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2024 Joint MAS-ASPB & UMD Plant Symposium Schedule
May 29 & 30, 2024
Venue: Room 1224, Edward St. John Learning and Teaching Center (Bldg #226)
University of Maryland, College Park
| Day 1: Wednesday (May 29) | |
| 8:00 – 9:00 am | Registration |
| 8:30 – 9:00 am | Light breakfast provided; Set up presentations for Session I |
| 9:00 – 9:05 am | Welcome Remarks |
| 9:05 – 9:10 am | Keynote Speaker Introduction |
| 9:10 – 10:00 am | Keynote address – Dr. Maria Harrison (Boyce Thompson Institute, NY) Title: Reprogramming root cells for symbiosis with AM fungi |
| 10:00 – 10:15 am | Coffee Break |
| 10:15 – 11:50 pm | Session I: Plant Genetics and Genomics
(session chairs Drs. Mark Zander and Nicholas Santantonio) |
| 10:15 – 10:40 am | Dr. Richard Boyle (Clemson University, SC)
Title: Recent genetic discoveries and advances to develop safer and more resilient cereal grains |
| 10:40 – 11:05 am | Dr. Daniel Rodriguez Leal (University of Maryland, College Park) Title: Engineering Quantitative Traits by genome editing in tomatoes |
| 11:05 – 11:30 am | Dr. Qi Mu (University of Delaware)
Title: Developmental dimension and genetic effects of crop phenotypic plasticity |
| 11:30 – 11:40 am | Graduate student Alexis Perry (Virginia Tech)
Title: Developing low-GN and GN-zero winter malt barley varieties for the eastern united states |
| 11:40 – 11:50 am | Graduate student Ya-Chi Nien (Penn State University)
Title: DICER-Like 1 generates trans-species microRNAs in the parasitic plant Cuscuta campestris |
| 11:50 – 12:35 pm | Lunch provided for all registered attendees |
| 12:35 – 1.45 pm | Poster Session (Odd numbers present) Set up presentations for Session II |
| 1:45 – 3:20 pm | Session II: Plant Biotechnology (session chair Dr. Yiping Qi) |
| 1:45 – 2:10 pm | Dr. Bing Yang (Donald Danforth Plant Science Center)
Title: Prime editing enables recapitulation of natural genetic variations in rice |
| 2:10 – 2:35 pm | Dr. Jesus Beltran (University of Delaware)
Title: Reprogramming plant hormone perception modules enables new ligand- controlled functionalities |
| 2:35 – 3:00 pm | Dr. Daniel Barletta Sulis (North Carolina State University, Raleigh) Title: Multiplex CRISPR editing of wood for sustainable fiber production |
| 3:00 – 3:10 pm | Dr. Zhengyu (Allen) Wen (KeyGene, USA)
Title: Translation initiation factors edited for resistance against maize lethal necrosis |
| 3:10 – 3:20 pm | Graduate student Nayara Sabrina Freitas-Alves (University of Maryland, College Park)
Title: Genotype-independent regeneration of gene-edited carrots through CRISPR-Combo |
| 3:20 – 3:35 pm | Coffee Break; Set up presentations for Session III |
| 3:35 – 5:10 pm | Session III: Plant Biotic Interactions (session chair Dr. Nidhi Rawat) |
| 3:35 – 4:00 pm | Dr. Rong Di (Rutgers University, NJ)
Title: CRISPR-gene editing of sweet basil to improve downy mildew resistance |
| 4:00 – 4:25 pm | Dr. Murli Manohar (Ascribe Bioscience Inc)
Title: Microbial metabolites to empower plants’ natural defenses for crop protection |
| 4:25 – 4:50 pm | Dr. Bret Cooper (Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, MD)
Title: Common bean and its bacterial pathogen respond to each other through a biochemical feedback loop of isoflavonoids and cyclic dipeptides |
| 4:50 – 5:00 pm | Postdoc Dr. Zizhang Li (University of Maryland, College)
Title: Chromatin-remodeling factor PICKLE (PKL) is required for host and nonhost resistance against powdery mildew in Arabidopsis |
| 5:00 – 5:10 pm | Postdoc Dr. Prem Kymar Ganesan (University of Maryland, College Park)
Title: Broad spectrum resistance of wheat pore-forming toxin-like protein against fungal pathogens |
| 5:10 – 5:15 pm | Short Break |
| 5:15 – 6:15 pm | Career Development Workshop (conveners: Drs. Hua Lu and Daniel Rodriguez Leal)
Panelists: Drs. Murli Manohar (CTO & Co-Founder Ascribe Biosciences,) Liwei Yuan (Sr. Scientist, Bayer), and Zhengyu (Allen) Wen (KeyGene, USA) |
| 6:30 – 9:00 pm | Reception/Dinner at The Hall CP for all registered attendees:
4656 Hotel Dr., College Park, MD 20742 |
| Day 2: Thursday (May 30) | |
| 8:15 – 9:00 am | Registration |
| 8:30 – 9:00 am | Light breakfast provided; Set up presentations for Session IV |
| 9:00 – 9:08 am | Remarks by Dr. Crispin Taylor, ASPB Executive Director |
| 9:08 – 9:10 am | Keynote Speaker Introduction |
| 9:10 – 10:00 am | Keynote Address – Dr. Hong Ma (Penn State University, State College)
Title: Part I. ASPB – promoting interactions, collaborations, and mentoring young plant biologists; Part II. Identifying and understanding novel regulators of plant development using a combination of molecular genetic, multi-omic and evolutionary approaches. |
| 10:00 – 10:15 am | Coffee Break |
| 10:15 – 12:05 pm | Session IV: Plant Development and Cell Biology (session chairs Drs. Hua Lu and José Feijó) |
| 10:15 – 10:40 am | Dr. Mark Zander (Rutgers University, NJ)
Title: Dissecting the environmentally responsive plant epigenome |
| 10:40 – 11:05 am | Dr. Ross Sozzani (North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC) Title: The Goldilocks principle: Just the right amount of growth |
| 11:05 – 11:30 am | Dr. Shan He (Princeton University, NJ)
Title: Biogenesis and regulation of the CO2-concentrating organelle, the pyrenoid |
| 11:30 – 11:45 am | Dr. Arif Ashraf (Howard University, Washington, DC)
Title: Nuclear membrane proteins and their functions beyond the nuclear membrane |
| 11:45 – 11:55 am | Graduate student Jakob Adkins (Marshall University, WV)
Telomere Length Regulation by the H3.3 Deposition Pathway in Arabidopsis |
| 11:55 – 12:05 pm | Postdoc Dr. Xiaoyu Wang (University of Maryland, College Park)
Title: Broad range plastid genome editing with monomeric TALE-linked cytosine and dual base editors |
| 12:05 – 12:45 pm | Lunch provided for all registered attendees |
| 12:45 – 1:45 pm | Grant Development Workshop (Conveners: Dr. Shunyuan Xiao and Dr. Vijay Tiwari)
Panelists: Drs. Kan Wang and Pankaj Jaiswal (NSF), Christian Tobias (USDA- NIFA), and V.K. Sharma (DOE) |
| 1:45 – 3:00 pm | Poster Session (Even numbers present) Set up presentations for Sessions V and VI |
| 3:00 – 4:25 pm | Session V: Omics-based Approaches in Plant Biology (session chairs Drs. Gary Coleman and Edward Eisenstein) |
| 3:00 – 3:25 pm | Dr. Sean McSweeney (Brookhaven National Laboratory, NY)
Title: Imaging at multiple scales: allowing the light source to illuminate plant biology |
| 3:25 – 3:50 pm | Dr. Grey Monroe (University of California, Davis)
Title: Mechanisms and origins of epigenome-recruited DNA mismatch repair in plants |
| 3:50 – 4:15 pm | Dr. Holly P. Bartholomew (Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, MD)
Title: Fighting fungus with fungus: utilizing non-pathogenic Penicillium spp. in apple fruit for fundamental and translative applications |
| 4:15 – 4:25 pm | Graduate student Husan Turdiev (University of Maryland, College Park)
Evidence of homeostatic regulation of 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC), the precursor of the plant hormone ethylene |
| 4:25 – 4:35 pm | Session VI: Undergraduate Session |
| 4:25 – 4:30 pm | Undergraduate Dalia Chen (University of Maryland, College Park)
Title: High temperatures reduce growth, infection, and transmission of a naturally occurring fungal plant pathogen |
| 4.30 – 4:35 pm | Undergraduate Victoria Swiler (Athens University, Ohio)
Title: The role of the AHA2 protein in Arabidopsis gravitropism |
| 4:35 – 4:45 pm | Short Break |
| 4:45 – 4:55 pm | Poster and Oral Presentation Awards |
| 4:55 – 5:00 pm | Closing Remarks (followed by poster take-down and departure) |
