CBS-KNAW Fungal Biodiversity Centre Awards
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AWARDS AND AWARDS PERSONALIA CBS-KNAW Fungal Biodiversity Centre Awards On the second day of the “Genera and Genomes” symposium in Amsterdam on Friday 25 April 2014, the CBS-KNAW Fungal Biodiversity Centre presented its two prestigious awards. The awards are made at irregular intervals by the institute following discussions yb its senior staff. This is the fifth time these awards have been made, and the citations were read, and the presentation of certificates made, by the Centre’s Director, Pedro W. Crous. Johanna Westerdijk Award: for chemical production. Jens has made Jens Frisvad major contributions to ecology, especially revealing the role that penicillia play in the Awarded on special occasions to an individual indoor environment. With this breadth it is who has made an outstanding contribution no surprise that Frisvad has collaborated on to the culture collection of the CBS Fungal international projects supported by Danish, Biodiversity Centre, marking a distinguished European, UK, and NIH and NSF grants. career in mycology. Nominees for the Among his 232 peer-reviewed publications award will be evaluated on the basis of is one that has been cited nearly 300 times quality, originality, and quantity of their and another 11 that have been cited more contributions to the collection, and on the than 100 times. These numbers are dwarfed basis of associated mycological research in by those for the book that he, and several general. colleagues wrote on food and airborne fungi (Food and Indoor Fungi, 2010)– it is The name Jens Frisvad is synonymous with approaching 800 citations. As professor of secondary products of fungi, or as he would systems biology at the Danish Technical Jens Frisvad receiving his award from the Director of say, extrolites. In almost all cases where University in Lyngby, he has mentored the CBS-KNAW, Pedro Crous. we know about the secondary metabolites graduate students, and he has served our or extrolites of fungi, Frisvad has been profession as an editor and editorial board University (DTU), many strains from there. However, there is more to Frisvad member for several journals. He has also which were also deposited at CBS. These than extralites. His expertise extends to served mycology through his efforts to cultures provide a living resource for future fungal ecology, fungal taxonomy, food maintain and expand the IBT fungal generations of mycologists to restudy with quality and safety, and biomass conversion culture collection of the Danish Technical the gold standard techniques of the day. Josef Adolf von Arx Award: He was based at the International (then Harry C. Evans and Amy Y. Commonwealth) Mycological Institute in Rossman Kew from 1980–84, working as a tropical plant pathologist, before transferring to Awarded on special occasions to an individual the Commonwealth (later International) who has made an outstanding contribution Institute of Biological Control in Ascot. to taxonomic research of fungal biodiversity, As those institutes were transformed into marking a distinguished career in mycology. CAB International Biosciences (UK) at Nominees for the award will be evaluated on Egham, he became responsible for initiating the basis of quality, originality, and quantity and co-ordinating research projects on the of their contributions in the field of fungal use of fungi for the biological control of taxonomy. weeds. Harry is a member of a number of professional organisations including the In 2014 the award was made to two very British Mycological Society, British Society special candidates. of Plant Pathology, British Ecological Society. He is also a member of the editorial Harry Evans receiving the Josef Adolf von Arx Harry C. Evans board for the International Journal of Pest award. Harry C. Evans has more than 30 years’ Management and Micologia Mexicana experience in disease identification and Applicata. scientific research, but Harry started to management in tropical agriculture and Harry has collaborated for many years become fascinated by these fungi when forestry. Throughout his career he has with CBS, particularly with respect to undertaking research on cocoa diseases written and published over 200 scientific entomogenous fungi, which are his first and in Ghana in the 1970s. Harry published papers on plant and insect pathology, enduring mycological love. This has never numerous papers on entomogenous fungi including a standard reference book. been the primary subject for his official and the book Atlas of Entomogenous Fungi, VOLUME 5 · NO. 1 (11) prepared together with Rob A. Samson Plant Pathogenic Fungi (1987, an APS Press and Jean-Paul Latgé in 1988, has more than bestseller), and the monumental work, 350 citations and remains a classic work in Fungi on Plants and Plant Products in the the field. His skills for collecting fungi on United States (1989, now with more than insects are unique and legendary, and he can 1500 citations). Under Amy’s influence, spend numerous hours on his knees in the information about plants and plant diseases rainforests in Africa and South America to can be obtained free from BPI’s specimen discover numerous pathogens in only one and literature databases at http://nt.ars- square metre of ground! grin.gov/. These initiatives improved accessibility to real, useful bibliographic Amy Y. Rossman information for all. Amy Rossman was the Research Leader Amy is a tireless advocate for the at the Systematic Botany and Mycology importance of fungi in agriculture, Amy Rossman receiving the Josef Adolf von Arx Laboratory and Director of the US the environment, and in the study of award. National Fungus Collections (BPI) at ecosystems. She has steadfastly campaigned the USDA-Agricultural Research Service for the importance of fungi with politicians obtain a new single nomenclature for fungi AWARDS AND AWARDS PERSONALIA in Beltsville, MD until the end of May and high-level USDA policy makers. She (see papers in this issue of IMA Fungus). 2014. Her major achievements include the has an outstanding record of biosystematics Internationally Amy has played a major transformation of the US National Fungus research. Her lifelong scientific passion role in the Mycological Society of America, Collections into a modern “e-herbarium”, has been the systematics of Hypocreaceae. as Treasurer, President, and as MSA transformation of the laboratory under her She has produced substantial taxonomic representative to international organizations leadership, and expansion of the number monographs of Calonectria, Nectria, the including the American Phytopathological of research positions: Amy has pushed for bitunicate “Hypocreales”, and Tubeufia, Society and Association of Systematics new positions in the systematics of smut to name but a few. Her most significant Collections committees and boards. Amy fungi, as well as a new ARS position, with taxonomic publication to date is Genera of has also proven to be an important mentor a new molecular lab and a technician. As Bionectriaceae, Hypocreaceae, and Nectriaceae for students internationally, and remains a Research Leader at SBML, Amy envisioned, (Hypocreales, Ascomycetes), published by pillar of the mycological world. championed, and obtained financial support CBS in 2001, and which has been cited We wish her well as she moves in her for preparation of bibliographic works more than 300 times. She has also played a retirement from Maryland to her beloved that are now standard. These include A major role in setting up lists of genera, and Oregon. Literature Guide for the Identification of merging asexual and sexual nomenclature to BIRTHDAY GREETINGS Karl Esser’s 90th, 19 March 2014 the Botanical Institute in Cologne, and Yale on senescence, using Podospora anserina. University (CN), before taking up the chair He was one of the first to detect plasmids in of General Botany at the newly established filamentous fungi, and his group published Ruhr-University, becoming director of the one of the first papers on the DNA-mediated Botanical Garden, one of the largest at a transformation of filamentous fungi. He also German university, in 1967. He retired from wrote a much-used textbook, Kryptogamen his position as a professor of Botany on 1 1 (1976, issued in English as Cryptogams, November 1989. 1982), in which he compared the life-cycles, His scientific work focused on the morphology and genetics of algae and fungi. genetics of plants and fungi. He recognized Karl Esser has a long and distinguished early in his career that fungi were ideal academic career in mycology, and was always organisms to study genetics, and in 1965 interested in combining basic with applied published Genetik der Pilze (with R. research. This is reflected in his work to Kuenen; translated into English as Genetics which he has devoted much of his energy Karl Esser, emeritus professor of General of Fungi in 1967). A pioneer of fungal in retirement, The Mycota, initiated with Botany and director of the Botanical genetics in Germany, he used filamentous the late Paul A. Lemke in 1994 and now Garden at the Ruhr-University Bochum, fungi to investigate two basic phenomena consisting of 14 multi-authored volumes, celebrated his 90th birthday on 19 March of biology. Already in 1958 he set up a several of which have been updated as 2014. Karl Esser graduated from Cologne system to study ascoma development using second editions, the latest appearing this University with a PhD in 1952, and later Sordaria macrospora. In the late 1970s and Spring (see Book News in this issue of IMA worked in the Genetic Institute in Paris, early 1980s, he focused his research work Fungus). (12) IMA FUNGUS Karl has an international outlook, and Berlin. He was appointed as one of the IMA for mycology on the occasion of this special AWARDS AND AWARDS PERSONALIA he was much involved with the International Honorary Presidents at IMC4 in Regensburg birthday. Union of Biological Sciences (IUBS), in 1990, and has received numerous awards, including serving on its’ Executive.