Robigalia Roundup XXXVII

Hello {{first_name | Robigalia Readers}},

Welcome back to another edition of the Robigalia Roundup!

If you’re new here, Robigalia is your weekly roundup of the latest research, researchers, scholarships, and opportunities in plant pathology globally. Make sure you’re a subscriber to have these opportunities and events delivered directly to your inbox every Monday.

This week, I’ve been getting my head back into wrapping up some publications from my PhD thesis. Having spent my PhD researching host resistance to Austropuccinia psidii, I’m always excited by research on host resistance to non-coevolved pathogens, especially for forest trees. This week, research out of Kew Gardens showed that young ash tree populations are developing resistance to ash dieback. Although the authors don’t expect the species to survive without intervention, the discovery of resistant seedlings will now allow for more targeted breeding efforts.

Now, onto this week’s Robigalia Roundup. I’m happy to introduce Kensy Rodriguez-Herrera, a PhD student from Cornell, and there are several new PhD and job opportunities listed.

Let’s dive in!

⭐ Meet Kensy Rodriguez-Herrera ⭐

Meet this week’s research student of the week, Kensy Rodriguez-Herrera, a PhD student from Cornell University.

Kensy’s career in plant pathology comes as no surprise. Growing up on a coffee farm, at 12 years old, she witnessed her family’s plantation being devastated by coffee rust. Not knowing at the time that leaf rust was the cause, it was only when she was studying agronomy at university that she took a plant pathology course and finally learned about coffee rust, realising this was what devastated her family farm. That moment made her realise she wanted to help develop solutions for growers so they wouldn’t have to face the same losses her family did.

She pursued this goal by securing an internship at Louisiana State University’s Plant Diagnostic Lab, which led her to a master's program at the same institution. There, she worked on soybean diseases and published several papers, including publishing in Phytopathology.

Now in her PhD, Kensy researches cucurbit yellow vine disease, a bacterial disease caused by Serratia marcescens. This bacterium survives in the phloem of cucurbit plants and is transmitted by squash bugs, which can overwinter with the bacterium in their bodies. Her research focuses on understanding the genetic diversity of Serratia marcescens through whole-genome sequencing and conducting field experiments to explore management strategies for the pathogen.

Beyond her PhD, Kensy has also developed a podcast called: Conexiones Profundas, mas alla de la ciencia, where she interviews great scientists to tell their life stories and inspire others to pursue their dreams.

Kensy’s advice to other plant pathology students: “Celebrate even the smallest accomplishments; you deserve it! The work we do is already challenging, so be kind to yourself.”

A fun fact about Kensy is that she has been drinking coffee since she was a baby, so it no longer affects her. “In fact, I often have a cup of coffee before going to bed!”

If you want to find out more about Kensy’s research, you can reach her via LinkedIn or post your questions in the comments.

New opportunities below are indicated by two asterisks at the start of the entry **

Until next week,

Alyssa

_{** Disclaimer: No dogs were harmed in the production of this newsletter.}