Deena Errampalli

Deena Errampalli is a Canadian plant pathologist who is internationally known for her work on postharvest pathology of temperate tree fruits. and her work has resulted in new and innovative disease management strategies to improve plant health through Integrated Pest Management. Errampalli was also the Test-Site-Manager for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Minor Use Pesticide Program at Vineland Station where she managed trials for insect pests, diseases and weed control on minor use crops.

Early life and education

Errampalli was born in 1958 in South India. Her mother, Mary Bharathi Kondaveti was a high school teacher, and her father, Stephen Devadatham Errampalli was an agronomist and later an assistant director of agriculture in Andhra Pradesh.

Career

In the 1980s, she worked on the development of viral disease resistant germplasm of pulses (pigeonpea and chickpea) at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics in Patancheru, India.

After moving to Canada in 1992, she completed two post doctoral positions, first one at the University of Toronto Mississauga and the second at the School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph.

She joined Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada as a research scientist in 1998 at the Charlottetown Research and Development Centre, Prince Edward Island, and conducted research on soil borne diseases of potatoes.

She has published 35 refereed journal publications, 6 book chapters, over 200 Pest Management Research Reports, 60 confidential reports and 15 articles in popular grower magazines and newsletters and has made over 200 presentations at regional, national and international scientific conferences.

In 2003 Errampalli enrolled in fine art classes at the Burlington Art Centre and the Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital (October, 2010).

She is a member of the Art Gallery of Ontario, Art Gallery of Burlington, the Burlington Fine Arts Association, Grimsby Public Art Gallery and Lakeside Pumphouse Artist's Association in Grimsby. Her art work has been displayed in Canada, South Africa, Poland, Italy, USA, and India.

Honours and awards President of the Canadian Phytopathological Society (2014-2015). Guest of Honour at the 11th European Foundation for Plant Pathology conference in Kraków, Poland (2014) President of the Plant Canada Federation of Canadian Plant Science Societies (2015-2019), an umbrella organization for Canadian plant science societies. Plant Canada is a founding member of the Global Plant Council. Treasurer of the Global Plant Council (2016–present). Section Editor of the Canadian Journal of Plant Pathology (2007-2018). Adjunct Professor, School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph. Associate Graduate Faculty, School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph.

Selected publications Errampalli D. Penicillium expansum (blue mold). In: Bautista-Baños S, editor. Postharvest Decay: Control Strategies. Elsevier; 2014. pp. 189–231. Errampalli D, Wainman LI, DeEll JR. Reduced risk control options for apple postharvest diseases in long-term storages. Acta Horticulturae 2012;934:313–8. El-Kereamy A, El-Sharkawy I, Ramamoorthy R, Taheri A, Errampalli D, Kunar P, Jayasankar S. Prunus domestica pathogenesis-related protein-5 activates the defense response pathway and enhances the resistance to fungal infection. PLoS One 2011;6(3):e17973 El-Kereamy A, Jayasankar S, Taheri A, Errampalli D, Paliyath G. Expression analysis of a plum Pathogenesis Related 10 (PR10) protein during brown rot infection. Plant Cell Reports 2009;27:28:95–102. Errampalli D, Saunders JM, Holley JD. Emergence of silver scurf (Helminthosporium solani) as an economically important disease of potato. Plant Pathology 2001; 50:141-153 Errampalli D, Patton D, Castle L, Mickelson L, Hansen K, Schnall J, Feldmann K, Meinke D. Embryonic lethals and T-DNA insertional mutagenesis in Arabidopsis. The Plant Cell 1991; 3:149-157