Graduate Field of Plant Pathology & Plant-Microbe Biology

George S. Abawi
Ph.D. 1970, Cornell University
Research Interests: Ecology and biology of fungal and nematodal soilborne pathogens and the integrated management of their resultant root diseases. Special interests are in diseases of vegetable and food legume crops, microbial interactions, biological control, cultural practices for disease management, and soil-IPM/soil health issues.
Location: Geneva
Additional field membership: International Agriculture & Rural Development
Email: gsa1@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2374

Herbert S. Aldwinckle
Ph.D. 1967, University of London, UK
Research Interests: Development of disease-resistant scion cultivars and rootstocks of apple by genetic engineering and breeding. Genomics of  disease reistance in apple. Epidemiology and management of fire blight disease.  Apple germplasm collection and evaluation.
Location: Geneva
Email: hsa1@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2369

Steven V. Beer
Ph.D. 1969, University of California, Davis
Research Interests: Molecular genetics and mechanisms of pathogenicity of Erwinia amylovora; biological control of fire blight and other diseases by bacteria.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field membership: Microbiology
Email: svb1@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7870
Lab Web Page

Thomas J. Burr
Ph.D. 1978, University of California, Berkeley
Research Interests: Biology of bacterial diseases of fruits and vegetables.
Location: Geneva
Email: tjb1@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2312

Lance E. Cadle-Davidson
Ph.D. 2003, Cornell University
Research Interests: Genetics and genomics of disease resistance; fungal and oomycete pathogens of grapevine.
Location: Geneva
Email: led8@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2442

Samuel W. Cartinhour
Ph.D. 1984, University of Utah
Research Interests: Analysis of regulatory mechanisms and gene expression networks in Pseudomonas syringae.
Location: Ithaca
Email: sc167@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-8091
Lab Web Page

Alan Collmer
Ph.D. 1981, Cornell University
Research Interests: Molecular phytobacteriology and microbial genomics.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field memberships: Microbiology; Plant Biology
Email: arc2@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7843
Lab Web Page

Kerik Cox
Ph.D. 2004, University of Georgia
Research Interests: Tree fruit and berry crop research and extension. Pathogen biology, ecology, and epidemiology of diseases of pome fruit, stone fruit and berry crops.
Location: Geneva
Email: kdc33@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2401

Helene R. Dillard
Ph.D. 1984, University of California, Davis
Research Interests: Biology, epidemiology and management of fungal diseases of vegetable crops.  Special interest in organic systems and medicinal herbs.
Location: Geneva
Additional field membership: Plant Protection
Email: hrd1@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2469
Lab Web Page

William E. Fry
Ph.D. 1970, Cornell University
Research Interests: Biology of oomycetes and management of disease they cause (with emphasis on Phytophthora infestans).
Location: Ithaca
Additional field membership: Plant Protection
Email: wef1@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7863
Lab Web Page

Marc Fuchs
Ph.D. 1989, Université Louis Pasteur, Strasbourg, France
Research Interests: Research on virus diseases of fruit and vegetable crops, their biology and management. Virus-host and virus-vector interactions.
Location: Geneva
Email: mf13@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2487

David M. Gadoury
Ph.D. 1984, University of New Hampshire
Research Interests: Epidemiology, ecology, pathogen biology, disease of grapevine and apples, powdery and downy mildews.
Location: Geneva
Email: dmg4@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2614

Donna M. Gibson
Ph.D. 1989, University of South Carolina
Research Interests: Identification and characterization of secondary metabolites of plants and fungi, production/use strategies for secondary metabolites in agricultural systems.
Location: Ithaca, USDA-ARS
Email: dmg6@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-2359

Stewart M. Gray
Ph.D. 1987, North Carolina State University
Research Interests: The biology of plant virus - insect vector interactions, virus diseases of potato and grain crops, virus disease management and epidemiology.
Location: USDA/ARS Ithaca
Email: smg3@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7844

Gary E. Harman
Ph.D. 1970, Oregon State University
Research Interests: Basic and applied research towards biocontrol systems for use in commercial agriculture, with focus on fungi in the genus Trichoderma.
Location: Geneva
Additional field membership: Soil and Crop Science
Email: geh3@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2452

Maria J. Harrison
Ph.D. 1987, University of Manchester, Institute of Science and Technology, UK
Research Interests: Elucidation of the molecular basis of the arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis and phosphate transport in plants.
Location: Ithaca, Boyce Thompson Institute
Additional field membership: Plant Biology
Email: mjh78@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 254-6472

Harvey C. Hoch
Ph.D. 1972, University of Wisconsin
Research Interests: Pesticide uptake through the plant cuticle, biological control of plant diseases incited by fungi, the ecology of soilborne fungi, mycoparasitic (fungi attacking other fungi) relationships, and fungal cell biology. Current investigations are centered around understanding how physical signals from the substratum facilitate disease development.
Location: Geneva
Email: hch1@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2332

Kathie T. Hodge
Ph.D. 1998, Cornell University
Research Interests: Systematics and ecology of pathogenic and symbiotic fungi, especially those that are pathogens of insects. Director of the Cornell Plant Pathology Herbarium.
Location: Ithaca
Email: kh11@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-3105
Lab Web Page

George W. Hudler
Ph.D. 1976, Colorado State
Research Interests: Epidemiology and management of diseases of woody ornamentals and Christmas trees.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field membership: Plant Protection
Email: gwh2@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7848
Lab Web Page

Richard A. Humber
Ph.D. 1975, University of Washington
Research Interests: Mycology; taxonomy and morphology of entomopathogenic fungi; biological control of insects and nematodes.
Location: Ithaca, USDA-ARS
Email: rah3@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-1276

Daniel F. Klessig
Ph.D. 1978, Harvard University
Research Interests: Biochemical, molecular and genetic studies of salicylic acid- and nitric acid-mediated signal transduction in disease resistance in tobacco and Arabidopsis.
Location: Ithaca, Boyce Thompson Institute
Additional field membership: Plant Biology
Email: dfk8@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-1276

Wolfram Koeller
Ph.D. 1978, Philipps-University, Marburg, Germany
Research Interests: The biochemistry of plant disease control consisting of two major thrusts: the characterization of highly disease specific targets for the rational design of novel disease control agents, and the development of resistance to current and future tools of disease control, be they chemical or biological in nature.
Location: Geneva
Email: wk11@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2375

Sondra Lazarowitz
Ph.D. 1975, Rockefeller University
Research Interests: Molecular mechanisms in virus-host interactions; molecular genetics of plant-virus movement and host resistance to virus infection; intra- and intercellular communications in plants.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field memberships: Biochemistry, Molecular & Cell Biology; Plant Biology
Email: sgl5@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7830
Lab Web Page

Kwangwon Lee
Ph.D. 1997, Texas A&M University
Research Interests: Characterizing light and clock regulations in fungi and their roles in pathogenic plant-microbe interactions using genomics, quantitative genetics and molecular biology tools.
Location: Ithaca
Email: kl272@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-5924
Lab Web Page

James W. Lorbeer
Ph.D. 1960, University of California, Berkeley
Research Interests: Diseases of vegetable crops, biology of plant pathogenic fungi, chemical and biological control of plant diseases.
Location: Ithaca
Email: jwl5@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7875
Lab Web Page

Rosemary Loria
Ph.D. 1980, Michigan State University
Research Interests: Host-pathogen interactions; molecular genetic analysis of pathogenicity determinants.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field membership: Microbiology
Email: rl21@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7831

Gregory B. Martin
Ph.D. 1989, Michigan State University
Resaerch Interests: Molecular basis of bacterial pathogenesis, plant immunity, and plant disease susceptibility.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field membership: Plant Biology
Email: gbm7@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 254-1208
Lab Web Page

Margaret McGrath
Ph.D. 1988, Pennsylvania State University
Research Interests: Diseases of vegetable crops, integrated pest management, fungicide resistance, epidemiology, powdery mildew, Phytophthora, air pollutants.
Location: Long Island Horticultural Research Extension Center, Riverhead, NY
Email: mtm3@cornell.edu
Tel: (631) 727-3595
Lab Web Page

Michael G. Milgroom
Ph.D. 1987, Cornell University
Research Interests: Population biology and evolution of plant pathogens; the integration of population biology and plant disease epidemiology.
Location: Ithaca
Email: mgm5@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7872
Lab Web Page

Peter Moffett
Ph.D. 2000, McGill University
Research Interests: Molecular mechanisms of plant disease resistance gene products: recognition of viral and nematode Avirulence proteins and induction of defenses.  Plant-virus interactions.
Location: Ithaca, Boyce Thompson Institute
Additional field membership: Plant Biology
Email: pm99@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 254-1326

Eric B. Nelson
Ph.D. 1982, The Ohio State University
Research Interests: Ecology and development of oomycetes in the spermosphere and rhizosphere with special emphasis on plant pathogenic Pythium species. Of special interest is understanding how microbial interactions and plant associations influence Pythium development and pathogenesis.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field membership: Plant Protection
Email: ebn1@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7841
Lab Web Page

Rebecca J. Nelson
Ph.D. 1988, University of Washington
Research Interests: The genetics of quantitative disease resistance; international agriculture.  We currently focus on two diseases of maize that are important both in the US and in Africa: northern corn leaf blight and gray leaf spot.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field memberships: International Agriculture & Rural Development; Plant Breeding
Email: rjn7@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 254-7375
Lab Web Page

Teresa E. Pawlowska
Ph.D. 1998, University of Minnesota
Research Interests: Biology and evolution of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi (phylum Glomeromycota).
Location: Ithaca
Email: tep8@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 254-8726
Lab Web Page

Keith L. Perry
Ph.D. 1989, Cornell University
Research Interests: Cucumber mosaic virus and its vector transmission, pathogen diagnostics technologies, and potato viruses; Director of the NYS Foundation Potato Seed Program and the Uihlein Laboratory and Farm.
Email: klp3@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 254-8243
Lab Web Page

Jocelyn K. C. Rose
Ph.D. 1998, University of California, Davis
Research Interests: Structure, function and dynamics of the plant cell wall and apoplast during development and plant-pathogen interactions, coupling biochemistry with newly developed approaches involving genomics and proteomics. Tomato issued as a model system to study wall and apoplastic dynamics in ripening fruits and in vegetative tissues in response to microbial challenge.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field membership: Plant Biology
Email: jr286@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-4781
Lab Web Page

David A. Rosenberger
Ph.D. 1977, Michigan State University
Research Interests: Biology and management of tree fruit diseases both in the field and after harvest.
Location: Hudson Valley Laboratory, Highland, NY
Email: dar22@cornell.edu
Tel: (914) 691-7231

Robert C. Seem
Ph.D. 1976, Pennsylvania State University
Research Interests: Quantitative epidemiology, focusing on model development and other quantitative measures for the practical management of fruit and vegetable diseases, understanding the biological processes responsible for disease development, and elucidating the role of weather and plant disease.
Location: Geneva
Additional field membership: Plant Protection
Email: rcs4@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2213

Christine D. Smart
Ph.D. 1992, Michigan State University
Research Interests: Biology and management of vegetable diseases; host-pathogen interactions.
Location: Geneva
Additional field membership: Plant Protection
Email: cds14@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2441

Gillian Turgeon
Ph.D. 1982, University of Dayton, Yellow Springs, OH
Research Interests: Genetics and molecular biology of fungal pathogens.
Location: Ithaca
Email: bgt1@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7458
Lab Web Page

Xiaohong Wang
Ph.D. 1995, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Research Interests: Molecular basis of plant-nematode interactions, host resistance to the potato cyst nematodes.
Location: Ithaca
Email: xw57@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7845
Lab Web Page

Wayne F. Wilcox
Ph.D. 1983, University of California, Davis
Research Interests: Fungal diseases of fruit crops, with emphases on pathogen biology and disease management; grapevine diseases and Phytophthora root and crown rots of various tree and berry crops.
Location: Geneva
Additional field membership: Plant Protection
Email: wfw1@cornell.edu
Tel: (315) 787-2335

Stephen C. Winans
Ph.D. 1984, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Research Interests: Molecular plant-bacteria interactions; host-microbe chemical signaling.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field membership: Microbiology
Email: scw2@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-2413

Thomas A. Zitter
Ph.D. 1968, Michigan State University
Research Interests: Diseases of vegetables, integrated pest management, ecology and epidemiology of foliar pathogens, epidemiology and control of virus diseases.
Location: Ithaca
Additional field membership: Plant Protection
Email: taz1@cornell.edu
Tel: (607) 255-7857
Lab Web Page