34th Annual Mid-Atlantic Plant Molecular Biology

Society

August 14 & 15, 2017

National Wildlife Visitor Center, Patuxent Research Refuge - Laurel, MD

http://wp.towson.edu/mapmbs/

OrganizationOrganizing Committees: Lots of people provide the support and staffing for this meeting!

Many thanks to all of them for the fine job they are doing. If you would like to join a committee and help, please let us know. We are always looking for dedicated volunteers!

Program:Ben MatthewsJohn HammondSavithiry NatarajanReid FrederickSue MischkeHua Lu

Publicity:Ben MatthewsJim Saunders

Program booklet and cover design:David PuthoffJohn Hammond

Web Page :Nadim AlkharoufOmar Darwish

Treasurer:Jim Saunders

Audio-Visual Assistance:Nadim Alkharouf

Chong Zhang

Registration:Jim Saunders

Willow SaundersMatthew Fabian

Vendors/Sponsors:Ben Matthews

Reham Abdelkreem

Local Arrangements:Reham Abdelkreem

Jim SaundersBen Matthews

Savithiry Natarajan

SponsorNortheast Area Office (USDA-ARS, NEA) - Dariusz Swietlik, Area Director)

Poster JudgesMark HollandKen HaymesJim Saunders

1

WELCOME

Welcome to the 34th

annual Mid Atlantic Plant Molecular Biology meeting. Thank you for

coming!!!

It will be great to see many old faces and meet many new faces. We have an outstanding group

of speakers for this year’s meeting, and we hope this meeting will be stimulating for all of you and help

keep everyone up-to-date in the ever changing, exciting world of plant molecular biology.

Our intention for this meeting is to provide an accessible, affordable high quality (and short)

meeting in the mid-Atlantic region in a small and informal atmosphere so that scientists at all levels from

undergraduate and graduate students to researchers and scientists in industry, universities and government

can meet and mingle. We therefore provide lunch and breaks at the meeting so each participant has the

opportunity to meet invited speakers and presenters.

Many people are involved in the planning and organizing of this meeting (see the previous page),

and we thank them all for their efforts in making this another successful and productive meeting. We

especially wish to thank our sponsors, who help to defray the cost of the meeting.

We always welcome your participation, comments and suggestions. Also, if you are interested

please join next year’s organizing team and volunteer your services in planning next year’s

MAPMBS meeting. This meeting was initiated 34 years ago, and several folks have participated all 34

years. Several of us are retired, and we especially hope to encourage more of you younger participants to

attend the business meeting (Monday right before lunch) and step up and play a role in continuing this

MAPMBS tradition. All are welcome at any stage of the planning and organizing process!

We thank you for your continued support and participation in the Mid Atlantic Plant Molecular

Biology Society. You can keep up with MAPMBS on our website:

http://wp.towson.edu/mapmbs/

Ben Matthews, chair MAPMBS 2017

CONTENTS

You will find: Beginning on page

Credits

I

Sponsors and Exhibitors

I

Meeting Schedule

2-3 (Monday)

3-4 (Tuesday)

Speaker Abstracts

5 (Monday)

13 (Tuesday)

Poster Numbers & Titles

and Abstracts

19

Beginning on pg 20

Participants

33

2

2017 MAPMBS 34rd Annual Meeting Schedule

Monday, August 14, 2017

9:00 Registration and poster set-up

9:20 Welcome Ben Matthews, James Saunders, John Hammond, David Puthoff

Moderator: Robert Merker U.S. Food and Drug Administration

9:25 Barry Pritchard

Regulatory Compliance in Maryland’s Medical Cannabis Program The Cannabis Council SunX Analytical

10:00 John Jelesko

POISON IVY Phenotypic Plasticity or Adaptation? Accession-level Evidence for

Poison Ivy Differential Adaptation in North America. Plant Pathology, Physiology, and Weed Science; Virginia Tech; Blacksburg, VA

10:20 Coffee break: Posters and Exhibitors

11:00 Glenda Gillaspy

Translational approaches using a pistil drip cotton transformation technique to study inositol phosphate signaling in plants.

Virginia Tech, Dept. of Biochemistry, Blacksburg, VA

11:20 Michael Goodin

Nuclear architecture in plant cells infected with negative-strand RNA viruses Plant Pathology Department, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY

11:55-1:15 MAPMBS business meeting Lunch break: Posters and Exhibitors

Moderator: David Puthoff Frostburg State University

1:15 Robert Shatters

Citrus Greening Disease: Using Studies on Molecular Interactions to Develop Novel

Interdiction Strategies in the Tritrophic Relationship between Citrus, the Asian Citrus Psyllid and the ‘Candidatus’ Liberibacter asiaticus Bacterium

USDA, ARS, U. S. Horticultural Research Laboratory, Fort Pierce, FL

3

1:50 Qi Huang

Specific Detection and Identification of the Select Agent Strains of Ralstonia

solanacearum Floral and Nursery Plants Research Unit, U.S. National Arboretum, USDA/ARS,

Beltsville, MD

2:25-2:55 Coffee break: Posters and Exhibitors

2:55 Vinay Nagarajan

RNA degradomes reveal substrates and importance for stress responses of Arabidopsis exoribonuclease XRN4

Delaware Biotechnology Institute, University of Delaware, Newark, DE

3:15 Introduction of Keynote speaker: Ben Matthews

3:20 The Leslie Wanner Keynote speaker: Carole Cramer

Biopharming & Bioproduction

Arkansas State University CSO, BioStrategies LC

4:20 Close of day; depart the Visitor Center (building closes at 4:30)

{Speaker dinner in evening, for Invited speakers and MAPMBS program committee}

Tuesday, August 15, 2017

9:00 Registration, posters, exhibitors

9:20 Session moderator: Joel Gagliardi Environmental Protection Agency

9:25 Jamie Zhu

FDA’s Regulation of Food from GE Crops Food and Drug Administration, College Park, MD

10:00 Erin Sparks

Brace Root Development and Function

University of Delaware, Newark, DE

10:20-11:00 Coffee break: Posters and Exhibitors

4

11:00 Jinyoung Barnaby

Genome Wide Association Study Dissecting Genetic Architecture of Grain

Physiochemical Traits in Rice Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center, Agricultural Research Service,

USDA, Stuttgart, AR

11:35 Phoebe Williams

Energy Sensing via Inositol Phosphate Signaling in Plants

Virginia Tech, Dept. of Biochemistry, Blacksburg, VA

11:55 – 1:25 Lunch break: Posters and Exhibitors

Session moderator: Natalie Howe USDA-APHIS-BRS

1:25 Savi Natarajan

Natural variability of soybean protein and isoflavones. Soybean Genomics and Improvement Lab, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD

2:00 Naden Krogan

The Auxin Response Factor Monopteros Controls Meristem Function and Organogenesis Through Direct Regulation of PIN Genes

American University, Washington DC

2:20 Poster competition award

2:30 Jim Culver

Hacking the Phloem: A Viral Approach to Disease Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research, Department of Plant

Science and Landscape Architecture, University of Maryland, College Park, MD

3:05 Yiping Qi

Robust Transcriptional Activation in Plants Using Multiplexed CRISPR-ACT2.0 and mTALE-ACT Systems

Dept. Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, University of Maryland, College Park, MD

3:25 Elizabeth Rogers

Rathayibacter toxicus: How a Bacterium Hitches a Ride on a Nematode to Invade Grass

Seeds and Produce a Toxin Harmful to Livestock Foreign Disease-Weed Science Research, USDA-ARS, Frederick, MD

4:00 Close of day – posters down; depart the Visitor Center (building closes at 4:30)

Speaker abstracts

5

REGULATORY COMPLIANCE IN MARYLAND’S MEDICAL CANNABIS PROGRAM

Barry Pritchard

The Cannabis Council

SunX Analytical

The presentation will include a discussion of the history of cannabis use, its prohibition and

resulting effect on the limitation of clinical research and its legal status nationally. A brief of the

current Maryland Medical Cannabis Program along with quality assurance testing requirements

and methods will also be shared. The presenter hopes to leave the audience with a sense of the

importance of the standardization of testing methods to ensure the delivery of safe and well-

characterized medicines.

Speaker abstracts

6

POISON IVY PHENOTYPIC PLASTICITY OR ADAPTATION? ACCESSION-LEVEL

EVIDENCE FOR POISON IVY DIFFERENTIAL ADAPTATION IN NORTH

AMERICA.

John G. Jelesko, Elise Benhase, and Jacob N. Barney.

Plant Pathology, Physiology, and Weed Science; Virginia Tech; Blacksburg, VA

jelesko@vt.edu

Poison Ivy (Toxicodendron radicans, Kuntze) shows a high degree of anatomical

polymorphism across North America that roughly correlates to different geographical areas.

Previously, these differentiated characters were used to assign poison ivy into six subspecies.

However, it is unclear whether this represents a high degree of phenotypic plasticity of a

relatively homogenous genotype in response to different environments, or regional genetic

adaptation of populations in response to differentiated habitats. Therefore, we utilized a

common garden experimental design to measure poison ivy biometric response of isolated

poison ivy populations (from Virginia, Texas, and Michigan) in responses to differential light

and nutrient treatments to evaluate the impact of environmental parameters and/or plant

accession (proxy for genotype) on biometric traits.

Light had significant effects on most biometric parameters such as height, branch

number, leaf area, specific leaf area, root/shoot biomass, and total biomass. Reduced nitrogen

had significant effects on branch number, leaf area, total biomass, and chlorophyll content.

There were significant interactions of light and nitrogen on leaf area, total biomass, and

chlorophyll content. Interestingly, significant accession-level effects were observed in plant

height, leaf area, root/shoot ratio, total biomass, and chlorophyll content. In addition, there were

significant interactions between accession and light on plant height and leaf area. These

significant accession-level effects suggest there is underlying stable genetic differentiation

between these geographically isolated poison ivy accessions that affect plastic biomorphic traits.

These data provide the first empirical evidence for poison ivy genetic adaptation to different

local environments in North America.

These findings have important implications for the often-asserted capacity of poison ivy

to readily colonize anthropogenic edge habitats. By demonstrating that poison ivy has adapted to

different North American local habitats in the past, implies that it has a capacity to quickly

genetically adapt to patterns of increased wild land habitat fragmentation. Moreover, it was

previously shown that poison ivy responds to increased atmospheric CO2 levels with increased

growth rate, biomass, and urushiol allergenicity, and thus will manifest more “invasive” and

more noxious attributes with projected future patterns of global change. Put differently, poison

ivy is a native plant species that is projected to be very successful (a “winner”) in during the

progression of the Anthropocene, especially in fragmented edge habitats created by managed

lands.

Speaker abstracts

7

TRANSLATIONAL APPROACHES USING A PISTIL DRIP COTTON

TRANSFORMATION TECHNIQUE TO STUDY INOSITOL PHOSPHATE

SIGNALING IN PLANTS.

Phoebe Williams*, Janet Donahue*, Brian Phillippy2, Rajinikanth Mohan2, Imara Perera2, and

Glenda Gillaspy*

*Virginia Tech, Dept. of Biochemistry, 340 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061; 2Dept

Plant Microbial Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC

gillaspy@vt.edu

Cotton is the major source of fiber used by humans, and production of cotton has a $3.86 billion

dollar impact on the U.S. economy. Abiotic stress and plant pathogens are the primary factors

limiting cotton productivity. We recently discovered that cotton, and related plants, contain

massively elevated levels of a unique signaling molecule named inositol (1,2,4,5,6)

pentakisphosphate, or Ins(1,2,4,5,6)P5. In cotton, the levels of Ins(1,2,4,5,6)P5 can be

approximately 500x higher as compared to Arabidopsis or maize (Phillippy et al., 2015).

Ins(1,2,4,5,6)P5 was identified as a “co-ligand” for the jasmonic acid (JA) receptor, suggesting

that high levels of InsP5 in cotton facilitate JA signaling. Cotton thus presents a unique

opportunity to dissect key elements of both the InsP and JA signaling activation pathways. We

first identified key genes in the cotton InsP synthesis and signaling pathway. Not surprisingly,

cotton contains expanded gene families encoding InsP synthetic and signaling enzymes. We

hypothesize that differences in cotton Ins(1,2,4,5,6)P5 levels may be due to altered transcription

of these genes and/or key differences in the encoded enzymes. We examined transcription of

genes in two InsP kinase families, and found that these genes are regulated throughout

development. To test whether we can alter cotton Ins(1,2,4,5,6)P5 levels, we used viral-induced

genes silencing (VIGS) to suppress expression of one type of the IPK1 genes. Our data show that

manipulation of these genes results in impaired growth and reduction of Ins(1,2,4,5,6)P5 in

cotton plants, implicating a novel pathway for Ins(1,2,4,5,6)P5 in cotton. To increase IPK1

expression, we have adapted a new pistil drip cotton transformation protocol and report how this

procedure typically produces chimeric transgenic cotton plants. We developed a novel in planta

screening procedure, which allows investigators to use kanamycin resistance as a marker for

transgenesis. Importantly, pistil drip transformation can be used to produce transgenic cotton

plants without using tissue culture techniques.

Speaker abstracts

8

NUCLEAR ARCHITECTURE IN PLANT CELLS INFECTED WITH NEGATIVE-

STRAND RNA VIRUSES

Michael Goodin

Plant Pathology Department, University of Kentucky, 201F Plant Science Building, Lexington,

KY

Rhabdoviruses infect a wide range of hosts that includes humans, terrestrial animals/vertebrates,

fish, arthropods, and plants. The genomes of the plant-adapted viruses are organized generally into

into seven open reading frames with the gene order 3’-N-X-P-Y-M-G-L-5’, which encodes the

nucleocapsid, phospho, movement, matrix, glyco, and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase proteins,

respectively, except for X, which is of unknown function. In addition to its structural role in virion

formation, the M protein of Potato yellow dwarf virus (PYDV) is capable of inducing the

intranuclear accumulation of the inner nuclear membranes (INM) in transfected cells. The M

protein also interacts with the nuclear import and export receptors Importin-alpha and Exportin 1,

suggesting a role for M in transport of condensed nucleocapsids from the nucleus. Interestingly,

the ability to remodel the INM is conferred by the P, but not M, protein of coffee ringspot

dichorhavirus, demonstrating that functional domains within rhabdoviral proteins are portable.

This variation likely contributes to the finding protein interaction and localization maps (PILMs)

for each virus are unique. Efforts to map the plant nucleome, the nuclear-associated portion of the

proteome, in the context of virus-infected cells will be discussed.

Speaker abstracts

9

CITRUS GREENING DISEASE: USING STUDIES ON MOLECULAR

INTERACTIONS TO DEVELOP NOVEL INTERDICTION STRATEGIES IN THE

TRITROPHIC RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CITRUS, THE ASIAN CITRUS PSYLLID

AND THE ‘CANDIDATUS’ LIBERIBACTER ASIATICUS BACTERIUM

Robert G. Shatters, Jr.1, Dov Borovsky1, El-Desouky Ammar1, Kasie Sturgeon1 EricaRose

Warwick1 Marc Giulianotti2 Radleigh G Santos2 Clemencia Pinilla2,

1USDA, ARS, U. S. Horticultural Research Laboratory, Fort Pierce, FL 2Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, Port St. Lucie, FL

robert.shatters@ars.usda.gov

The Asian citrus psyllid is the only known vector of the bacterium, ‘Candidatus’ Liberibacter

asiaticus (CLas), that causes huanglongbing (HLB) also known as citrus greening disease. This

insect acquires CLas from an infected citrus tree while feeding as a nymph. Transmission occurs

when infected adults emerge, fly to, and feed on, uninfected trees. Our current understanding of

the CLas-psyllid interaction suggests that adults become competent for transmission only after

the bacterium moves from the insect gut into the hemolymph and eventually to the salivary

glands. We hypothesize that specific molecular interactions between the bacterium and gut

epithelial cell membranes are necessary to initiate the movement of the bacterium throughout the

psyllid’s body. Based on this hypothesis, we initiated a research project focused on the use of

peptides as interdiction molecules that could be used in novel HLB control strategies. First, we

developed an in vitro gut membrane homogenate assay to screen and identify psyllid gut

membrane binding peptides from a combinatorial peptide library. Using this assay we identified

a set of 3 peptides that, when fed in combination to psyllid nymphs for 4 days, reduced the

systemic movement of the bacterium from the gut to the salivary gland. In a separate line of

research, we developed a CLas bactericidal screening assay. In this assay, single CLas+ leaves

from Valencia orange were removed from CLas+ infected citrus, indexed for CLas titer by Q-

PCR and Q-RT-PCR of petiole clippings. The petiole of leaves were then placed in liquid

solutions containing bactericide candidates for 6 days, after which, the CLas titer was determined

in both the petiole and leaf midrib. This bioassay was used to identify an antimicrobial peptide

that reduced the bacterial titer (as measured by PCR) over 90% in citrus leaves. Finally, when a

combination of the 3 gut-binding peptides and the antimicrobial peptide were fed to the psyllids,

greater than 90% psyllid mortality was observed, and in the remaining psyllids, none had

detectable CLas in their salivary glands. These results support our above stated hypotheses and

demonstrate a potentially new strategy for preventing the spread of citrus greening disease. This

work is being expanded to evaluate potential delivery strategies for these peptides that include

production of transgenic citrus plants expressing the peptides, use of a Citrus tristeza virus (a

phloem limited virus) vector to produce these peptides within the plant and c) topical application

strategies.

Speaker abstracts

10

SPECIFIC DETECTION AND IDENTIFICATION OF THE SELECT AGENT STRAINS

OF RALSTONIA SOLANACEARUM

Qi Huang

Floral and Nursery Plants Research Unit, U.S. National Arboretum, USDA/ARS, Beltsville, MD

Ralstonia solanacearum is a species complex and attacks over 450 plant species

worldwide, limiting the production of such economically important crops as tomato, tobacco,

potato, and banana. An exotic subgroup of R. solanacearum, classified as race 3 biovar 2 (r3b2)

(phylotype IIB, sequevars 1 and 2), causes highly destructive brown rot of potato and, unlike

other subgroups of R. solanaceraum, is capable of infecting potato under cool temperature

conditions. As a result, all strains of R. solanacearum are currently considered select agents in

the U.S. unless further testing can verify that they are not r3b2 strains. Fast, accurate and

sensitive identification and differentiation of r3b2 from non-r3b2 strains of R. solanacearum is

therefore vital to effectively safeguard U.S. agriculture.

We improved current detection methods for R. solanacearum by developing both

multiplex PCR and multiplex TaqMan-based real time quantitative PCR (qPCR) assays targeting

non-phage related DNA. This allows not only detection of R. solanacearum at the species level,

but also specific identification and differentiation of r3b2 from non-r3b2 strains. At the same

time and in the same reaction, our methods also eliminate false-negatives associated with

PCR/qPCR inhibition in plant extracts or unsuccessful DNA extractions. Our multiplex PCR and

qPCR assays were tested successfully against 34 r3b2 and 56 non-r3b2 strains of R.

solanacearum, five out-group bacterial species, and artificially infected tomato, potato,

geranium, and tobacco plants. We also developed and systematically validated qPCR assays

specific to R. solanacearum at the species complex and r3b2 levels. The validation was done

using a standardized qPCR master mix and reaction conditions, to make detection of different

plant bacterial pathogens easier in a federal or state diagnostic laboratory. For general detection

of R. solanacearum, our qPCR assay is approximately 100 times more sensitive than the only

other previously published TaqMan-based assay. For specific detection of r3b2 strains, our two

qPCR assays are not only approximately 10 times more sensitive than a previously published

assay, but also more specific, since they only detected the 34 r3b2 strains but none of five non-

r3b2 strains falsely identified by the previously widely used assay. These results suggest that our

qPCR assays are more suitable with standardized conditions for detection of R. solanacearum

species complex and r3b2 strains.

Speaker abstracts

11

RNA DEGRADOMES REVEAL SUBSTRATES AND IMPORTANCE FOR STRESS

RESPONSES OF ARABIDOPSIS EXORIBONUCLEASE XRN4

Vinay K. Nagarajan, Patrick Kukulich, Bryan von Hagel and Pamela J. Green

Delaware Biotechnology Institute, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19711

A critical determinant of gene expression is the control of mRNA stability. XRN4, the plant

cytoplasmic 5’ to 3’ exoribonuclease, plays a central role in mRNA degradation in Arabidopsis.

However, despite the fundamental role of XRN4, plants lacking it appear relatively normal. Our

goal was to identify substrates of XRN4 and use this information to identify functional impacts

of the enzyme at the whole plant level. The substrates were identified by assaying the population

of partially degraded mRNA (the RNA degradome) in WT and XRN4 mutants. We then used the

functional groups enriched among XRN4 substrates to hypothesize which processes XRN4 is

important for, with responses to environmental stress being of particular interest. This approach

led to the discovery that XRN4 is critical for normal responses of Arabidopsis to prolonged

darkness and in root branching during recovery from nitrogen starvation.

Speaker abstracts

12

The Leslie Wanner Keynote Address:

Biopharming & Bioproduction

Carole L. Cramer

Professor, Arkansas State University

CSO, BioStrategies LC

Biopharming -- making pharmaceutical proteins in plants – marks a journey from “that’s crazy”

to “that’s awesome”. The use of plants as factories for complex proteins for vaccine and

therapeutic applications has been the focus of active research and development for more than two

decades. Key advantages of plants compared to mammalian cell-based bioproduction include

safety (plants do not support human/animal viruses), costs (especially reduced up-front

capitalization), and tremendous flexibility in scale - from personalized medicine approaches to

rapid-response large-scale bioproduction of vaccine antigens. However, the number of products

reaching clinical testing and regulatory approval remains low. Our strategy has been to use plant

components to selectively enhance the efficacy of plant-made pharmaceuticals. Plant lectins,

such as the RTB carbohydrate binding subunit of ricin, are known to bind to the surface of

mammalian cells and to direct endocytosis, transcytosis, and lysosomal delivery. RTB fusions

with human lysosomal enzymes were produced in the leaves of Nicotiana benthamiana. The

plant-made fusion proteins retained both lectin-binding and lysosomal enzyme activities, were

efficiently taken up into human cells, and facilitated disease correction of fibroblasts from patient

having a lysosomal storage disease based on genetic deficiency of that enzyme. Results

indicated that RTB-mediated delivery provides key advantages in uptake kinetics/capacities at

the cellular level compared to mammalian cell-derived enzyme. In lysosomal disease mouse

models, the RTB fusion products showed broad biodistribution and reduced the lysosomal

disease burden including reaching “hard-to-treat” tissues that are not addressed by current

mammalian cell-derived enzyme replacement therapies. Our result highlight novel approaches to

exploit plant biology in support of human health and treatment of rare genetic diseases.

Co-Authors: Walter Acosta, Jorge Ayala, Shivakumar Deviah, Maureen Dolan, Ashley

Flory, Varun Katta, Reid Martin, David Radin

Speaker abstracts

13

FDA’s Regulation of Food from GE Crops

Jianmei (Jamie) Zhu

Food and Drug Administration

U.S. FDA is the primary Federal agency responsible for ensuring the safety and proper labeling

of all plant-derived food and feed, including those developed through genetic engineering. The

Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the FD&C Act) provides the legal authority for FDA’s

regulation. FDA recommends and encourages that developers consult with the agency prior to

marketing the new food to resolve its safety and regulatory status. This presentation will give an

overview of FDA’s voluntary consultation program for food and feed derived from new plant

varieties, types of data and information we evaluate in a submission, and a summary of the

consultations we have completed.

Speaker abstracts

14

BRACE ROOT DEVELOPMENT AND FUNCTION

Erin E. Sparks

University of Delaware, 15 Innovation Way, Newark, DE

esparks@udel.edu

Maize brace roots, which emerge from plant stems above the soil, are proposed to play an

important role in structural stability and late-stage nutrient/water acquisition. Yet how brace

roots develop, integrate environmental cues and contribute to whole plant physiology remains a

poorly understood area of plant biology. To quantify the developmental diversity of brace roots,

we have analyzed brace root initiation, anatomy and architecture in a diverse germplasm of

inbred maize varieties. We are generating a histological atlas of brace root primordia

morphology and anatomy across varieties to characterize the differences and similarities in

development, with the goal of gaining insight into brace root function. To complement these

developmental studies, we have obtained field-based above- and below-ground root phenotyping

data from the same germplasm. These results show that there is vast diversity in brace root

structure at the level of initiation, anatomy and architecture. We are currently integrating this

information into structural engineering models to determine the contribution of brace roots to

plant stability. These experiments are among the first to define the diversity of brace root

architecture and anatomy in maize, which is critical to understand the functional significance of

these specialized roots.

Speaker abstracts

15

GENOME WIDE ASSOCIATION STUDY DISSECTING GENETIC ARCHITECTURE

OF GRAIN PHYSICOCHEMICAL TRAITS IN RICE

Jinyoung Y. Barnaby1,*, Trevis Huggins1,*, Hoonsoo Lee2,*, Mirae Oh2, Anna M. McClung1,

Shannon R.M. Pinson1, Lee Tarpley3, Moon S. Kim2, Jeremy Edwards1

1Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, USDA, 2890

Highway 130 East, Stuttgart, AR; 2Environmental Microbial & Food Safety Laboratory,

Agricultural Research Service, USDA, Room 001A, Building 303, 10300 Baltimore Ave.,

Beltsville, MD; 3Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center, Agricultural Research Service,

USDA, 2890 Highway 130 East, Stuttgart, AR 72160 USA; 3Crop Systems and Global Change

Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, USDA, Room 342, Building 001, 10300 Baltimore

Ave., Beltsville, MD; 3Texas A&M University, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, 1509

Aggie Drive, Beaumont, TX

Email of corresponding author: Jinyoung.barnaby@ars.usda.gov

Given the rapid advances in genomic technologies, phenotyping has become the bottleneck for

revealing gene-trait relationships. Therefore, developing a means to rapidly and accurately

phenotype thousands of genotypes can allow us to more fully utilize the genomic data that is

currently available. A hyperspectral imaging system is a high-throuput phenotyping tool that has

been used to evaluate grain quality components such as protein, fat, starch, antioxidants, etc.

This platform provides extensive phenotypic data; however, utilization and interpretation of the

data is largely unexplored. The USDA Minicore rice germplasm collection contains 220 varieties

originating from around the world, includes member of the 5 subpopulations of O. sativa, and

has a genomic dataset of 3.3 million SNP markers. The objective of this study is to determine if

hyperspectral imaging and SNP array data can be used to elucidate quantitatively inherited grain

quality traits in rice, and to conduct genome-wide association mapping to identify SNPs and

candidate genes associated with physicochemical grain traits. A wavelength range of 600-700

nm of visible NIR (VisNIR) spectroscopy was significantly associated with the grain chalk

phenotype, and the same genetic loci associated with chalk were validated using NIR spectral

data and SNP information using a bi-parental mapping population segregating for grain chalk.

Furthermore, multi-spectral phenotypes differed by growing environment as observed by short-

wave IR (SWIR) and fourier-transform IR (FTIR), but not by VisNIR indicating detection of

environmental impacts based on spectral regions. These results indicate the value of using

hyperspectral imaging as a means of non-destructive high throughput phenotyping for grain

physicochemical traits.

Speaker abstracts

16

ENERGY SENSING VIA INOSITOL PHOSPHATE SIGNALING IN PLANTS

S. Phoebe Williams1, Adepoju Olusegun1, Janet Donahue, Eric Land2, Imara Perera2, and

Glenda Gillaspy1

*Virginia Tech, Dept. of Biochemistry, 340 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061; 2Dept

Plant Microbial Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC

spwill@vt.edu

The inositol phosphate signaling pathway involves the use of a cyclic 6-carbon polyol called

myo-inositol as a scaffold for building inositol phosphate (InsP) signaling molecules. Inositol

hexakisphosphate (InsP6) is the most abundant InsP signaling molecule and is the main

phosphate storage molecule in seeds. InsP6 is synthesized through the phosphorylation of InsP5

by inostiol pentakisphosphate 2-kinase (IKP1). Phosphorylation of InsP6 by specific VIP kinases

results in synthesis of inositol pyrophosphates (InsP7 and InsP8). These molecules have high

energy bonds and have been linked to maintaining phosphate (Pi) and energy homeostasis in

yeast. We previously characterized the Arabidopsis VIP kinases and showed that they encode

active kinases. Surprisingly, one response of plants grown under low energy conditions is the

increased labeling of the InsP6, InsP7 and InsP8 pool. We also examined the time course of

switching a plant from optimal energy conditions to low energy. Within hours of the removal of

exogenous sugar, the levels of higher InsPs (InsP6, InsP7, InsP8) increase. We are examining

two Arabidopsis mutants with altered higher InsPs profiles, ipk1 and vip double mutants and

their responses to varying energy conditions and have found they have altered growth in low

energy conditions. These data suggest that certain InsPs are modulated in response to energy

status

Speaker abstracts

17

NATURAL VARIABILITY OF SOYBEAN PROTEIN AND ISOFLAVONES

Savi Natarajan

Soybean Genomics and Improvement Lab, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD

Soybean is the second most valuable crop in the U.S. with an estimated annual value of ~ $40.9

billion. Soybeans provide an inexpensive source of proteins, oil and isoflavones. A substantial

amount of information has been reported on the genotypic variation of soybeans. For better

understanding of the consequences of genetic manipulation, elucidation of soybean protein

composition and variation is necessary, because of its direct relationship to phenotype. This

seminar will focus different types of major proteins and isoflavones, natural variability of these

compounds among different soybean genotypes and/or environmental factors that affect the

protein and isoflavones.

Speaker abstracts

18

THE AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR MONOPTEROS CONTROLS MERISTEM

FUNCTION AND ORGANOGENESIS THROUGH DIRECT REGULATION OF PIN

GENES

Naden Krogan1, Danielle Marcos2, Aaron Weiner1, Thomas Berleth2 1American University, 4400 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 2University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto ON, Canada

nkrogan@american.edu

The regulatory effect auxin has on its own transport is critical in numerous self-organizing plant

patterning processes. However, our understanding of the molecular mechanisms linking auxin

signal transduction and auxin transport is still fragmentary. To investigate this relationship, we

established an Arabidopsis background in which fundamental patterning processes in both shoot

and root were essentially abolished and the expression of PIN FORMED (PIN) auxin efflux

facilitators was dramatically reduced. In this background, we demonstrate that activating a

steroid-inducible variant of the Auxin Response Factor (ARF) MONOPTEROS (MP) is

sufficient to restore patterning and PIN expression. Further, we show that MP binds to distinct

promoter elements of multiple PIN genes. Our work identifies a direct regulatory link between

central, well-characterized genes involved in auxin signal transduction and auxin transport, and

demonstrates the importance of this molecular link in multiple patterning events in both shoots

and roots.

Speaker abstracts

19

HACKING THE PHLOEM: A VIRAL APPROACH TO DISEASE

James N. Culver1,2 and Tamara D. Collum1 1Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research, 2Department of Plant Science and

Landscape Architecture, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA

Email: jculver@umd.edu

For plant viruses a successful infection correlates with the ability to access the vascular phloem

and move systemically into distal tissues. However, how viruses gain access to and usurp

vascular tissues is poorly understood. To investigate this area we used vascular specific

promoters and a translating ribosome affinity purification strategy to identify phloem-associated

translatome responses to infection by tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) in the systemic hosts

Arabidopsis thaliana ecotype Shahdara and Nicotiana benthamiana. Results demonstrate that in

both hosts the number of translatome gene alterations that occurred in response to infection was

at least four fold higher in phloem-associated tissues than in non-phloem tissues. This finding

indicates that phloem functions as a key responsive tissue to TMV infection. Furthermore, we

have shown how TMV enhances its access to the phloem of mature plant tissues through the

targeted disruption of auxin/indole acetic acid (Aux/IAA) transcriptional regulators that control

expression of host genes involved in virus cell-to-cell movement, plasmodesmata gating, and

defense. TMV’s ability to disrupt Aux/IAA function successfully confers a significant advantage

in the systemic spread of this virus, allowing it to outcompete non-disrupting viruses.

Combined, these studies indicate phloem tissues play a disproportion role in the mediation and

control of host responses to virus infection and that TMV interacts with Aux/IAA proteins to

reprogram the vascular phloem, making it more conducive to systemic movement.

Speaker abstracts

20

ROBUST TRANSCRIPTIONAL ACTIVATION IN PLANTS USING MULTIPLEXED

CRISPR-ACT2.0 AND mTALE-ACT SYSTEMS

Levi Lowder1, Aimee Malzahn2, Daniel Voytas3, Yiping Qi1,2, 4,*

1 Department of Biology, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858 2 Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, University of Maryland, College

Park, MD 20742 3 Department of Genetics, Cell Biology & Development and Center for Genome Engineering,

University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455 4Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research, University of Maryland, Rockville,

Maryland 20850, USA

yiping@umd.edu

Previously, we have shown that synthetic transcriptional activation using dCas9-VP64 can

activate endogenous genes in plants. Here, we develop a second generation of vector systems for

enhanced transcriptional activation in plants. We tested two strategies to improve CRISPR-Cas9

based transcriptional activation. The first strategy recruits additional transcriptional activator

effector proteins directly by tethering to dCas9 protein. The second strategy recruits additional

transcriptional activator effectors using a modified guide RNA scaffold (gRNA2.0) and RNA

binding protein MS2. We found simultaneous recruitment of VP64 by dCas9 and gRNA2.0

(designated CRISPR-Act2.0) results in stronger transcriptional activation than first generation

dCas9-VP64 activators. In addition, we have built a multiplex transcription activator-like

effector (mTALE-Act) system for simultaneous activation of up to four genes. Our results show

that mTALE-Act systems were more effective than CRISPR-Act2.0 at activating transcription at

loci we tested. Interestingly, our study also revealed that certain endogenous genes are more

amenable than others for transcriptional activation. Hence, these new tools may be used to

investigate gene regulatory networks and their control. Assembly of multiplex CRISPR-Act2.0

and mTALE-Act systems are both based on streamlined and PCR-independent Golden Gate and

Gateway cloning strategies. The systems will enable transcriptional activation applications in

both dicots and monocots, and the vectors in this new toolbox are publicly available to the

research community through Addgene.

Speaker abstracts

21

Rathayibacter toxicus: How a Bacterium Hitches a Ride on a Nematode to Invade Grass

Seeds and Produce a Toxin Harmful to Livestock

Elizabeth Rogers

Foreign Disease-weed Science Research, USDA-ARS, Frederick, MD

Rathayibacter toxicus is a forage grass associated Gram-positive bacterium of major concern to

food safety and agriculture. This species is listed by USDA-APHIS as a plant pathogen select

agent because it produces a tunicamycin-like toxin that is lethal to livestock and may be vectored

by nematode species native to the U.S. Our work with R. toxicus focuses on two major areas:

diagnostic development and genetic characterization. Currently, we are developing antibodies

that recognize either R. toxicus or tunicamycin itself as well as developing protocols for

extracting and concentrating tunicamycin. To aid in genetic characterization, the complete

genomes of two strains of R. toxicus, including the type strain FH-79, were sequenced, carefully

annotated, and compared with two publically available R. toxicus genomes. Genome sizes

ranged from 2,343,780 to 2,394,755 nucleotides, with 2079 to 2137 predicted open reading

frames; all four strains showed remarkable synteny over nearly the entire genome, with only a

small transposed region. A cluster of genes with similarity to the tunicamycin biosynthetic

cluster from Streptomyces chartreusis was identified. The tunicamycin gene cluster (TGC) in R.

toxicus contained 14 genes in two transcriptional units, with all of the functional elements for

tunicamycin biosynthesis present. The TGC had a significantly lower GC content (52%) than the

rest of the genome (61.5%), suggesting that the TGC may have originated from a horizontal

transfer event. Further analysis indicated numerous remnants of other potential horizontal

transfer events are present in the genome. In addition to the TGC, genes potentially associated

with carotenoid and exopolysaccharide production, bacteriocins and secondary metabolites were

identified. A CRISPR array is evident. There were relatively few plant-associated cell-wall

hydrolyzing enzymes, but there were numerous secreted serine proteases that share sequence

homology to the pathogenicity-associated protein Pat-1 of Clavibacter michiganensis. Current

work focuses on genetic confirmation of the TGC function and on regulation of toxin

biosynthesis.

Poster numbers & titles Poster numbers & titles

19

Poster #1

A NOVEL TOMATO CLASS I SMALL

SLHSP17.8 GENE IS REGULATED BY

SLMADS-RIN PROTEIN IN AN ETHYLENE-

DEPENDENT MANNER

Rakesh K. Upadhyaya,b, Sairam V. Rudrabhatlab,

Autar K. Mattooa

Poster #2 PUTTING SYMBIOSIS TO WORK:

DEVELOPING PROBIOTICS FOR PLANTS Mark A. Holland

Poster #3 INVESTIGATING THE REPRESSION OF

FATE SPECIFYING GENES IN STEM CELLS Maryam Yamadi and Naden Krogan

Poster #4 CHEMICAL DIVERSITY OF POISON IVY

LEAF AND FLORAL VOLATILES AS WELL

AS URUSHIOL CONGENERS.

Christopher C. Dickinson*, Jason Lancaster, John

Jelesko

Poster #5 IDENTIFICATION OF HOUSEKEEPING

GENES IN PLUM

K. Ebersole1, K. Loerich1, S. Pabhakar1, A.

Callahan2

Poster #6 NEW PLANT VARIETIES: FOOD SAFETY –

REGULATION - CONSULTATION

Carrie McMahon, Ph.D., Jianmei (Jamie) Zhu,

Ph.D., Patrick Cournoyer, Ph.D., and Robert

Merker, Ph.D.

Poster #7

ELUCIDATING THE ROLE OF THE

FLOWERING ACTIVATOR FLK IN

PATHOGEN DEFENSE IN ARABIDOPSIS

THALIANA

Matthew Fabian1, Chong Zhang1, Min Gao1,

Xiaoning Zhang2, and Hua Lu1

Poster #8

ELECTRON MICROSCOPY AND RT-PCR

ASSIST IDENTIFICATION OF THE

CONSTRICTA STRAIN OF POTATO

YELLOW DWARF VIRUS AT BELTSVILLE

Connor Gulbronson1, John Stommel2, Michael

Reinsel1, Michael Goodin3, and John Hammond1

Poster #9

THE ETHYLENE PRECURSOR, ACC, ITSELF

MAY SERVE AS A PLANT HORMONE IN

THE LIVERWORT MARCHANTIA

POLYMORPHA

Andrew Coleman1, John Clay1, Eduardo Flores2,

Charles Goodman1, Bram Van de Poel3, John

Bowman2, Caren Chang1

Poster #10 PCR-BASED DIAGNOSTIC MARKERS FOR

FUSARIUM HEAD BLIGHT RESISTANCE

LOCUS FHB1 IN WHEAT.

Lovepreet Singha, Bikram S. Gillb and Nidhi

Rawata*

Poster #11 CRISPR-CAS9 BASED GENOME EDITING IN

HEXAPLOID CAMELINA SATIVA Aimee Malzahn and Yiping Qi

Poster #12

ANNOTATION AND ANALYSIS OF THE

MITOCHONDRIAL GENOME OF

CONIOTHYRIUM GLYCINES, CAUSAL

AGENT OF RED LEAF BLOTCH OF

SOYBEAN, REVEALS AN ABUNDANCE OF

HOMING ENDONUCLEASES

Christine L. Stone1, Reid D. Frederick1, Paul W.

Tooley1, Douglas G. Luster1, Brittany Campos2,

Richard A. Winegar2, Ulrich Melcher3, Jacque

Fletcher4, Trenna Blagden4

Poster #13 ARE THERE TRANSGENIC PETUNIAS IN

WESTERN MARYLAND?

C. Johnson, A. Kosuri, S. S. Kurapaty, K. L.

Wirsz, S. Prabhakar, C.A. Dove

Poster #14 IDENTIFICATION OF CANDIDATE GENES

FOR ANTHOCYANINLESS (ANL)

J. Kint1, M. Hoover1, E. Martinez1, M.

O’Connell1, K. Ebersole1, L. Price2, S. Prabakar1,

C. Dove1, D. Puthoff2.

Poster #15

ISOLATION OF CDNA ENCODING LIPID

PRODUCTION GENES ACYL-COA

DESATURASE AND STEROL

DESATURASE/SHORT CHAIN

DEHYDROGENASE IN F. DIPLOSIPHON FOR

OVEREXPRESSION

S. Gharaie Fathabad1, Arumanayagam, A.2,

Tabatabai, B.1, and Sitther, V.1

Poster abstracts

20

Poster #1

A novel tomato class I small SlHSP17.8 gene is regulated by SlMADS-RIN

protein in an ethylene-dependent manner

Rakesh K. Upadhyaya,b, Sairam V. Rudrabhatlab, Autar K. Mattooa

aSustainable Agricultural Systems Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Henry A. Wallace Beltsville

Agricultural Research Center, Beltsville, MD 20705-2350 and bDepartment of Biology, Penn

State University at Harrisburg, Middletown, PA 170-57

Heat shock proteins (HSPs) are ubiquitous in nature and highly conserved in living organisms. In

addition to their upregulation in response to heat stress, it is now established that some of them

are developmentally regulated. In our laboratory, we have been studying ripening-associated

regulation of sHSPs genes. Here, we present studies on a previously unidentified small

SlHSP17.8 gene in tomato, which is a member of a clustered and intronless group of

chromosome 6-located sHSP proteins. The SlHSP17.8 gene encodes a protein of 154 amino

acids and possesses characteristic domains of other small heat shock proteins. Its expression is

low in vegetative tissues as compared to that in the fruit, with expression increasing further upon

ripening. Interestingly, SlHSP17.8 is specifically up regulated at the fruit transition phase from

mature green to breaker, staying high at the breaker stage, and mirrors the expression pattern of

SlACS2, which encodes the rate-limiting enzyme for fruit-ripening hormone ethylene. Alongside,

the expression of another ripening regulator gene SlMADS-RIN is in sync with these patterns.

SlHSP17.8 expression is bare minimal in tomato ripening mutants (rin/rin, nor/nor and Nr/Nr) as

compared to wild type (WT). Based on these findings, it was apparent that ethylene hormone

regulates the expression of SlHSP17.8 transcripts. In-vitro ethylene treatment of WT and

ethylene-deficient transgenic line (ACS2-antisense) showed differential suppression of

SlHSP17.8 in both genotypes indicating a dose dependent regulation. In-silico promoter studies

of SlHSP17.8 revealed presence of ‘CArG’ box cis-elements that recognize SlMADS-RIN protein

in many SlMADS-RIN-targeted genes, including other sHSP genes. Chromatin

immunoprecipitation studies confirmed SlMADS-RIN protein binding to specific ‘CArG’ motifs

present in the SlHSP17.8 promoter. These data establish SlMADS-RIN protein as a

transcriptional regulator of SlHSP17.8 gene in an ethylene-dependent manner and that this

regulation is integral to tomato fruit ripening.

Poster abstracts

21

Poster #2

Putting symbiosis to work: Developing probiotics for plants

Mark A. Holland

Department of Biology, Salisbury University, Salisbury, MD 21801

Abstract: Ongoing work in my lab has firmly established Methylobacterium spp. as probiotic

microbes active on plants. They are distributed ubiquitously on plant surfaces and are

transmitted vertically in and on seeds. Terrestrial plants lacking the bacterium grow poorly and

their seeds fail to germinate. Plants supplemented with the bacterium are improved in vigor and

yield. The bacteria influence fertility in some male-sterile genotypes suggesting a method for the

production of F1 hybrids in some currently intractable crops. In a “low-tech” demonstration of

engineering plants for improved nutritional value, plants to which we have applied bacterial

mutants overproducing and secreting methionine, vitamin B12, or folate accumulate these

compounds in metabolically meaningful amounts. Methylobacterium spp. Are also associated

with algae and have been used to improve both the growth and the nutritional quality of algal

feedstocks used in aquaculture of oysters, clams and scallops.

Poster #3

INVESTIGATING THE REPRESSION OF FATE SPECIFYING GENES IN STEM

CELLS

Maryam Yamadi and Naden Krogan

American University, 4400 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC

nkrogan@american.edu

The identity of a cell depends on which of its genes are expressed (“turned on”) or repressed

(“turned off”). Such decisions are determined by protein complexes that bind DNA and control

gene expression. In the plant Arabidopsis thaliana, the co-repressor TOPLESS (TPL) “turns

off” genes in stem cells to prevent differentiation. TPL does not bind DNA directly, and we have

shown that the transcription factor APETALA2 (AP2) recruits TPL to repress genes in young

flowers. Our current focus is determining which factors recruit TPL to repress fate-specifying

genes in stem cell populations. We have used yeast one-hybrid and yeast two-hybrid assays to

implicate new genes in this role, and will utilize CRISPR-Cas9 technologies to specifically target

these factors to assess their function in plant development. Our work is identifying novel protein

complexes that regulate the activity of stem cells, which are fundamental to every aspect of plant

growth and development.

Poster abstracts

22

Poster #4

CHEMICAL DIVERSITY OF POISON IVY LEAF AND FLORAL VOLATILES AS

WELL AS URUSHIOL CONGENERS.

Christopher C. Dickinson*, Jason Lancaster, John Jelesko

Virginia Tech, 220 Ag Quad Lane, Blacksburg, Virginia-

Chrisd1@vt.edu

Toxicodendron radicans (L.) Kuntze, or poison ivy, is a dioecious native perennial liana best

known for its capacity to cause contact dermatitis in humans (Epstein, 1987) due to urushiol, an

alk(en)yl-catechol, found in all plant organs. In response to increasing atmospheric CO2, poison

ivy increases biomass production and produces more unsaturated and therefore more allergenic

forms of urushiol (Mohan, 2006). Further, there are concerns that poison ivy is preferential to

human created disturbance and edge habitats (Londré and Schnitzer, 2006). As global change

continues to augment both medical and ecological impacts of poison ivy, further investigations

into its chemical ecology are warranted. To gain a better understanding of the chemical ecology

of poison ivy, a series of surveys into the chemical variance of leaf and flower volatiles, as well

as urushiol profiles were conducted.

Leaf and flower samples were collected from identified male and female plants located

throughout Montgomery and Roanoke Counties in Virginia during the spring of 2017. Analysis

of leaf and floral volatiles were performed using solid phase extraction GC-MS. While poison

ivy flowers demonstrated shared floral volatiles between male and female flowers, the female

flowers produced greater overall abundance in detectable volatiles. Urushiol composition of

leaves and flowers was analyzed by GC-MS (Aziz et al., 2017). Unexpected sex differences were

observed in total C15 and C17 urushiol accumulation levels. Male plants produced a higher ratio

of C17 urushiols compared to C15 urushiols, while female plants show higher intraspecific

variation of C15 to C17 urushiol congener composition. These results are in contrast to previous

reports that indicate predominant C15 urushiol accumulation levels, suggesting a previous

unwitting bias in collecting only female poison ivy material. In the leaves of both sexes,

urushiols accumulated to higher levels in the veins and petioles compared to interveinal tissues,

suggesting that urushiol is either produced and/or accumulates in specialized resin duct/canal

tissues associated with vasculature as a preformed chemical defense. This result is consistent

with a previous study that localized C15 urushiols to poison ivy stem resin ducts/canals (Aziz

2017). These findings indicate that poison ivy urushiol congener accumulation levels are more

variable than previously reported, raising the hypothesis that urushiol production may be

influenced by seasonal, environmental, and/or developmental parameters.

Aziz, M., Sturtevant, D., Winston, J., Collakova, E., Jelesko, J. & Chapman, K. 2017. MALDI-

MS Imaging of Urushiols in Poison Ivy Stem. Molecules, 22, 711.

Epstein, W. L. 1987. Plant-induced dermatitis. Annals of Emergency Medicine, 16, 950-955.

Londré, R. A. & Schnitzer, S. A. 2006. The distribution of lianas and their change in abundance

in temperate forests over the past 45 years. Ecology, 87, 2973-2978.

Mohan, J. E. Z., L. H.; Schlesinger, W. H. ; Thomas R. B.; Sicher, R. C.; George, K.; and Clark,

J. S. 2006. Biomass and toxicity responses of poison ivy(Toxicodendron radicans) to

elevated atmospheric CO2. PNAS, 103.

Poster abstracts

23

Poster #5

Identification of housekeeping genes in plum

K. Ebersole1, K. Loerich1, S. Pabhakar1, A. Callahan2 1 Hagerstown Community College, 2 Appalachian Fruit Research Station - USDA

In the early 1900’s Luther Burbank started a breeding program that resulted in the release of two

stoneless plum cultivars ‘Miracle’ and ‘Conquest” whose descendant is now known as

’Stoneless’. ‘Stoneless’ produces plums that have anywhere from a partial stone to only a speck

of stone depending on environmental growth conditions. Researchers from the USDA-

Agriculture Research service at the Appalachian Fruit Research Station are interested in the

genes that control the determination and differentiation of fruit endocarp (the stone cells). RNA

was collected from two ‘Stoneless’ and two normal stone cultivars. The stages of developing

fruit from which the RNA was extracted ranged from a few days before pollination to

fertilization. Additionally early stone cells were also compared at the stage when they could be

easily separated from the flesh (mesocarp) but still before lignin production and hardening. A

number of genes were found to have different expression levels that correlated with the

‘Stoneless’ cultivar. To confirm these results reverse transcriptase qPCR was used. Based on the

RNAseq data, nine genes were identified which vary less than 10% between the flower bud to

endocarp tissue samples in all of the different cultivars. Initial results suggested that five of the

nine genes showed capabilities to be used as a standard for qPCR measured gene expression

within these tissues. Now candidate genes for the regulation of stone cells and/or lignin

production can be tested on a developmental plum fruit series and standardized utilizing these

five standard primers.

Poster #6

NEW PLANT VARIETIES: FOOD SAFETY – REGULATION - CONSULTATION

Carrie McMahon, Ph.D., Jianmei (Jamie) Zhu, Ph.D., Patrick Cournoyer, Ph.D., and Robert

Merker, Ph.D.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 5001 Campus Drive, College Park, MD

Carrie.McMahon@fda.hhs.gov

New varieties of food plants are introduced into commerce every year. The Federal Food, Drug,

and Cosmetic Act (the FD&C Act) places a legal duty on those who develop and sell food to

ensure that the food is safe and complies with the law. This legal duty applies to developers of

new food plant varieties, irrespective of the method used to develop the new variety. Because the

safety or regulatory status of a new food developed using innovative methods may not be clear,

FDA recommends that developers consult with the agency prior to marketing the new food to

resolve its safety and regulatory status. Here we present (1) the safety and regulatory

considerations for food produced from new plant varieties and (2) the consultation programs at

FDA available to plant developers.

Poster abstracts

24

Poster #7

ELUCIDATING THE ROLE OF THE FLOWERING ACTIVATOR FLK IN

PATHOGEN DEFENSE IN ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA

Matthew Fabian1, Chong Zhang1, Min Gao1, Xiaoning Zhang2, and Hua Lu1 1Department of Biological Sciences, University of Maryland Baltimore County, United States 2 Department of Biology, St. Bonaventure University, St. Bonaventure, NY 14778, USA

correpsondance: matthew.fabian@umbc.edu

Recent studies using the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana have elucidated the crosstalk between

the genetic pathways governing flowering time control and pathogen defense. Metabolically,

flowering and defense control are costly processes that likely compete for the same resources

during plant growth and development. Our laboratory has an Arabidopsis mutant, acd6-1,

characterized by constitutive defense and diminutive size. The small size of acd6-1 is inversely

proportional to the defense level, which makes acd6-1 an ideal readout to quickly assess defense

levels in genetic analyses of defense related mutants. In a mutant screen of acd6-1 suppressors,

we identified an allele (flk-5) of FLK, a canonical flowering activator encoding a putative RNA

binding protein that localizes to the nucleus. flk loss-of-function mutants were previously shown

to exhibit delayed flowering. We confirmed suppression of acd6-1 with another flk allele (flk-1).

We additionally complemented the late flowering phenotype of flk-1 with a wildtype FLK gene

translationally fused with the GFP reporter. To further assess the defense role of FLK, we

infected plants with the virulent Pseudomonas syringae strain DG3 and found that both flk-1 and

flk-5 mutants exhibited increased bacterial growth. In addition, flk-1 and flk-5 also showed

reduced response to the treatment of flg22, a defense elicitor derived from the conserved region

of P. syringae flagellin proteins, for reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and callose

deposition at the cell wall. These results affirm a role for the flowering activator gene FLK in

pathogen defense, illustrating the crosstalk between pathogen defense and flower development.

Further studies are necessary to elucidate the molecular mechanism underlying the defense role

of FLK.

Poster abstracts

25

Poster #8

ELECTRON MICROSCOPY AND RT-PCR ASSIST IDENTIFICATION OF THE

CONSTRICTA STRAIN OF POTATO YELLOW DWARF VIRUS AT BELTSVILLE

Connor Gulbronson1, John Stommel2, Michael Reinsel1, Michael Goodin3, and John Hammond1

1 USDA-ARS, USNA, FNPRU, 10300 Baltimore Avenue, Beltsville, MD; 2 USDA-ARS,

BARC, GIFVL, 10300 Baltimore Avenue, Beltsville, MD; 3 University of Kentucky, Dept. of

Plant Pathology, Lexington, KY

Connor.Gulbronson@ars.usda.gov

In 2006, several pepper (Capsicum annuum) plants at Beltsville, MD were observed with virus-

like symptoms of vein clearing, leaf curling, and uneven chlorosis. Transmission electron

microscopy (TEM) revealed rhabdovirus-like particles, also observed in Nicotiana benthamiana,

N. edwardsonii, and N. glutinosa mechanically inoculated with pepper leaf extracts. Tomato

(Solanum lycopersicum) grown in the same area in 2010 showed fruit symptoms of yellowish

speckling, with some irregular rings; TEM revealed typical rhabdovirus particles. RT-PCR using

generic rhabdovirus primers amplified a c. 1 kb product, with a sequence most closely related to,

but distinct from the Sanguinolenta strain of Potato yellow dwarf virus (PYDV-SYDV; 73% nt

identity; 94% coverage). Pepper plants showing fruit distortion, uneven coloration, and sunken

lesions with a necrotic center were also observed in 2016; TEM of thin sections revealed large

groups of rhabdovirus particles in the nucleus of infected cells. RT-PCR from pepper, and from a

nightshade plant growing at the field margin, yielded a rhabdovirus PCR product with c. 99%

identity to the earlier tomato PCR product. Comparison to the newly completed genome of the

Constricta strain of PYDV (PYDV-CYDV) also revealed c. 99% nt identity. Mechanical

transmission from nightshade to pepper plants was confirmed by RT-PCR. We therefore identify

the rhabdovirus isolates from pepper, tomato, and nightshade as PYDV-CYDV; nightshade may

function as an overwintering host in Maryland.

Poster abstracts

26

Poster #9

THE ETHYLENE PRECURSOR, ACC, ITSELF MAY SERVE AS A PLANT

HORMONE IN THE LIVERWORT MARCHANTIA POLYMORPHA

Andrew Coleman1, John Clay1, Eduardo Flores2, Charles Goodman1, Bram Van de Poel3, John

Bowman2, Caren Chang1

1. Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, University of Maryland, College Park,

MD; 2. School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton Campus, Melbourne,

Australia; 3. Division of Crop Biotechnics, University of Leuven, Flanders, Belgium

Corresponding author email: carenc@umd.edu

Plants produce hormones that collectively regulate many aspects of growth and development.

One of the classically known plant hormones is ethylene. In higher plants, it is well established

that ethylene is synthesized from the precursor 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC).

Treatment of angiosperms with exogenous ACC induces well-known ethylene responses due to

the nearly constitutive activity of ACC oxidase (ACO), which converts ACC to ethylene.

Interestingly, ACO homologs capable of efficiently converting ACC to ethylene are found only

in higher vascular plants. In contrast, the synthesis of ACC appears to be well conserved, even in

basal land plants, raising the question of what role ACC plays in these plants. We addressed this

question using the model system Marchantia polymorpha (liverwort), a basal land plant. We

discovered that treating Marchantia with ACC induces a phenotype that is quite distinct from

that of ethylene treatment. In Marchantia gemmalings, ethylene treatment slightly increases

overall plant size, whereas ACC treatment results in severe inhibition of cell differentiation and

growth. ACC treatment during the early stages of ‘gemmaling’ development results in what

appear to be undifferentiated cells, or callus. ACC treatment has no obvious effect once the plant

is fully developed (not shown). Besides being stage-specific, these ACC effects are non-toxic

and reversible. We have thus unmasked an ACC response that is distinct from ethylene response,

leading us to propose that ACC itself serves as plant hormone in Marchantia. We speculate that

ACC may be an important signaling molecule that evolutionarily predated the ability of higher

land plants to efficiently convert ACC to ethylene.

Poster abstracts

27

Poster #10

PCR-BASED DIAGNOSTIC MARKERS FOR FUSARIUM HEAD BLIGHT

RESISTANCE LOCUS FHB1 IN WHEAT.

Lovepreet Singha, Bikram S. Gillb and Nidhi Rawata* a Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, University of Maryland,

College Park, MD 20742 b Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66502

*E-mail: nidhirwt@umd.edu

Abstract: Fusarium head blight (FHB), caused by Fusarium graminearum threatens worldwide

wheat production by impairing the yield and quality of wheat grains. The Fhb1 locus confers a

moderately high level of broad spectrum resistance against FHB and has been used in breeding

programs worldwide. Previously, this locus was fine mapped to 0.08 cM interval on the 3BS

chromosome of Sumai 3 wheat cultivar. The pore-forming toxin-like (PFT) gene has been

identified as the major underlying candidate for the resistance conferred by Fhb1. Historically,

closely linked SSR markers, such as umn10, have been used to select for Fhb1. However,

diagnostic ability of linked markers can be compromised due to rare recombination events. The

objective of current study was to develop a perfect diagnostic marker for FHB resistance locus

Fhb1. In this study a gene specific PCR marker, UMD_FHB2017 was developed from the PFT

gene. Validation of the marker was done in a panel of 96 wheat cultivars and landraces with

known FHB resistance phenotype. UMD_FHB2017 was identified as a dominant diagnostic gene

marker with no amplification in the susceptible accessions. The gene specific marker developed

in this study would enable precise introgression and selection for FHB resistance in wheat

breeding programs.

Poster abstracts

28

Poster #11

CRISPR-Cas9 based Genome Editing in Hexaploid Camelina Sativa

Aimee Malzahn and Yiping Qi

Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture

University of Maryland

As the global population increases, farmers will be required to increase crop production

while the amount of arable land decreases. Genome editing can produce plants with a variety of

desirable traits to increase crop production, and also serve as a tool for basic research. Recently,

the site specific endonuclease CRISPR/Cas9 has been isolated from bacteria to become an

important genome editing tool and has opened up opportunities for genome editing polyploid

plants. These plants, although agriculturally important, have not been extensively edited because

their multiple genomes complicates the process. Camelina sativa is a hexaploid oilseed crop that

has a high percentage of omega-3 fatty acids, which is relevant to human health as well as

biofuel production. Its genome was sequenced in 2014 revealing three highly undifferentiated

subgenomes with homology to its close relative and model organism Arabidopsis thaliana.

These qualities make Camelina a good plant for studying hexaploid genome editing. This study

will involve editing several genes involved in various macromolecule production and will utilize

the two main DNA repair pathways. First, a pilot study will be conducted on PDS. This gene

encodes an enzyme necessary for chlorophyll and carotenoid production and a successful

knockout of all three genes will yield an albino dwarf. Knockouts of oil composition genes FAE1

and FAD2 will also be created utilizing the non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) DNA repair

pathway. Precise homology-directed repair (HDR) studies will be carried out with ALS gene

replacement to confer herbicide resistance and gene insertion of YFP behind Cru3 to tag a seed

storage protein. This gives a good sampling of genes involved in different pathways and

compares the efficiency of NHEJ and HDR in hexaploid plants.

Poster abstracts

29

Poster #12

ANNOTATION AND ANALYSIS OF THE MITOCHONDRIAL GENOME OF

CONIOTHYRIUM GLYCINES, CAUSAL AGENT OF RED LEAF BLOTCH OF

SOYBEAN, REVEALS AN ABUNDANCE OF HOMING ENDONUCLEASES

Christine L. Stone1, Reid D. Frederick1, Paul W. Tooley1, Douglas G. Luster1, Brittany Campos2,

Richard A. Winegar2, Ulrich Melcher3, Jacque Fletcher4, Trenna Blagden4

1USDA-ARS-Foreign Disease-Weed Science Research Unit, Fort Detrick, MD 2MRIGlobal, Global Health Surveillance & Diagnostics, Palm Bay, FL 3Dept of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 4National Institute for Microbial Forensics & Food and Agricultural Biosecurity, Department of

Entomology & Plant Pathology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK

Corresponding author e-mail: reid.frederick@ars.usda.gov

Coniothyrium glycines, the causal agent of soybean red leaf blotch, is a USDA APHIS-

listed Plant Pathogen Select Agent and potential threat to US agriculture. Sequencing of the C.

glycines mt genome revealed a circular 98533-bp molecule with a mean GC content of 29.01%.

It contains twelve of the mitochondrial genes typically involved in oxidative phosphorylation

(atp6, cob, cox1-3, nad1-6, and nad4L), one for a ribosomal protein (rps3), four for hypothetical

proteins, one for each of the small and large subunit ribosomal RNAs (rns and rnl) and a set of

30 tRNAs. Genes occur in two contiguous strands of opposite direction with cox1 and cox2

occurring as adjacent proteins having no intergenic spacers. Likewise, nad2 and nad3 are

adjacent with no intergenic spacers and nad5 is immediately followed by nad4L with an overlap

of one base. Thirty-two introns, comprising 54.1% of the total mt genome, were identified within

eight protein-coding genes and the rnl. Seventeen of the introns contained putative intronic ORFs

with either LAGLIDADG or GIY-YIG homing endonuclease motifs, and an additional twelve

introns showed evidence of truncated or degenerate endonuclease motifs. One intron possessed a

degenerate N-acetyl-transferase domain. C. glycines shares some conservation of gene order with

other members of the Pleosporales, most notably nad6-rnl-atp6 and associated conserved tRNA

clusters. Phylogenetic analysis of the twelve shared protein coding genes agrees with commonly

accepted fungal taxonomy. C. glycines represents the largest mt genome from a member of the

Pleosporales sequenced to date. This research provides the first genomic information on C.

glycines, which may provide targets for rapid diagnostic assays and population studies.

Poster abstracts

30

Poster #13

Are There Transgenic Petunias in Western Maryland?

C. Johnson, A. Kosuri, S. S. Kurapaty, K. L. Wirsz, S. Prabhakar, C.A. Dove

Hagerstown Community College, Hagerstown MD

In May 2017, the USDA announced that some petunia plants with vibrant orange, purple and red

flowers that were being sold at nurseries and greenhouses were genetically engineered (GE).

Even though these plants do not pose any risk to the environment or to human health, U.S.

flower distributors have been asked to destroy these plants as GE organisms need special permits

to be sold in the United States. These plants are believed to result from research in Europe. A

team of plant geneticists at the Max Plank Institute for Plant Breeding Research in Germany

demonstrated that inserting a maize gene in petunia resulted in the production of pelargonidin

pigment that gives the salmon red color. They planted 30,000 petunias which were the first

transgenic plants ever to be released in Germany. Later a Dutch company licensed the

technology and produced stable orange colored petunias fit for commercial breeding. Another

company received clearance from US regulators to conduct a field trial of orange petunias in

Florida. The alert was set when the Finish food safety agency called for eight varieties of

petunias to be removed from the market. Other European nations and the USDA began looking

for the presence of the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35S promoter in vivid orange, red and

purple varieties. The CaMV 35S promoter is used to control the expression of an inserted gene.

All plants containing this DNA are subject to APHIS regulation. Currently, ten varieties of GE

petunia have been found and twenty-one others are suspected to contain the CaMV 35S

promoter. In this study Introduction to Biotechnology students wanted sample petunias from

regional greenhouses to determine if they contained the CaMV 35S promoter. Twelve petunias

plants were collected. DNA was extracted and tested for the presence of the CaMV 35S promoter

by PCR. Plant photosystem II chloroplast gene primers were used as control primers to check for

the presence of plant DNA. Non-GMO certified grains were used as a negative control. Six of

the twelve plants tested positive for the GMO primers. The sample size was small due to the

plants being collected late in the nursery season. However, it is apparent that GE petunias are

present in Western Maryland. This was a good introduction experiment for students beginning in

biotechnology.

Poster abstracts

31

Poster #14

Identification of candidate genes for anthocyaninless (anl)

J. Kint1, M. Hoover1, E. Martinez1, M. O’Connell1, K. Ebersole1, L. Price2, S. Prabakar1, C.

Dove1, D. Puthoff2. 1Mathematics and Science Division, Hagerstown Community College, 2Department of Biology,

Frostburg State University

Wisconsin fast plants are widely used as a research model for both education and

improving disease resistance in cruciferous plants. These plants are dominantly purple in color

from anthocyanins; however a mutant variety of this plant exhibits a green phenotype.

Anthocyanins have been well established as antioxidant compounds, which serve as potentially

protective factors against cancer and cardiovascular disease. While biosynthetic pathways of

anthocyanins, along with the isolation of corresponding genes, have been well characterized in

species such Arabidopsis thaliana (L.), we have investigated the gene responsible for the green

(anthocyaninless), phenotype within fast plants. Through the use of PCR of five different genes,

designed from BAC end sequencing compared to the Arabidopsis thaliana genome, one gene

was found to be different. Initialy, the dihydroflavonol 4-reductase (DFR) gene showed a point

mutation within the coding region, however, it is now thought that the biosynthetic mechanism in

B. rapa is suspected to be within the promoter. In order to confirm the nonfunctional DFR gene

was the cause for the green phenotype, PCR product from an amplification of the wild type DFR

gene was cloned into the TOPO vector. The TOPO vector was then digested to remove DFR

gene, which was then inserted into pBI121 vector. The DFR in pBI121 vector was

electroporated into a strain of Agrobacterium. Non-purple fast plants were then grown for 14

days and then transfected in floral dip. Seeds have not yet been obtained from the transfected

plants for analysis.

Poster abstracts

32

Poster #15

ISOLATION OF cDNA ENCODING LIPID PATHWAY GENES IN THE

CYANOBACTERIUM, FREMYELLA DIPLOSIPHON

S. Gharaie Fathabad1, Arumanayagam, A.2, Tabatabai, B.1, and Sitther, V.1

1Department of Biology, Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD 2Department of Pathology, Methodist Hospital Research Institute, Houston, TX

Corresponding author’s e-mail address: viji.sitther@morgan.edu

The freshwater cyanobacterium, Fremyella diplosiphon is a model organism which has great

potential to be a promising commercial biofuel agent due to its fast generation time and ability to

grow in low light intensity. In this study, two lipid pathway genes acyl-CoA desaturase and

sterol desaturase/short chain dehydrogenase in F. diplosiphon were used to enhance lipid

content. F. diplosiphon strain B481 was grown in BG11 liquid medium adjusted to an optical

density at 750 nm of 0.1 at pH 8.0 under wide spectrum white light with continuous shaking at

170 rpm and 28°C for seven days. Total RNA was extracted, cDNA reverse transcribed, and

genes amplified by PCR. The products visualized on a 1% agarose gel for the expected sizes,

excised and cDNA extracted. Purified amplified products were subjected to Sanger sequencing

and NCBI Basic Local Alignment Sequence Tool analysis performed to confirm identity of the

genes and encoded proteins. Results revealed open reading frames of 1122 and 1314 base pairs

encoding 373 amino acids for acyl-CoA desaturase and 437 for sterol desaturase/short chain

dehydrogenase. Sequence alignment revealed a 99% match to acyl-CoA desaturase and 94% to

sterol desaturase/short chain dehydrogenase in F. diplosiphon, thus confirming the identity of the

genes. The amino acid sequence of acyl-CoA desaturase showed 95%, 94%, 93% and 72%

identities to Nostoc carneum NIES-2107, Calothrix brevissima NIES-22, Calothrix sp. NIES-

2100, and Nodularia spumigena respectively, while the sterol desaturase/short chain

dehydrogenase amino acid sequence revealed 93%, 86%, 77%, and 77% identities to Nostoc

carneum NIES-2107, Calothrix sp. NIES-2100, Nodularia sp. NIES-3585, and Fortiea contorta

respectively. These findings indicate high similarities to the published sequences of these

proteins in various cyanobacteria, thereby confirming their functional importance in lipid

biosynthesis pathways. In future studies, lipid content of this cyanobacterium will be maximized

for biotechnological applications.

Contact Information

33

Name Address Phone / email Abdelkreem,

Reham Plant Biotechnology LLC, , E2 443-280-2492

bmatthews.pbt@gmail.com

Addy, Hardian Susilo

Floral & Nursery Plants Research Unit, US National Arboretum, USDA, Bldg 004, Rm 116,

10300 Baltimore Ave., E2

3015049159 hardian.addy@ars.usda.gov

Ahmad, Abdelmonium

Ali

Floral & Nursery Plants Research Unit, US National Arboretum, USDA, Bldg 004, Rm 116,

10300 Baltimore Ave., E2

3015049159 abdelmonium.ebrahim@ars.usda.gov

Alkharouf, Nadim

Towson University, 8000 York Road, Dept of

Computer and Information Sciences, E2

410-704-3149 nalkharouf@towson.edu

Barnaby, Jinyoung

USDA ARS DBNRRC, 2890 Highway 130E, E2 3013108581 jinyoung.barnaby@ars.usda.gov

Beetham, Patricia

USDA Aphis BRS, 4700 River Road, Unit 147, E2 3018513889 patricia.k.beetham@aphis.usda.gov

Bhrthakur, Devajit

USDA, ARS, SPCL, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 001, Rm 232, BARC-West, E2

301-504-1995 devajit.vorthakur@gmail.com

Boulais, Virginia

USDA Aphis BRAP, 4700 River Road, Unit 147, E2 3018513888 virginia.l.boulais@aphis.usda.gov

Campbell, Kimberly

USDA-ARS, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 006, Rm 213, E2

301-504-0330 kimberly.campbell@ars.usda.gov

Clarke, Christopher

USDA ARS GIFVL, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg

010A, Rm 226, BARC west, E2

3015045953 christopher.clarke@ars.usda.gov

Clay, John University of Maryland, 0209 Bioscience Res Bldg, E2

3014051854 jelay421@umd.edu

Cohen , Annastelle

American University, 4400 Massachusetts Ave. NW, E2

2028852135 ac0417a@student.american.edu

Collins, Ron USDA, ARS, SPCL, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg

001, Rm 232, BARC-West, E2

301-504-6135 Ron.Collins@ars.usda.gov

Collum, Tamara

University of Maryland, Institute for Bioscience & Biotechnology, 4291 Fieldhouse Dr., Plant

Sciences Bldg, Rm 5115, E2

3014052852 tdfisch@umd.edu

Cournoyer, Patrick

US Food and Drug Administration, 5001 Campus

Drive, HFS-255, E2

2404021019 partick.cournoyer@fda.hhs.gov

Cramer, Carole

Arkansas State University, PO Box 639, Arkansas Biosciences Institute, E2

8706804307 ccramer@astate.edu

Culver, Jim University of Maryland, IBBR, PSLA, 4291

Fieldhouse Dr, E2 301-405-2912 jculver@umd.cdu

Dickinson, Cody

Virginia Tech, 220 Ag Quad Lane, E2 8044454328 Chrisd1@vt.edu

Djurickovic, Milutin

US EPA BPPD, 2777 S. Crystall Drive, E2 7033470126 djurickovic.milutin@epa.gov

Dove, Cindy Hagerstown Community College, 11400 Robinwood Drive, E2

2405002477 cadove@hagerstowncc.edu

Ebersole, Kyle Hagerstown Community College, 11400 Robinwood Drive, E2

3019925365 kaeversole11869@student.hagersto

wncc.edu

Contact Information

34

Name Address Phone / email

Fabian, Matt UMBC, 1000 Hilltop Circle, E2 4104552263

matthew.fabian@umbc.edu

Fathabad, Somayeh

Morgan State University, 1700 E. Coldspring Lane, E2

5303128500 sogha1@morgan.edu

Frederick, Reid

USDA ARS FDWSRU, 1301 Ditto Ave, E2 301-619-7344 Reid.Frederick@ars.usda.gov

Gagliardi, Joel US EPA, Mail code 7511P, 1200 Pennsylvania

Ave. NW, E2 7033080116

gagliardi.joel@epa.gov

Gillaspy, Glenda

Virginia Tech, 340 West Campus Drive, E2 5402313062 gillaspy@vt.edu

Goodin, Michael

University of Kentucky, 201 F Plant Science

Building, E2

8592180725 mgoodin@uky.edu

Grinstead, Sam

ARS USDA BARC NGRL, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 004, RM 22, E2

3015045458 sam.grinstead@ars.usda.gov

Gulbronson, Connor (CJ)

USDA ARS USNA FNPRU, 10300 Baltimore Ave.

Bldg. 010A , E2

3015046097 connor.gulbronson@ars.usda.gov

Hammond, John

USDA ARS USNA FNPRU, 10300 Baltimore Ave. Bldg. 010A , E2

3015045313 john.hammond@ars.usda.gov

Hammond, Rosemarie

USDA ARS MPPL, 10300 Baltimore Ave. Bldg.

004, Rm 214 , E2

3015045203 rose.hammond@ars.usda.gov

Haymes, Kenneth

USDA Aphis BRS, 4700 River Road, E2 3018513879 kenneth.m.haymes@aphis.usda.gov

Holland, Mark Salisbury University, Dept. of Biology, 1101

Camden Ave., E2

4105485590 maholland@salisbury.edu

Howe, Natalie USDA Aphis BRS, 4700 River Road, E2 4088385242

Natalie.m.howe@aphis.usda.gov

Huang, Qi Floral & Nursery Plants Research Unit, US

National Arboretum, USDA, Bldg 004, Rm 116, 10300 Baltimore Ave., E2

3015049159 qi.huang@ars.usda.gov

Jelesko, John Virginia Tech, 220 Ag Quad Lane, E2 5402313728

jelesko@vt.edu

John, Maria USDA-ARS Soybean Genomics and Improvement

Laboratory, 10300 Baltimore, Ave. Bldg. 004, Rm 211, E2

301-3352155 mariajohn79@gmail.com

Joldersma, Dirk

University of Maryland, , E2 2029974585 djolders@umd.edu

Jones, Richard USDA ARS/ GIFVL, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg

010A, Rm 311 Barc West, E2 301-504-8395

richard.jones@ars.usda.gov

Jordan, Ramon

US National Arboretum, USDA ARS, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 010A, Rm 238, E2

3015045646 ramon.jordan@ars.usda.gov

Kaneko, Kotaro

US Food and Drug Administration, 5001 Ca mpus Drive, HFS-255, E2

2404021200 kotaro.kaneko@fda.hhs.gov

Kenney, Amanda

USDA Aphis BRS, 4700 River Road, E2 3018513956 amanda.m.kenney@aphis.usda.gov

Kosuri, Ajay Hagerstown Community College, 11400 Robinwood Drive, E2

akosuri@student.hagerstowncc.edu

Contact Information

35

Name Address Phone / email Kovalskaya,

Natalia USDA ARS MPPL, 10300 Baltimore Ave. Bldg.

004, Rm 214 , E2 3015045203

natalia.kovalskaya@ars.usda.gov

Kreger, Nancy USDA ARS MPPL, 10300 Baltimore Ave. Bldg.

004, Rm 214 , E2 3015045203

nancy.kreger@ars.usda.gov

Krogan, Naden

American University, 4400 Massachusetts Ave. NW, E2

2028852203 nkrogan@american.edu

Kurapaty, Samantha

Hagerstown Community College, 11400 Robinwood Drive, E2

cadove@hagerstowncc.edu

Loerich, Karen Hagerstown Community College, 11400

Robinwood Drive, E2 2405275052

alicepriak@hotmail.com

Luster, Doug USDA-ARS FDWSRU, 1301 Ditto Ave, E2 (301) 619-7316

Doug.Luster@ARS.USDA.GOV

Malzahn, Aimee

University of Maryland, 5000 Quebec St, E2 9738560012 amalzahn@umd.edu

Matthews, Ben

Plant Biotechnology, , E2 (443) 280-2492 benfmatthews@gmail.com

McGonigle, Brian

DuPont Crop Protection, 1090 Elkton Rd., E2 3023665322 brian.megonigle@dupont.com

McMahon, Carrie

US Food and Drug Administration, 5001 Campus

Drive, HFS-255, E2

2404021200 carrie.mcmahon@fda.hhs.gov

McMahon, Michael

USDA ARS FDWSRU, 1301 Ditto Ave, E2 3016192232 michael.mcmahon@ars.usda.gov

Merker, Robert

US Food and Drug Administration, 5001 Campus

Drive, HFS-255, E2

2404021226 robert.merker@fda.hhs.gov

Mischke, Sue USDA ARS SPRL, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 001,

Rm 223, BARC-West, E2 3015045603

sue.mischke@ars.usda.gov Mowery, Joseph

USDA ARS SGIL ECMU, 10300 Baltimore Ave.

Bldg 12, E2

8175218566 joseph.mowery@ars.usda.gov

Munyaneza, Joseph

USDA ARS, 5601 Sunnyside Ave, E2 3015044562 joseph.munyaneza@ars.usda.gov

Nagarajan, Vinay

Delaware Biotechnology Institute University of

Delaware, 15 Innovation Way, E2

3028314634 nagarajan@dbi.udel.edu

Natarajan, Savithiry

USDA-ARS Soybean Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, 10300 Baltimore, Ave. Bldg. 004, Rm

211, E2

301-504-5258 savithiry.natarajan@ars.usda.gov

Novak, Nicole USDA ARS IIBBL, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 007,

Rm 301 BARC-west, E2 3015046185

nicole.novak@ars.usda.gov

Osterweil, Elyse

US EPA BPPD, Mail code 7511P, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, E2

7033470633 osterweil.elyse@epa.gov

Pinney, Stephen

USDA, ARS, SPCL, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 001, Rm 232, BARC-West, E2

301-504-7317 Stephen.pinney@ars.usda.gov

Podeti, Srinivas

Kakatiya University, Department of Biotechnology, E2

srinivas7586@gmail.com

Price, Laura Frostburg State University, 101 Braddock Road,

E2 301-687-4172

lmprice0@frostburg.edu

Contact Information

36

Name Address Phone / email Pritchard,

Barry The Cannabis Council, Sunxanalytical Corporation, 104 Tech Park Drive, E2

410-830-9814 bpritchard@sunxanalytical.com

Puthoff, David Frostburg State University, 101 Braddock Road,

E2 301-687-4172

dpputhoff@frostburg.edu

Qi, Yiping University of Maryland, 5118 Plant science bldg, 4921 Fieldhouse Rd, E2

3014057682 yiping@umd.edu

Reinsel, Michael

USDA Floral and Nursery Plant Research Unit,

Bldg 003. BARC West, 10300 Baltimore Blvd., E2

301 504 9424 michael.reinsel@ars.usda.gov

Rogers, Elizabeth

USDA ARS Foreign Disease Weed Science RU, 1301 Ditto Ave, E2

301 619 7307 elizabeth.rogers@ars.usda.gov

Rowland, Jeannie

USDA-ARS, GIFVL, BARC-West, 10300 Baltimore

Ave, Bldg 010A, Rm 247, BARC-West, E2

301-504-6654 Jeannine.Rowland@ars.usda.gov

Ruck, Amy USDA ARS FDWSRU, 1301 Ditto Ave, E2 301-619-0517

Amy.ruck@ars.usda.gov Salazar, Beatrice

ACS Maryland, 1204 RoundHill Rd., E2 443 801 0582 beatricesalazar1@gmail.com

Saunders, James

Towson University, 14590 Triadelphia Mill Road, E2

443-386-4695 jsaunders@towson.edu

Sechler, Aaron

USDA ARS FDW SRU, 1301 Ditto Ave, E2 301-619-3193 aaron.sechler@ars.usda.gov

Serrels, Joanne

USDA Aphis , 4700 River Road, Unit 147, E2 301 851 3867 joanne.m.serrels@aphis.usda.gov

Shatters, Rovbert

USDA, ARS, US Horticultural Research Lab, 2001 South Rock Road, E2

772 519 2689 robert.shatters@ars.usda.gov

Shen, Zhengxing

USDA, 4700 River Road, Unit 147, E2 301 851 3922 zhengxing.shen@aphis.usda.gov

Singh, Lovepreet

University of Maryland College Park, 4291 Fieldhouse Rd, 2102 Plant Sciences Bldg, E2

575 339 9291 lps1699@terpmail.umd.edu

Sparks, Erin University of Delaware, 15 Innovation Way, E2 3028313428 esparks@udel.edu

Sretenovic, Simon

University of Maryland, 5108 Berwyn Rd., E2 614 648 0220 simon.sretenovic@gmail.com

Stommel, John

USDA-ARS, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 010A, BARC west, E2

301 504 5583 john.stommel@ars.usda.gov

Stone, Christine

Foreign Disease Weed Science Research Unit,

1301 Ditto Ave, E2

301-619-2862 Christine.stone@ars.usda.gov

Tancos, Matthew

USDA ARS FDW SRU, 1301 Ditto Ave, E2 301-619-3193 matthew.tancos@ars.usda.gov

Tucker, Mark USDA-ARS, SGIL, BARC-West, 10300 Baltimore

Ave, Bldg 006, BARC-West, E2

301-504-6091 mark.tucker@ars.usda.gov

Tumakong, Yvette

Plant Science, University of Maryland College Park, Plant Sciences Bldg, Rm 5115 4291

Fieldhouse Dr., E2

301 605 2852 tyb@terpmail.umd.com

Upadhyay, Rakesh

SASL, USDA ARS, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 001,

Rm 120, E2

301 642 6932 rakesh.upadhyay@ars.usda.gov

Urrutia, Cesar ARS USDA BARC NGRL, 10300 Baltimore Ave,

Bldg 004, RM 025, E2 301 504 5458

Cesar.urrutia@ars.usda.gov

Contact Information

37

Name Address Phone / email

Wafula, Denis US Food and Drug Administration, 5001 Campus

Drive, HFS-255, E2 240 402 1200

denis.wafula@fda.hhs.gov

Wang, Jinbo USDA APHIS , 4700 River Road, Unit 147 , E2 301 851 3884

jinbo.wang@aphis.usda.gov

Wiebke, Tapken

US EPA BPPD, 2777 Crystall Drive, E2 703 347 0556 tapken.wiebke@epa.gov

Williams, Phoebe

Dept. of Biochemistry, Virginia Tech, 340 West Campus Drive, E2

spwill@vt.edu

Wingeart, Jennifer

US EPA , 2803 Erics Ct, E2 315 48 90991 wingeart.jennifer@epa.gov

Yamadi, Maryam

American University, 4400 Massachusetts Ave.

NW, E2

202 885 2135 my5238a@student.american.edu

Yang, Ronghui USDA-ARS, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 006, Rm

213, E2 301-504-0330

kimberly.campbell@ars.usda.gov Zhang,

Yingxiao University of Maryland, 5118 Plant science bldg,

4921 Fieldhouse Rd, E2

614 648 0220 zhangyx@umd.edu

Zhang, Deshui USDA Aphis BRS, 4700 River Road, Unit 147, E2 301 851 3922

deshui.zhang@aphis.usda.gov Zhang, Dapeng

USDA, ARS, SPCL, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg

001, Rm 223, BARC-West, E2

301-504-7477 Dapeng.Zhang@ars.usda.gov

Zhu, Jianmei Food and Drug Administration, 5001 Campus

Drive, E2 240 402 1953

jianmei.Zhu@fda.hhs.gov Zuber,

Mohammed US EPA BPPD, 2777 Crystall Drive, E2 703 347 0513

zuber.mohammed@epa.gov