Kirk Amundson
@kirkamundson.bsky.social
120 followers 530 following 6 posts
USDA NIFA Postdoctoral Fellow, UMass Amherst Plant Genome Evolution | Grasses i stan sandwich chimeras
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Reposted by Kirk Amundson
copenhaverlab.bsky.social
The @uncchapelhill.bsky.social Department of Biology is searching for tenure-track Assistant Professor in Plant Molecular Biology. Chapel Hill is a wonderful place and Biology is an amazing group of people. To apply, see:
unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/307...
Reposted by Kirk Amundson
terrydaynard.bsky.social
Of note: "Of particular importance, the successful candidate will have a demonstrated understanding of the strength that is brought to science through diversity, equity, inclusivity, and accessibility."
Reposted by Kirk Amundson
Reposted by Kirk Amundson
morgancarterphd.bsky.social
"With 2 weeks left before the end of this fiscal year, USDA’s [NIFA] had awarded just 558 competitive grants ... 68% fewer than during the prior fiscal year—and $741 million less in competitively awarded research funds"

Don't forget #PlantSci and ag research, folks.
www.science.org/content/arti...
USDA funding delays under Trump compromise agricultural research
Sharp drop in grant awards leaves researchers frustrated
www.science.org
Reposted by Kirk Amundson
Reposted by Kirk Amundson
meganbarkdull.bsky.social
While full solicitation isn’t up, looks like we have 2025 proposal deadlines for the GRFP: www.nsf.gov/funding/oppo...
NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP)
www.nsf.gov
Reposted by Kirk Amundson
tamarhaspel.bsky.social
Once more, with feeling.

Using Kernza, a perennial grain with 1/3 the yield of wheat, to make crackers and beer for rich people is NOT a climate solution.

Only at the end does this piece quote @mikegrunwald.bsky.social on Kernza's yield problem.

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/07/b...
Patagonia Changed the Apparel Business. Can It Change Food, Too?
www.nytimes.com
Reposted by Kirk Amundson
Reposted by Kirk Amundson
biorxiv-plants.bsky.social
Partial retention of ancient function increases genetic pleiotropy in grass evolution https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.22.670905v1
kirkamundson.bsky.social
What about building the haplotypes from pollen single cell data? Bit of a project but maybe cheap depending on multiplexing capability.
kirkamundson.bsky.social
Some of the really old papers on plant chimeras describe formation of shoots from roots in geranium. Here, a chimera with genetically white L3 sprouts a white shoot from an L3-derived shoot-borne root.

Still wouldn't call this a RAM sprouting a shoot though. Maybe theres a callus phase
kirkamundson.bsky.social
Clonal variants of the Russet Norkotah potato cultivar are popular for their vigorous growth, delayed maturity and higher yield.

We tracked down the mutation that likely drives these changes to a TE that hopped out of CDF1. Out now in @plantphys.bsky.social

academic.oup.com/plphys/artic...
Clonal strains of the fresh-market potato cultivar Russet Norkotah changed the domestication gene CDF1
Dear Editor,
academic.oup.com
kirkamundson.bsky.social
if there's a close match in a public database, pretty easy. mash sketch + distance does this in seconds
mash.readthedocs.io/en/latest/tu...
Tutorials — Mash 2.0 documentation
mash.readthedocs.io