• Biology and Ecology of Plant Pathogens
• Epidemiology and Population Biology of Plant Pathogens
• Etiology, Diagnosis and Management of Plant Diseases

Plant diseases threaten the health and welfare of humankind today just as they have for the thousands of years that plants have been cultivated for food and fiber. Plant pathologists historically have been concerned with identifying the local causes of diseases and how to manage them. Today’s challenges are magnified by the ease of intercontinental trade and the threat of introduction of new plant pathogens. Such threats require a greater understanding of pathogen biology and ecology in order to predict and mitigate their impact.

Students in this program have diverse interests in the fundamental biology, ecology and epidemiology of plant pathogens, and the management of plant diseases, but they are united in a common goal of improving human welfare through the management of plant diseases. In their efforts to better understand the biology of plant pathogenic microorganisms, they often integrate studies across multiple levels of biological organization from molecular genetics to ecosystems science. In addition to four core courses in Plant Pathology, students in this program typically take advanced courses in allied fields such as Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Entomology, Horticulture, Plant Breeding, Soil and Crop Science, or Statistics. Students in the Plant Pathology Program master fundamental knowledge of plant pathogens and diseases, and also develop conceptual knowledge and skills necessary for designing and implementing programs in integrated disease management.

Faculty affiliated with the Plant Pathology program

• Dr. Steven Beer—Molecular genetics and mechanisms of pathogenicity of Erwinia amylovora; biological control of fire blight and other diseases by bacteria.
  
  
• Dr. Gary Bergstrom—Biology, epidemiology, and integrated management of diseases of wheat, corn, soybean, forage legumes, and biofuel feedstock crops.
  
  
• Dr. Samuel Cartinhour—Analysis of regulatory mechanisms and gene expression networks in Pseudomonas syringae.
  
  
• Dr. Alan Collmer—Molecular phytobacteriology and microbial genomics.
  
  
• Dr. William Fry—Biology of oomycetes and management of disease they cause (with emphasis on Phytophthora infestans).
  
  
• Dr. Stewart Gray—The biology of plant virus - insect vector interactions, virus diseases of potato and grain crops, virus disease management and epidemiology.
  
  
• Dr. Kathie Hodge—Systematics and ecology of pathogenic and symbiotic fungi, especially those that are pathogens of insects.  Director of the Cornell Plant Pathology Herbarium.
  
  
• Dr. George Hudler—Epidemiology and management of diseases of woody ornamentals and Christmas trees.
  
  
• Dr. Sondra Lazarowitz—Molecular mechanisms in virus-host interactions; molecular genetics of plant-virus movement and host resistance to virus infection; intra- and intercellular communications in plants.
  
  
• Dr. Kwangwon Lee—Characterizing light and clock regulations in fungi and their roles in pathogenic plant-microbe interactions using genomics, quantitative genetics and molecular biology tools.
  
  
• Dr. James Lorbeer—Diseases of vegetable crops, biology of plant pathogenic fungi, chemical and biological control of plant diseases.
  
  
• Dr. Rosemary Loria—Host-pathogen interactions; molecular genetic analysis of pathogenicity determinants.
  
  
• Dr. Gregory Martin—Elucidation of the molecular basis of recognition specificity displayed by disease resistance gene products and bacterial avirulence proteins
  
  
• Dr. Margaret McGrath—Diseases of vegetable crops, integrated pest management, fungicide resistance, epidemiology, powdery mildew, Phytophthora, air pollutants
  
  
• Dr. Michael Milgroom—Population biology and evolution of plant pathogens; the integration of population biology and plant disease epidemiology.
  
  
• Dr. Eric Nelson—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.
  
  
• Dr. Rebecca Nelson—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.
  
  
• Dr. Teresa Pawlowska—Biology and evolution of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi (phylum Glomeromycota)
  
  
• Dr. Keith Perry—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
  
  
• Dr. Xiaohong Wang—Molecular basis of plant-nematode interactions, host resistance to the potato cyst nematodes.
  
  
• Dr. Thomas Zitter —Diseases of vegetables, integrated pest management, ecology and epidemiology of foliar pathogens, epidemiology and control of virus diseases