Dr. Joseph R. Ecker
Joseph R. Ecker, a professor in the Plant Biology Laboratory, is one of the nation’s leading authorities on the molecular biology and genetics of plants. Ecker was a principal investigator in the multinational project that sequenced the genome of Arabidopsis thaliana, a modest weed that has become a model organism for the study of plant genetics. This wild mustard variety is the first plant to have its genome sequenced, an achievement expected to have widespread implications for agriculture and perhaps human medicine as well.
Ecker is also widely regarded as one of the foremost experts on how the gaseous hormone ethylene regulates a variety of basic plant processes. For agriculture, ethylene gas is a vital chemical messenger important for such processes as fruit ripening and how plants respond to pathogenic organisms.
Education
B.A., Biology/Chemistry, The College of New Jersey, Ewing, N.J.
Ph.D., Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine
Postdoctoral fellow, Stanford University School of Medicine
Awards and Honors
• 2007 National Academy of Sciences, John J. Carty Award for the Advancement of Science
• 2006 Elected, National Academy of Sciences
• 2005 American Society for Plant Biology, Martin Gibbs Medal
• 2004 Scientific American 50 Research Leader of the Year
• 2004 International Plant Growth Substances Association Distinguished Research Award
• 2001 Kumho Science International Award in Plant Molecular Biology
President International Society for Plant Molecular Biology
