focus on digital and precision agriculture, computer vision, high-throughput crop phenotyping, robotic harvesting technologies and precision livestock farming. Dr. Zhou authored more than 50 journal papers and six book chapters, edited two books. His…