My currently research is focused on the identification of Cercospora spp. involved in Cercospora leaf blight and purple seed stain on soybean previously known to be caused by a solo species, C. kikuchii. Once the species identification is done, I will characterize them for fungicide resistance mainly for QoIs and DMIs.
I am also investigating the incidence of Brown spot Septoria glycines under different management practices.
I have had also the opportunity to lecture on AGRON 514 Master Science in Agronomy ISU & AGRON 533 Master Science in Agronomy ISU.
Also, part of the job, we are running many plot trials of fungicide efficacy for the main fungal diseases of soybean and maize. I am along with Dr. Nabin Kumar Dangal responsible of the data collection and analyses of these trials. Also MSc Stith Wiggs is in charged of all field activities as planting, irrigation system, fungicide sprays, crop management and all related with the plot research and the experimental design. Yet Anna Schacher is in charged of all logistics.
Finally, I am also currently a temporary lab manager. Graduate students and postdocs require highly demanding hourly help to get done many of their projects. The ongoing projects at the lab are root tracker, density population x phenotopy varieties on soybeans, and a new study on Mungbeans in IA, just for mention some examples.
My main Mexican collaborators are Dr. Diego Jarquin and Dr. Juan Manuel Tovar-Pedraza.
My doctoral research was focus on the study of risk of fungicide resistance emergence in Sclerotinia sclerotiorum known as white mold, a fungal pathogen that causes disease outbreaks on soybean. Keen, the aims are to determine fungicide sensitivity of populations from soybean; evaluate the effect of different fungicide applications on the sensitivity of field populations; and characterize the population structure and genetic diversity populations from soybean throughout the North Central United States and Mexico./ Mi investigación doctoral estuvo enfocada en el estudio del riesgo a la emergencia de la resistencia a fungicidas por Sclerotinia sclerotiorum conocido como moho blanco, un hongo fitopatógeno que causa enfermedad en soya. Los objetivos son, determinar la sensibilidad a fungicidas de poblaciones de soya; evaluar el efecto de diferentes aplicaciones de fungicidas en la sensibilidad de la poblaciones directamente en el campo; y caracterizar la estructura poblacional y diversidad genética de poblaciones de soya dentro Estados Unidos central y México
My thesis title was “Fungicide Sensitivity and Population Structure of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum from Soybean in the North Central United States and Dry Bean in Mexico”/ El título de mi tesis fue “Sensibilidad a fungicidas y estructura poblacional de Sclerotinia sclerotiorum de soya en Estados Unidos central y de fríjol en México”.