News & Announcements

Robert Yvon awarded research fellowship from ASPB

Robert Yvon, an undergraduate in Alice Cheung’s lab, received a summer fellowship for research from the ASPB (American Society of Plant Biologists). The title of his research project is: Discovering the Connections of the FERONIA Receptor Kinase and its Functional Partners in Arabidopsis. Read more

We are pleased to announce the following PB thesis defense

Zhongyun Huang
Monday, July 31, 2017
10:30 AM
LSL N410
Thesis Title: All roads lead to weediness: stories about weedy rice origins, weedy genes and weed competitiveness
Advisor: Ana Caicedo

“Sunflowers as treatment and preventative for bumble and honey bee pathogens.”

George LoCascio

UMass Amherst Biology Professor Lynn Adler received a $1 million grant from the USDA’s Pollinator Health Program to study the role sunflower pollen may play in improving and preserving bee health. Professor Adler is an expert in pollination and plant-insect interactions. Read more

Miriam Hernandez-Romero awarded the NEAGEP Leadership Fellowship

Plant Biology student Miriam Hernandez-Romero (Wang Lab) received a NEAGEP Leadership Fellowship.

Christina Stonoha awarded the American Society of Plant Biology Planting Science Digging Deeper Fellowship

Christina Stonoha

Plant Biology graduate student Christina Stonoha (Wang Lab) has been selected for the American Society of Plant Biology Planting Science Digging Deeper Fellowship.  This program brings together early career plant scientists and high school teachers in order to help advance plant science research in schools. The fellowship includes a four-day summer institute in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and a summer stipend.

Julie Davis Awarded 2017 Torrey Scholarship

The Scholarship Committee of the Plant Biology Graduate Program recently reviewed applications for the 2017 Ray Ethan Torrey Scholarship award in Plant Biology. The applications this year were very strong, and the pool was competitive. The committee is pleased to announce that Julie Davis is the recipient of the 2017 Ray Ethan Torrey Scholarship award in Plant Biology.

Dr. Huairong Pan receives awards to attend career development conference in the U.K.

Dr. Huairong Pan, a Post-Doctoral Fellow working in the Wang Lab, received two awards to attend a career development conference in the United Kingdom.  The awards were sponsored by the University of Massachusetts Amherst and by the conference organizers.

Samantha Glaze-Corcoran awarded Annie’s Sustainable Agriculture Scholarship

Samantha Glaze-Corcoran

Stockbridge student, Samantha Glaze-Corcoran, a Ph.D. candidate in the Plant Biology Graduate Program (Hashemi Lab), recently received Annie’s Sustainable Agriculture Scholarship, which awards $10,000 to undergraduate and graduate students studying sustainable agriculture. Sam received the scholarship based on her academic achievement, her community and university service, and her research and outreach work that fulfill Annie’s mission to “cultivate a healthier and happier world by spreading goodness through nourishing foods.”

The Valley Venture Mentors Program Awards Money to Top Achieving Startup Companies 

The Valley Venture Mentors (VVM) program in Springfield, MA. awarded prize money to 12 startup companies. These 12 startup companies were top achievers among 36 that successfully completed the VVM four-month accelerator program. Three start-up companies were affiliated with the Institute for Applied Life Sciences (IALS) on campus at UMass Amherst. Genoverde Biosciences Inc., based in part on research by Sam Hazen, Associate Professor Biology, received the top prize of $25,000 for its proposal, “Engineering trees with increased carbon dioxide (CO2) capture capabilities to combat global climate change.”  Read More

Becoming Weeds

Ana Caicedo is an author on a new paper about a new resequencing analysis of weedy rice (Oryza sativa L.) biotypes illuminates distinct evolutionary paths and outcomes of de-domestication and ferality. This largest effort to date in weedy plant genomics gives a better understanding of weediness while also providing a promising source of alleles for rice breeding.  Read More

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