2022 Virginia Tech REEL Fellows
Fellow Fellow's Home Institution Faculty Mentors
Brandon Bickley Piedmont Virginia Community College Aaron Gross & Sally Taylor
Project: Host plant effects on the biochemistry and dispersal ability of tarnished plant bug
Lillian Chiang Virginia Tech Dorothea Tholl & Vijay Singh
Project: An investigation on innate plant defenses, natural pesticides, and herbicides
Eva Detroia College of New Jersey M.A. Saghai-Maroof & Vijay Singh
Project: Chromosomal mapping and population screening to identify putative resistance traits
Emma Nieland Iowa State University Clay Wright & David Langston
Project: Plants, plasmids and pathogens ... oh my!
Madison Payne Virginia Tech Bas Bargmann & Mark Reiter
Project: The interaction between auxin and phosphate signaling pathways in plants
Celeste Phillips College of William and Mary Birgit Scharf & Maria Balota
Project: Biological nitrogen fixation: Micro process, macro impact
Trey Warren Virginia Tech Xiaofeng Wang & Jayesh Samtani
Project: Screening wheat varieties for tolerance to Brome mosaic virus, and assessing pollinator
diversity on blackberries
Jonathan Yoder College of William and Mary Susan Whitehead & Alejandro Del-Pozo
Project: Bug off pests! The importance of beneficial predatory insects
The VT-REEL program started May 23, 2022 with dorm move-in and orientation (lunch provided). Icebreakers helped fellows network with one another, and their on-campus faculty mentors attended the orientation lunch. Other program-affiliated events included: weekly scientific workshops, a multi-day AREC tour, a visit to the Adventure Park at Virginia Aquarium, and the annual Summer Research Symposium. The gallery below provides highlights of the summer.
