WSU plant pathologist awarded African professional society medal

Modern consumers expect consistent access to a variety of produce, regardless of the season. To meet that demand, seeds must travel internationally while remaining free of pathogens. That's the focus of plant pathologist Lindsey du Toit's work.

Chair of Washington State University's Department of Plant Pathology, du Toit was recently recognized with the Christiaan Hendrik Persoon Medal for her global contributions to the field. She is only the second female scientist to receive the medal, the highest honor of the Southern African Society for Plant Pathology (SASPP).

"It was a surprise and an honor because this award is widely vetted within the society," said du Toit, who accepted the medal while attending the SASPP biennial congress in January. "It's a bit intimidating, knowing there are many other deserving individuals, and that stakeholders, senior SASPP members, and previous awardees took time to nominate me. It's also gratifying to see that my research has made a difference, and it reinforces the importance of working on a national and international scale."

Her nominators included South African vegetable growers and the seed industry with which she has worked for decades, as well as Teresa Coutinho, a professor at the University of Pretoria who has collaborated with du Toit on onion bacterial disease research.

"Professor du Toit's research has been pivotal in developing sustainable disease management strategies for high-value crops, many of which are vital to South African agriculture," Coutinho wrote in her nomination letter. "Beyond her scientific excellence, she has been a dedicated mentor to students and early-career researchers in South Africa and globally. Her guidance has empowered the next generation of plant pathologists."

Professor du Toit's research has been pivotal in developing sustainable disease management strategies for high-value crops, many of which are vital to South African agriculture.

Originally from South Africa, du Toit became an SASPP member in 1991 while earning her bachelor's degree at the University of Natal-Pietermaritzburg. She joined WSU in 1998 after earning her master's degree and PhD in plant pathology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

In her current role, du Toit studies the biology and epidemiology of plant diseases and collaborates with Pacific Northwest seed growers, seed companies, and breeders of carrots, onion, sweet corn, spinach, cabbage, and other vegetables. Her work includes finding traits of disease resistance to breed into new varieties, resulting in vegetables that maintain the taste and characteristics consumers desire while decreasing the likelihood the plants will succumb to pathogens.

The Pacific Northwest offers an ideal climate for producing high-quality seed of many vegetable species, which is then sold worldwide, said du Toit. She works regularly with researchers, growers, and seed companies in countries like Chile, South Africa, New Zealand, Denmark, the Netherlands, and France, which are contracted to grow vegetable seed crops.

"Diseases don't respect boundaries," she said. "If seed crops in Washington are experiencing a particular disease, it's almost guaranteed that other regions of the world are also impacted. I am grateful that my work has been very international in scope, learning how people around the world cope with these diseases. It's a very synergistic interaction."

A current member and former president of the American Phytopathological Society, du Toit was first drawn to plant pathology after taking a course in the subject her sophomore year in South Africa. The class included field trips to meet growers whose livelihoods were impacted by plant pathogens that destroyed their crops. It was enough to make her change majors from microbiology to plant pathology.

"The combination of hard science and community interaction really brought the field to life," du Toit said. "It showed me I could have a career in science that makes a real difference by helping people have access to healthy food and support themselves through plant production."

Helping people is among the reasons du Toit finds her work as an Extension specialist fulfilling.

"When growers share the practices they've implemented because of my research, outreach, and engagement, or tell me they're staying in business because we've helped them resolve a disease, it encourages me to keep going," du Toit said.

Her success and recent recognition wouldn't be possible without everyone who has helped her along the way, she added.

"There is always a huge network of support behind any award like this," du Toit said. "I'm grateful for the encouragement I've received from a variety of mentors over the years. They believed in me and motivated me to develop my skills and step out of my comfort zone into roles I wouldn't have considered otherwise."