News

Dec 11, 2025

Mentorship and communication take center stage at training summit

Huck Institutes’ annual T32 summit underscores benefits of professional development alongside scientific training.

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Francisco Dini-Andreote and Andrew Patterson are both faculty in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Dec 09, 2025

Two College of Ag Sciences faculty earn spots on highly cited researchers list

Francisco Dini-Andreote and Andrew Patterson in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences are among the most highly cited researchers in 2025, according to the Clarivate Analytics Web of Science Group.

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Sahil Pawar, a doctoral candidate in entomology in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, studies how soil salinity, drought and climate change influence the interactions between crops and the pests that feed on them. Credit: Contributed photo. All Rights Reserved.

Oct 31, 2025

Salty soil, scrappy bugs and shared ideas drive graduate student’s research

Sahil Pawar says that tackling the world’s agricultural challenges is not a task for one person — it requires a collective effort. That grounded view shapes the early-career entomologist’s research, which examines how environmental stressors, such as soil salinity, drought and climate change, influence the interactions between crops and the pests that feed on them.

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Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 24, 2025

Oct. 24 kicks off 'Plants for the People and the Planet' innovation series

This free seminar series, open to the community at-large, will showcase cutting-edge research and diverse perspectives on how plants can shape a healthier, more sustainable future.

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Charlene Shupp Espenshade, executive director of the Pennsylvania Friends of Agriculture Foundation, prepares to sample microgreens cultivated at Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences during the college’s recent Legislative Research Tour. She is joined by graduate students Auja Bywater and Rishi Ravichandran. Credit: Sean Duke / Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 06, 2025

College of Ag Sciences research tour explores connection between food, health

Government and industry stakeholders got a literal taste of the future of agriculture by sampling hydroponically grown greens at one of several presentations during the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences’ annual Legislative Research Tour, held Sept. 25 at the University Park campus.

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The team found that a number of populations of Xanthomonas and Pseudomonas bacteria were present on the plants that had developed a resistance against bacterial speck, suggesting they play a role in suppressing the disease. Credit: Dan Gol/Unsplash. All Rights Reserved.

Sep 29, 2025

New clues in how plant microbiomes protect against bacterial speck disease

Bacterial speck is a common disease affecting tomatoes that can result in lower yields for growers. A new study led by researchers at Penn State gives new clues on how a plant’s microbiome can be used to combat the pathogen.

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Mycelium of phytophthora palmivora, which can give rise to cacao black pod disease, grows from an agar plug, infecting a cacao leaf 48 hours after inoculation. Credit: Mark Guiltinan/Penn State. All Rights Reserved.

Sep 24, 2025

Gene editing, traditional crossbreeding produce disease-resistant cacao plants

Novel approach could revolutionize sustainable chocolate production while addressing global food security, researchers report.

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Study first author, Marjorie Jauregui, a pilot plant research technologist at Penn State, found that radish microgreens, no matter at what temperature they were dried, retained a significant portion of nutrients. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Sep 19, 2025

Hot air drying largely preserves nutritional composition of radish microgreens

Inexpensive, low-tech process preserves plant compounds that provide health benefits; offers potential insight into producing microgreens food powder supplements.

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The Huck Institute of the Life Sciences at Penn State University Park. Credit: Patrick Mansell / Penn State. Creative Commons

Sep 16, 2025

Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences names 2025-26 seed grant recipients

The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences at Penn State has selected eight research teams that span 12 departments across six colleges to receive 2025-26 seed grant funding.

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Zinc enrichment and light intensity affect the nutritional composition of radish microgreens, shown here. The researchers found that high light intensity decreased the production of plant-defense compounds while it increased the production of antioxidants. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Aug 26, 2025

Fine-tuning zinc supplementation, light exposure to boost microgreens’ nutrition

Microgreens, which are young, edible plants that only take one to three weeks to harvest, are more than garnish at trendy restaurants — they could be the answer to global hunger, according to plant scientists at Penn State.

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