Research
April 12, 2024
Soyon Park receives Early Investigator Research Award from College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources
Soyon Park, assistant professor of plant science and technology, has received the Early Investigator Research Award. Trained in plant molecular biology, Park’s expertise lies in chlorophyll degradation, plant-agrobacteria interactions, and host-parasitic plant interactions. Her research, published in prestigious journals like Plant Cell and Molecular Cell, focuses on understanding host and parasitic plant interactions, particularly with parasitic plants like Cuscuta and Phelipanche, aiming to devise effective control strategies to enhance crop yield. Notably, her lab developed a groundbreaking Cuscuta transformation method, bypassing the time-consuming tissue culture process. This achievement led to a $2 million NSF proposal with Park as the principal…
April 11, 2024
Groundbreaking for new building named for former Sen. Roy Blunt held at Fisher Delta Research, Extension and Education Center
Robert Cook, Don Rone, Paul T. Combs, David Haggard, Patrick McHaney, Aaron Brandt, Gary Wheeler, Chris Chinn, Jason Bean, Roy Blunt, Keith Holloway, Shelly Fisher, Trent Haggard, Charlie Kruse, Dave Blakemore, Mun Choi, Justin Rone, Rob Kallenbach, Chad Higgins, Shibu Jose and Chris Daubert. A groundbreaking was held Friday, April 5, for the Roy Blunt Soil Testing and Research Laboratory at the University of Missouri’s Fisher Delta Research, Extension and Education Center (FD-REEC) in Portageville, Mo. “As a longtime Delta Day attendee and Delta Center advocate, I’m pleased to have been part of spearheading a new facility that will support…
April 2, 2024
Plant Science and Technology professor named to Soil Health Institute board of directors
Rob Myers, extension professor in the Division of Plant Science and Technology, was announced as a new member of the Soil Health Institute board of directors. Rob Myers The Soil Health Institute is a global non-profit with a mission of safeguarding and enhancing the vitality and productivity of soils through scientific research and advancement. The Institute brings together leaders in science and industry to conduct research and empower farmers and landowners to adopt soil health systems that contribute economic and environmental benefits to agriculture and society. Myers appointment was effective April 1.
March 30, 2024
School of Natural Resources researcher works to develop guidelines for industrial hemp producers in Missouri
In the early 20th century, Missouri was a leader in hemp production, ranking second in the nation. Still, after more than a century of the crop being categorized as a controlled substance, the rich knowledge Missouri farmers had of the crop was lost. Researchers at the University of Missouri are now working to learn how to recapture the value that growing industrial hemp could provide for the state’s farmers. “We are looking at this like a new crop, and, like any new crop, there are ups and downs,” said Gurpreet Kaur, assistant research professor at MU’s School of Natural Resources.
March 5, 2024
2024 CAFNR Joy of Discovery Seed Grant Program Winners Announced
The third batch of proposals funded by CAFNR’s Joy of Discovery Seed Grant Program has been announced. The Joy of Discovery Seed Grant Program supports nascent, collaborative, multi transdisciplinary research with the goal of developing a competitive proposal for federal funding. The following proposals were selected (listed by the PI, Co-PI/s and title of the project): Mandy Bish (Plant Science and Technology); Characterization of Soil Microbial Communities Across Ecoregions as a Step TowardsImproving Soil Health Indicators Gary Stacey (Plant Science and Technology), collaborator from Yeshiva University; Development of Novel Calcium Sensors Chung-Ho Lin (School of Natural Resources), Isa Kupke (School of Natural…
Feb. 27, 2024
Growing a legacy: Leading the way in soybean breeding
Over the past several decades, the soybean breeding program at Mizzou, which is part of the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources’ (CAFNR) Division of Plant Science and Technology, has emerged as a leader in the field. “The breeding programs at MU both here in Columbia and at the Fisher Delta Research Center are really known as the leaders in conventional and herbicide resistant cultivar development as well as understanding the genetic architecture of seed composition traits, soybean cyst nematode resistance, and abiotic stress tolerance among others” said Andrew Scaboo, assistant professor and soybean breeder in the Division of…
Feb. 26, 2024
Interdisciplinary research team uses AI to create revolutionary food safety technology
Imagine being at the grocery store, picking up a package of strawberries, then giving them a quick scan that will immediately tell you exactly the types and quantities of pesticide residues that are on the fruit before you buy them and bring them home to your family. This may sound like something out of a futuristic science fiction film, but a team of interdisciplinary researchers at the University of Missouri have used the power of artificial intelligence to make the technology that would enable this scene a reality. The team, which is led by Mengshi Lin, professor of food science,…
Feb. 22, 2024
Plant Sciences student Demi White selected as MizzouForward Undergraduate Research Training Grant Recipient
White, a junior majoring in plant sciences with a minor in microbiology, will be conducting an independent research project under the mentorship of Soyon Park.
Feb. 21, 2024
Postdoctoral fellow spotlight: Q&A with Ranjita Sinha
What is your research focus? My research is focused on understanding the physiological and molecular responses of plants to different combinations of abiotic stresses. While growing in field, crops are frequently challenged with various stresses, simultaneously or sequentially, negatively impacting overall yield and farmer’s earnings. I have been studying the impact of stresses that are predominantly present in fields, such as salt, heat, soil pollutants, high-light, drought, and their different combinations on crops such as rice, maize, soybean, and model plants like Arabidopsis thaliana. I am working to decipher the molecular responses of plants to stress combinations. Combinations of different…
Feb. 7, 2024
Smart agriculture: Farming in the digital age
Mizzou’s new Digital Agriculture Research and Extension Center will enhance research, education and outreach in emerging digital technologies for farming.