Congratulations to Raegan Wiggins of the Ozias-Akins Lab, who has been awarded the 2025 Georgia Seed Association Scholarship. This scholarship honors a deserving student attending a state university and pursuing a degree in an agriculture-related field.
We also extend kudos to the recipients of the 2025 John Ingle Grants Program. These competitive grants support cultivar development by funding innovative research in plant breeding. This year’s awardees and their projects include:
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Dallas Kreisa (Li Lab)
Utilizing RNA-seq technology to identify candidate gene(s) associated with resistance to frogeye leaf spot for enhanced soybean breeding -
Ashmita Upadhyay (Clevenger Lab)
Accelerating pollinator-efficient blueberry breeding via high-throughput image phenotyping and long-read genotyping -
Tanner Hamerling (Ruter Lab)
Rediscovering Pycnanthemum torreyi: A field investigation of historical populations across the East Coast -
Prasanna Kharel (Ozias-Akins Lab)
Applying deep learning models to phenotype seed traits in a 16-way MAGIC peanut population -
Danielle Essandoh (S. Bertioli Lab)
High-throughput image-based phenotyping of leaf spot resistance in peanut lines derived from IAC 321 x [(A. magna x A. diogoi) 4x] -
Carlos Cardon (Postdoctoral Researcher, Ozias-Akins Lab)
Semi-automated system for low-cost phenotype data collection from drought study under rainout shelters
We’re proud to share some exciting achievements from our community members who continue to shine in their respective fields!
Aidan Bobholz (Li Lab)
Aidan has been selected as a recipient of the 2025 Frank D. Keim Graduate Fellowship by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America (ASA-CSSA-SSSA). This prestigious award recognizes outstanding contributions and achievements in the field.
APRES 2025 Highlights
At the recently concluded 57th Annual Meeting of the American Peanut Research and Education Society (APRES) in Richmond, VA, PBGG made a strong impression:
- Soraya Bertioli (PBGG faculty) was honored with the Corteva Agriscience Award for Excellence in Research.
- Graduate student Samuele Lamon (D. Bertioli Lab) earned 3rd Place in the Joe Sugg PhD Graduate Student Competition for his talk:“The role of genetic instability in peanut domestication and its lasting impact on cultivated varieties.”
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Graduate student Andrew Marchetti (Brown Lab) took home 1st Place in the MS Poster Competition.
Photo above shows (l-r) Samuele Lamon, Dr. Soraya Bertioli, and Andrew Marchetti.
Before joining the University of Georgia, Sailaja Bhogireddy accumulated over 15 years of research experience in the fields of plant molecular biology, biotechnology, and functional genomics, with a strong focus on improving the resilience and productivity of cereal and legume crops. She completed her Ph.D. in Biotechnology and began her scientific career at the ICAR-Indian Institute of Rice Research (ICAR-IIRR), where she served as a Senior Scientist in the Agricultural Biotechnology and Crop Improvement division.
The results are in from last Friday’s 3MT competition, and PBGG students truly shined!
Jordan Knapp-Wilson took home 1st place in the PhD category, while Stephanie Botton earned 1st place in the MS category and captured the People’s Choice Award!
Congratulations to these outstanding scholars for their impressive presentations and well-deserved recognition!
IPBGG members David and Soraya Bertioli are internationally recognized pioneers in peanut genetics, whose groundbreaking work has reshaped the future of agriculture.
Originally from Brazil, the couple moved to Georgia in 2013 to establish the Wild Peanut Lab, a hub of innovation dedicated to unlocking the genetic secrets of wild peanut species. Their expertise was instrumental in a major genome mapping project, where they traced the lineage of a disease-resistant wild peanut—collected in 1934 in Bolivia—through 251 cultivated varieties across 29 countries. Their work not only bridges continents and centuries but also holds the key to more resilient, sustainable peanut crops worldwide.
Robin Buell, Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar Chair in Crop Genomics and Professor in the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, was elected to the National Academy of Sciences.
The NAS is dedicated to:
- Recognizing and elevating outstanding science
- Fostering the broad understanding of science
- Overseeing the National Research Council in producing and promoting the adoption of independent, authoritative, trusted scientific advice to the government for the benefit of society