Brownfield, MO
07-25-06
Iowa State plant pathologist honored
by Jerry Passer
The American Phytopathological Society has honored Thomas Baum, Iowa
State University (ISU) professor of plant pathology, as part of a team that has
changed the direction of research into nematodes that attack plants.
Baum, chair of the Department of Plant Pathology in ISU’s College of Agriculture
will receive the Ruth Allen award for Innovative Research along with Richard
Hussy of the University of Georgia and Eric Davis of North Carolina State
University.
The award recognizes scientists who have made outstanding, innovative
contributions to research that has changed, or has the potential to change the
direction of research in any field of plant pathology. The award will be presented
at the society’s annual meeting, July 29 to August 2 in Quebec City, Quebec.
Plant-parasitic nematodes are potentially devastating pathogens that attack
agricultural and horticultural crops world-wide. In Iowa, the most serious
pathogen problem in soybeans is the soybean cyst nematode. Across the nation
an estimated $700 million is lost each year to the pathogen.
The team developed and used innovative approaches to study the earliest stages
of the parasitic relationship between the nematode and the plant. The research
identified more than 100 different secretions nematodes use to infect plants. The
long-term goal of the research is to devise new control mechanisms against
these pathogens, including genetically engineering plants or interfering with the
nematodes’ method of attack.