Clare Casteel
Associate Professor, School of Integrative Plant Science, Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology Section
Interests
Plant-virus-vector and plant-insect interactions
Molecular & chemical ecology and soil microbiomes
Healthy agroecosystems, climate resilience and organic farming
Recent Research
The primary research goal of the Casteel lab is to identify the functions of microbes in plant-insect interactions and elucidate the key molecular mechanisms responsible for these relationships. The lab’s current focus is on pathogenic microbes and understanding how they counter plant defense in complex communities with insects and on understanding how beneficial microbes and microbiomes can be leveraged to mitigate the negative impacts of climate change through healthy agroecosystems and microbe engineering.
Outreach and Extension Focus
Viruses, aphids, diversified vegetables, organic agriculture, climate resilience, vector-borne plant pathogens
Awards & Honors
- 2023 Mid-Career Award Plant Genome Research Program (MCA-PGRP), National Science Center
- 2018 Early Career Award Plant Genome Research Program (ECA-PGRP), National Science Foundation
- 2017 ASPB Women’s Young Investigator Travel Award
- 2016 Neish Young Investigator Award of the Phytochemical Society of North America
- 2014 MPMI Young Investigator Travel Grant
- 2013 USDA-NIFA Postdoctoral Fellowship
Courses Taught
PLSCI 6010: Molecular Biology of Plant-Microbe Interactions (Spring). 3 credits
ENTOM 7640: Plant Interactions Seminar (Fall, Spring). 1 credit. Cross-listed in BIOEE 7640 & BIONB 7640
Visit Clare Casteel's Google Scholar profile.
- Nihranz CT, Guzchenko IA, Casteel CL. (2023) Silencing ZmPP2C-A10 with a foxtail mosaic virus derived vector benefits maize growth and development following water limitation. Plant Biology Journal. 25: 956-964. DOI: 10.1111/plb.13568.
- Prakash V, Nihranz CT, Casteel CL (2023). The potyviral protein 6K2 from turnip mosaic virus increases plant resilience to drought. Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions. 36(3):189-197. DOI: 10.1094/MPMI-09-22-0183-R.
- Bera S, Arena GD, Ray S, Flannigan SA, Casteel CL. (2022) The potyviral protein 6K1 reduces plant protease activity during turnip mosaic virus infection. Viruses. 14(6):1341. DOI: 10.3390/v14061341.
- Nicolas P, Shinozaki Y, Powell A, Philippe G, Snyder SI, Bao K, Zheng Y, Xu Y, Siemon M, Courtney C, Vrebalov J, Casteel CL, Mueller LA, Fei Z, Giovannoni JJ, Rose JKC, Catalá C. (2022) Spatiotemporal dynamics of the tomato fruit transcriptome under prolonged water stress. Plant Physiology. 190(4):2557-2578.
- Kansman J, Basu S, Casteel CL, Crowder D, Lee BW, Nihranz CT, Finke DL. (2022) Plant water stress reduces aphid performance: Exploring mechanisms driven by water stress intensity. Frontiers in Ecology & Evolution. 10. DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.846908.
- Ray S, Casteel CL. (2022) Effector-mediated plant-virus-vector interactions. Plant Cell. 34(5):1514-1531. DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koac058.
- Patton MF, Hanson AK, Casteel CL. (2021) Potato leafroll virus reduces Buchnera aphidocola titer and alters vector transcriptome responses. Scientific Reports. 11(1): 23931.
- Feng H, Acosta-Gamboa L, Kruse LH, Tracy JD, Chung SH, Fereira ARN, Shakir S, Xu H, Sunter G, Gore MA, Casteel CL, GD Moghe, G Jander. (2021) Aculsugars protect Nicotiana benthamiana against insect herbivory and desiccation. Plant Molecular Biology. 109(4-5):505-522. DOI: 10.1007/s11103-021-01191-3
- Ali JG, Casteel CL, Mauck KE, Trase O. (2020) Chemical ecology of multitrophic microbial interactions: plants, insects, microbes and the metabolites that connect them. Journal of Chemical Ecology. 46, 645–648. DOI: 10.1007/s10886-020-01209-y.
- Bak A, Nihranz CT, Patton MF, Aegerter BJ, Casteel CL. (2021) Evaluation of aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG) for control of vector-borne diseases in solanaceous crops. Crop Protection. 145, 104640. DOI: 10.1016/j.cropro.2021.105640.
- ^Bera S, Blundell R, Liang D, Crowder DW, Casteel CL. (2020) Pea enation mosaic virus targets the oxylipin signaling pathway to increase aphid attraction and retention on infected plants. Journal of Chemical Ecology. 46: 771–781. DOI: 10.1007/s10886-020-01157-7S.
- ^Blundell R, Schmidt JE, Igwe A, Cheung AL, Vannette R, Gaudin A, Casteel CL. (2020) Organic management practices promote natural pest control through altered plant resistance to insects. Nature Plants. 6: 483-491. DOI: 10.1038/s41477-020-0656-9.
- ^Schmidt J, Vannette RL, Igwe A, Blundell B, Casteel CL, Gaudin A. (2019) Effects of agricultural management on rhizosphere microbial structure and function in processing tomato. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 85 (16): e01064-1. DOI: 10.1128/AEM.01064-19.
- Patton MF, Bak A, Sayre J, Heck M, Casteel CL. (2019) A polerovirus, Potato leafroll virus, manipulates plant-vector interactions using three proteins. Plant, Cell & Environment. 43: 387– 399. DOI: 0.1111/pce.13684.
- Casteel CL, Niziolek OK, Berenbaum MR, DeLucia EH. (2012) Effects of elevated CO2 and soil water content on phytohormone transcript induction in Glycine max after Popillia japonica feeding. Arthropod-Plant Interactions, 6 (3): 439-447.
- Casteel CL, Segal L, Niziolek OK, Zavala J, Berenbaum MR, DeLucia EH. (2012) Elevated carbon dioxide increases salicylic acid in Glycine max. Ecological Entomology, 41 (6): 1435-1442.
- O’Neill BF, Zangerl A, Dermody O, Bilgin DD, Casteel CL, Zavala J, DeLucia EH, Berenbaum MR. (2010) Impact of elevated levels of atmospheric CO2 and herbivory on flavonoids of soybean (Glycine max L.). Journal of Chemical Ecology, 36 (1): 35-45.
- Zavala J, Casteel CL, Nabity PD, Berenbaum MR, DeLucia EH. (2009) Role of cysteine proteinase inhibitors in preference of Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica) for soybean (Glycine max) leaves of different ages and grown under elevated CO2. Oecologia,61 (1): 35-41.
- O’Neill BF, Zangerl A, Casteel CL, Zavala J, DeLucia EH, Berenbaum MR. (2008) Larval development and mortality of the painted lady butterfly, Vanessa cardui (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae), on foliage grown under elevated carbon dioxide. The Great Lakes Entomologist, 41: 103-110.
- Casteel CL, O’Neill BF, Zavala J, Bilgin DD, Berenbaum MR, DeLucia EH. (2008) Transcriptional profiling reveals elevated CO2 and elevated O3 alter resistance of soybean (Glycine max) to Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica). Plant, Cell & Environment, 31: 419-434.
- O’Neill BF, Zangerl A, DeLucia EH, Casteel CL, Zavala J, Berenbaum MR. (2011) Leaf temperature of soybean grown under elevated CO2 increases Aphis glycines (Hemiptera: Aphididae) population growth. Insect Science, 18: 419-425.
- Bak A, Patton MF, Muriki M, Mende A, Henao LMP, Antichera T, Casteel CL. (2019) Ethylene signaling mediates Potyvirus spread by aphid vectors. Oecologia, 190: 139-148.
- Chisholm PJ, Sertsuvalkul N, Casteel CL, Crowder DW. (2018) Reciprocal plant-mediated interactions between a plant virus and a non-vector herbivore. Ecology, 99 (10): 2139-2144.
- Bak A, Cheung AL, Yang C, Whitham SA, Casteel CL. (2017) A viral protease relocalizes in the presence of the vector to promote vector performance. Nature Communications, 16 (8): 14493.
- Henao LMP, Casteel CL. (2016) Hemipteran insects as vectors of bacterial plant pathogens. Frontiers in Plant Science, 7: 1163.
- Casteel* CL, De Alwis M, Bak A, Dong H, Whitham SA, Jander G. (2015) Disruption of ethylene responses by Turnip mosaic virus mediates suppression of plant defense against the green peach aphid vector. Plant Physiology, 169 (1): 209-218. * Corresponding Author.
- Casteel CL, Yang C, Nanduri AC, De Jong HD, Whitham SA, Jander G. (2014). The NIa-Pro protein of Turnip mosaic virus improves growth and reproduction of the aphid vector, Myzus persicae (green peach aphid). The Plant Journal, 77 (4): 653-663.
- Casteel* CL, Hansen AK. (2014). Evaluating insect-microbiomes at the plant-insect interface. Journal of Chemical Ecology, 40 (7): 836-847. * Corresponding Author.
Contact Information
Plant Science Building
Ithaca, NY 14853
clc269 [at] cornell.edu
School & Section
School of Integrative Plant Science
Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology SectionGraduate Fields
Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology
More information
Education
- Doctorate
University of Illinois – Champaign/Urbana
2010
- Master of Science
University of California – Riverside,
2005
- Bachelor of Science
University of Missouri – Columbia
2003.
- Doctorate
Clare in the news
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Spotlight
Academic focus: Plant-microbe interactions, virology, plant-virus-vector interactions Previous position: Assistant Professor, Plant Pathology, University of California – Davis, 2014-2019. Academic background: PhD, Plant Biology, University of...
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