Dr. Diane Burgess, a retired Professional Researcher in the Professor Mike Freeling Lab, is about to see her latest paper as first author and a splash article published in the October 2022 issue of The Plant Cell. The article is entitled "Ovule SiRNAs methylate protein-coding genes in trans" and the splash: "Keep calm and Methylate On..." by Sara Lopes-Gomollon. Although retired for about two years, dedication to her research continued. This is the approximately 25th publication (per Research Gate) of a career that began producing with the 1985 publication as part of her Ph.D. research with Professor Ed Penhoet when he was in MCB. Many of her pubs are highly cited, especially those on which she is first author.
Following her Ph.D. she became a postdoc with Professor Bill Taylor when he was in the old Genetics Department, and then went to the Dr. Hugo Dooner Lab at Advanced Genetic Sciences, a one-time biotech startup in Berkeley. Then she moved on as a Professional Researcher in the Professor Mary Wildermuth Lab, and, finally, spent the last 13 years in the Freeling Lab.
The PMB Department recognizes Dr. Burgess' many achievements and wishes her continued good luck in her retirement. Freeling said, "Diane's research talent and dedication have been good for genetics, good for PMB and UC, and good for all of us lucky enough to have worked with her."
Splash: The Plant Cell, Volume 34, Issue 10, October 2022, Pages 3491–3492
Paper: The Plant Cell, Volume 34, Issue 10, October 2022, Pages 3647–3664