María Ortega, PhD

@EpiPlantPath @Cornell Muchas felicitaciones 🎉

On July 1st at approximately 1 p.m. EST I officially defended my Ph.D. and became a Doctor in Plant Pathology and Plant Microbe-Biology from @Cornell University❤️‍🔥 This is for my 14yo self who dreamed of becoming a scientist but didn’t know what that looked like. This is how!

New Article: "Convergent evolution of desiccation tolerance in grasses" rdcu.be/dLwrw Analysis of diverse resurrection grasses reveals significant genetic convergence and parallel evolution, suggesting a shared foundation for adapting to extreme drought.

Really pleased to share the results of collaboration with Leila Asadyar and the Waterhouse lab on N. benth drought responses, with @Brodribb_Lab @Sciences_UTAS and @CoEPlantSuccess. Check it out here 👇

Is finger millet the next hero to join the battle against food insecurity? A review on the genetic and genomic resources available, and gaps in knowledge that could help breeders boost production. rdcu.be/dIScx

Super proud of this project that started as a bar conversation at a conference 7 years ago. And now, it's in field trials. How cool is that? 🌾 🍚 🧬 😎 🇮🇹

Due to new funding and that we have been very busy, I haven't been able to share the full description of the new positions opening in EdeLab this 2024 fall and 2025 winter, but here a sneak peak! These will be focus on clubroot or leafhoppers. More next week! Please share!

A look at the evolution of U.S. #soybean production over the last 40 years.

Single-cell transcriptomics reveal heterogeneity in plant responses to the environment: a focus on biotic and abiotic interactions bit.ly/3IAEOw8

IN BRIEF: The quest to find TLC: Tendril-less cucumbers, that is (Vicky Howe) buff.ly/4bqcKbs @DrVickyHowe @ASPB #PlantSci

It's pub day for THE LIGHT EATERS. I feel so grateful to get to put this book out.

Wake up, honey: new phylogeny of flowering plants just dropped! Over 9K species, 58% of genera, and all 416 families inferred using Angiosperms353! Out now in Nature - congrats to the @KewScience team and SO MANY collaborators! nature.com/articles/s4158…

Late heading wheat mutant provides more insight into yield improvement. rdcu.be/dErqj

We got the cover :) Complete with a coffee leaf rust infection :(

In this study in @NatureGenet we deliver a new assembly to the Arabica coffee genome, tracing its origins to a fusion 610k years ago and identifying genes for disease resistance and chemical compositions. Thanks to all collaborators! nature.com/articles/s4158…

A conserved graft formation process in Norway spruce and Arabidopsis identifies the PAT gene family as central regulators of wound healing nature.com/articles/s4147… #plantscience ♻️

TOTEM: A web TOol for Tissue-EnrichMent analysis on gene lists biorxiv.org/content/10.110… #plantscience ♻️

New Perspective: "Are cereal grasses a single genetic system?" rdcu.be/dErWS 30 years of genetic and genomic research in cereal crops. Genome sequences have revealed common evolutionary patterns and differences between species and will support applications in breeding.

Chromosomal mapping of Agropyron cristatum chromosome reveals novel locus that increases grain number and spikelet number. rdcu.be/dBzUX

@ImperfectFunGuy Cedar/quince rust?

El verdadero tamaño de Colombia, comparándolo con países de Europa, bastante interesante