News Release

ASPB names 2013 awards recipients

Honors to be presented at Plant Biology 2013 in Providence

Grant and Award Announcement

American Society of Plant Biologists

ROCKVILLE, MD -- The American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB) is pleased to announce the recipients of its 2013 awards, honoring excellence in research, education, outreach, and service.

Adolph E. Gude, Jr. Award

Natasha Raikhel, University of California, Riverside

The 2013 Adolph E. Gude, Jr. Award, is given every three years in recognition of outstanding service to the science of plant biology. Raikhel has made significant contributions through her research into protein trafficking and service to the discipline, most notably as editor-in-chief of Plant Physiology and in establishing the visionary Center for Plant Cell Biology (CEPCEB) at UC Riverside.

Charles Reid Barnes Life Membership Award

Robert Turgeon, Cornell University

Established in 1925, the Charles Reid Barnes Life Membership Award is ASPB's oldest award, honoring lifelong service in plant biology. Turgeon is recognized for his meritorious work in plant biology, including outstanding contributions to the understanding of phloem transport.

Stephen Hales Prize

Brian A. Larkins, University of Nebraska, Lincoln

Established in 1927, the Stephen Hales Prize is among the Society's oldest and most prestigious awards; it honors exceptional research accomplishments and service to ASPB. Larkins is recognized for his early pioneering work that brought molecular biology to plant studies and the many outstanding examples of his leadership in promoting plant sciences. The recipient of the Hales Prize delivers a lecture at ASPB's annual meeting the following year.

Charles Albert Shull Award

Harvey Millar, University of Western Australia, Perth

Created in 1971, the Charles Albert Shull Award recognizes young researchers for outstanding contributions to plant biology in mid-career. Millar is recognized for his impressive body of research on plant mitochondria and bioinformatics that has provided important new insights into plant mitochondrial composition and function. The recipient of the Shull Award delivers a lecture at ASPB's annual meeting the following year.

Excellence in Education Award

Erin Dolan, University of Georgia, Athens

The Excellence in Education Award recognizes outstanding, teaching, mentoring, and educational outreach in plant biology. Dolan is recognized for her development of innovative teaching methods; extensive record of mentoring; leadership as both former chair of the ASPB Education Committee and member of the Education Foundation Board; and widespread, influential outreach efforts. She has also published numerous science education research articles and is currently editor-in-chief of CBE Life Sciences Education.

Early Career Award

Michael Gore, Cornell University

The Early Career Award was instituted in 2005 to honor outstanding research by scientists at the beginning of their career. Gore is recognized for his extraordinary contributions to the development and application of large-scale genomic tools for crop improvement through quantitative genetics, including the first haploytype map (HapMap) and genome-wide association resources for maize.

Eric E. Conn Young Investigator Award

Daisuke Urano, Nara Institute of Science and Technology, Japan

The Eric E. Conn Young Investigator Award honors early career plant scientists for outstanding research and demonstrated excellence in outreach, public service, mentoring, or teaching. Urano is recognized for his research accomplishments toward understanding the regulation of G protein activation in plants, his significant contributions to a number of ASPB activities, and excellence in mentoring students and postdoctoral researchers.

Martin Gibbs Medal

Jen Sheen, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital

The Gibbs Medal is presented biennially to an individual who has pioneered advances that have served to establish new directions of investigation in the plant sciences. Sheen is recognized for her seminal and innovative contributions to the understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying the plant signal transduction cascades that mediate nutrient, hormone, and environmental stress responses and pathogen defenses in plants. As the recipient of the 2013 Gibbs Medal, Sheen will convene the Martin Gibbs Medal Symposium at the 2014 ASPB annual meeting in Portland, Oregon.

ASPB Leadership in Science Public Service Award

Robert Ziegler, International Rice Research Institute

The ASPB Public Affairs Committee awards the ASPB Leadership in Science Public Service Award annually to recognize individuals who have advanced the mission of ASPB and its members through significant contributions to plant science and public policy leadership. Zeigler is recognized for an outstanding commitment throughout his career to improving agriculture in the developing world for the benefit of the resource poor. He will speak as part of the awards symposium at Plant Biology 2013 in Providence, Rhode Island, this July.

ASPB–Pioneer Hi-Bred Graduate Student Fellowship

Rachel Egger, Stanford University

The ASPB–Pioneer Hi-Bred Graduate Student Fellowship is made possible by the generosity of Pioneer Hi-Bred International and recognizes and encourages innovative graduate research in areas of plant biology that relate to important commodity crops. Egger is a PhD student studying maize anther development in Virginia Walbot's laboratory. Her dissertation research focuses on understanding the mechanisms that regulate asymmetric cell division, a critical event in anther patterning and pollen formation.

Fellow of ASPB Award

Ray Chollet, University of Nebraska, Lincoln

John Cushman, University of Nevada, Reno

John Harada, University of California, Davis

Jeffrey Harper, University of Nevada, Reno

Sally Mackenzie, University of Nebraska, Lincoln

Susan Wessler, University of California, Riverside

Established in 2007, the Fellow of ASPB Award is granted in recognition of distinguished and long-term contributions to plant biology and service to the Society by current members in areas that include research, education, mentoring, outreach, and professional and public service. This prestigious honor may be granted to no more than 0.2% of the current membership each year.

Corresponding Membership Award

Luis Herrera-Estrella, CINVESTAV (Mexico)

Susanne von Caemmerer, Australian National University (Canberra)

Youngsook Lee , POSTECH (South Korea)

First given in 1932, the Corresponding Membership Award honors up to three distinguished plant biologists residing outside the United States with life membership in ASPB. Herrera-Estrella, von Caemmerer, and Lee have been nominated for the Corresponding Membership Award. Corresponding members are elected by the ASPB membership, so these nominees' names have been placed on the 2013 Election Ballot.

The 2013 ASPB awards will be formally presented during the opening session of Plant Biology 2013, ASPB's annual meeting, which will be held July 20󈞄 in Providence, Rhode Island.

###

ASPB is a professional scientific society, headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, devoted to the advancement of the plant sciences worldwide. With a membership of some 4500 plant scientists from throughout the United States and more than 50 other nations, the Society publishes two of the most widely cited plant science journals: The Plant Cell and Plant Physiology. For more information about ASPB, please visit http://www.aspb.org/. Also follow ASPB on Facebook at facebook.com/myASPB and on Twitter @ASPB.


Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.