USDA-ARS Post-Baccalaureate Internship in Plant-Microbiome Research

ARS Office/Lab and Location: A research opportunity is currently available with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), located in Madison, Wisconsin.

The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific in-house research agency with a mission to find solutions to agricultural problems that affect Americans every day from field to table. ARS will deliver cutting-edge, scientific tools and innovative solutions for American farmers, producers, industry, and communities to support the nourishment and well-being of all people; sustain our nation’s agroecosystems and natural resources; and ensure the economic competitiveness and excellence of our agriculture. The vision of the agency is to provide global leadership in agricultural discoveries through scientific excellence.

The mission of the Cereal Crops Research Unit is to 1) conduct basic research to identify and understand the biological processes affecting the growth, development and properties of barley and oat, 2) evaluate these findings for potential applications to improved cereal quality through germplasm development or altered production practices, and 3) to provide support for barley applied research programs within ARS and at State Agricultural Experiment Stations.

Research Project: The research program of the mentor exists at the intersections of plant pathology, microbial ecology, and plant biology. Several projects are available and are adaptable to the participant’s interests and qualifications:

• Classify microbiome response in rhizosphere and phyllosphere to plants subjected to abiotic stress and/or pathogen infection
• Determine genetic component of microbiome response and function
• Determine how microbial responses changes across diverse host plant genotypes
• Understand the role of host cell wall and carbohydrate composition in microbial community assembly

Learning Objectives: The participant will gain skills and experience in:

• Microbiology, and cell culture of fungi and/or bacteria, microscopy and cellular staining techniques
• Nucleic acid extraction of plant and/or soil samples, amplification of barcode genes for microbiome analysis, analysis of DNA sequence data 
• Gene expression analysis in microbes and/or plants
• Inoculation of cereals with plant pathogens, rating disease symptoms, maintenance and care of plants in growth chamber and greenhouse settings

Mentor(s): The mentor for this opportunity is Kristi Gdanetz MacCready ([email protected]). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor(s).

For full listing description and application instructions, visit: https://www.zintellect.com/Opportunity/Details/USDA-ARS-MWA-2024-0334