The 2018 Agricultural Sciences (AgSciences) Seminar Series at Cropping Systems Research Laboratory (CSRL), USDA, ARS Lubbock.

The 2018 AgSciences Seminar series was established through joint leaderships of Dr. Robert Lascano, Research Leader, Wind Erosion & Water Conservation (WEWC) Unit; Dr. Paxton Payton, Research Leader, Plant Stress & Germplasm Development (PSGD) Unit; with assistance from Dr. Gloria Burow, Research Geneticist, PSGD Unit, for the Cropping Systems Research Laboratory, USDA, ARS and strong support from Dr. David Brauer, Acting Laboratory Director of CSRL.  The seminar series aims to :  (1) provide a forum  for exchange of ideas and knowledge on various projects here at CSRL, USDA, ARS and within the Lubbock Agricultural research communities; (2) directly engage stakeholders on  technological and agricultural developments from research activities by  ARS scientists and University partners; (3) facilitate engagement and increase motivation of ARS staff through advancement of scientific knowledge and new technologies and (4) enhance the visibility of CSRL to the whole agricultural sector in the Lubbock area and vicinity.

2018 AgSciences Seminar Series

The 2018 AgSciences Seminar series have engaged 12 eminent speakers from various agricultural fields/research areas ranging from crop physiology, plant genetics and breeding, crop genomics, hydrology, soil science, cropping systems, systems modelling, and animal science.  Attendees draw from ARS staff, Texas Tech University, Texas A& M University and various agricultural commodity groups and interested parties.

If you are interested in attending the AgSciences Seminar and would like to receive announcements please click on our sign-up sheet

Dec. 4, 2018

"Fusarium wilt race 4 (FOV4): a threat to Upland cotton production."

Dr. Mauricio Ulloa

Research Geneticist
 Plant Stress & Germplasm Development  Unit,

Cropping Systems Research Laboratory,

USDA, ARS, Lubbock, TX

Dr. Mauricio Ulloa obtained his MS and Ph.D. from New Mexico State University and is a Research Geneticist at the USDA- ARS, Plains Area, Cropping Systems Research Laboratory, Plant Stress and Germplasm Development Research Unit. He moved to Lubbock, TX in June 2012 to establish and support efforts on cotton germplasm development and genomic research.  Previously, he was stationed in Shafter, CA where he was involved in breeding for Fusarium wilt resistance in cotton. Dr. Ulloa discovered/developed/released Pima cotton  germplasm with improved resistance to Fusarium wilt race 4 (FOV4) and reported the genome placement for resistance to the root-knot nematode (RKN - rkn1) and the position of R gene-regions of RKN in chromosome 11, as well as, reported the identification of closely linked SSR markers to RKN, and FOV races 1 and 4 resistance on chromosomes 12/16, and 14/17, respectively.

13, Nov 2018

 “Cotton Production and Processing Research Unit: More than just Cotton Ginning”

Dr. Greg Holt

Research Leader

Cotton Production and Processing Research Unit,

Cotton Post-Harvest Research and Education Coordinator,

 USDA-ARS, CSRL, Lubbock, TX

Dr. Greg Holt received his B.S. and  M.S. from Texas A&M University in Agricultural Engineering and his Ph.D. from Texas Tech University in Industrial Engineering.  He is currently Research Leader of the Cotton Production and Processing Research Unit in Lubbock, Texas and has authored or co-authored more than 160 journal publications and leads a team of engineers addressing issues facing cotton breeders, producers, ginners, and spinners.  The five main areas of research for the Unit include: 1) Preservation of fiber quality, 2) Cotton harvester improvements, 3) Ginning processes and machinery development, 4) Quantification of particulate matter emissions from agricultural sources, and 5) Value-added processing of agricultural substrates.  The research unit’s current focus is on detecting and removing plastic contamination in seed cotton.

Oct. 23, 2018

"Genetic Approaches to Dissect Heat Tolerance in Crops and Model Plant."

Dr. Junping Chen

Research Molecular Geneticist

Plant Stress & Germplasm Development Unit,

CSRL USDA, ARS, Lubbock, TX

Dr. Junping Chen is a molecular geneticist at the Plant Stress and Germplasm Development Unit, CSRL, USDA-ARS at Lubbock, TX. Her projects are currently focused on discovering essential genes involved in heat tolerance in plants; including the generation and characterization of genetic materials to dissect the effect of drought stress on fiber cell development and fiber quality traits in cotton. She is also engaged in the characterization of various genetic materials of maize and sorghum to dissect the gene networks; identify genes and genetic loci associated with heat tolerance traits important for plant growth and crop development. Her talk will focus on genetic approaches and undertakings to study heat tolerance mechanisms in crop species, the findings and the project direction. She welcomes and is highly interested in promoting communications and possible collaboration with her peers in ARS and university faculties.

9 Oct. 2018 

“Prenatal Stress: Parallel Responses in Humans and Livestock”

Dr. Nicole Sanchez
Research Animal Scientist,
Livestock Issues Research Unit, CSRL
USDA, ARS, Lubbock, TX

Dr. Nicole Burdick Sanchez, originally from Ontario, Canada, grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas. She participated in undergraduate research at Texas A&M University-Kingsville, graduating with her B.S. in Animal Science in 2005. This opened doors for her to pursue a master’s degree in the same program which she completed in 2007. Nicole completed her Ph.D. in Physiology of Reproduction at Texas A&M University in 2010. She then joined the USDA, ARS Livestock Issues Research Unit in Lubbock, Texas as a post-doctoral research associate, and transitioned to a permanent scientist in 2013. Nicole’s research focuses on studying interactions between stress and immunity in cattle and swine, and how changes in metabolism influence these responses. Additionally, she has investigated differences in innate immune and metabolic responses caused by naturally-occurring variations including temperament and sex. Since 2004, Nicole has authored or co-authored 2 book chapters, 47 peer-reviewed journal articles, 143 abstracts, and 36 technical and proceeding reports.