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New study explores ‘legacy effects’ of soil microbes on plants across Kansas
LAWRENCE — Findings from the University of Kansas could offer important context for farmers who want to use beneficial microbes to improve yields. Today, microbial commercialization in agriculture represents an expanding multibillion dollar sector.
Chancellor Girod begins term as board chair of Association of American Universities
LAWRENCE — The member presidents and chancellors of the Association of American Universities have elected University of Kansas Chancellor Douglas A. Girod as chair of the AAU Board of Directors. In addition to his role with the AAU, Girod currently serves as chair of the Big 12 Conference’s board of directors, and as a member of both the NCAA Division I board of directors and the NCAA board of governors.
Sen. Jerry Moran among honorees as KU celebrates first-generation Jayhawks, advocates
LAWRENCE — “I Am First Too” recognizes students, alumni, faculty and staff who were the first in their families to earn a college degree or who champion first-generation success. This year’s honorees embody the persistence and leadership that define KU’s first-generation community. Among the honorees is U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas, a KU alumnus honored for his longstanding commitment to expanding educational access and supporting students across Kansas and beyond.
KU Design students, faculty and alumni win AIGA Kansas City awards
LAWRENCE — KU students took home a total of 13 awards in the student category, including the Best in Class Award for Brand and Identity. Matthew Cook, KU assistant professor in the animation and illustration programs, won two awards in the professional category. Winning students are from Lawrence, Olathe, Spring Hill, Tonganoxie, Victoria and Wichita, as well as Kansas City and Liberty, Missouri.
Full stories below.
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Contact: Brendan M. Lynch, 785-864-8855, [email protected]
New study explores ‘legacy effects’ of soil microbes on plants across Kansas
LAWRENCE — A new study appearing in Nature Microbiology analyzes soils sampled across the state of Kansas to determine the importance of “legacy effects” — or how soils from a specific location are influenced by microbes that have evolved in response to the specific climate at that site for many years.
“The bacteria and fungi and other organisms living in the soil can actually end up having important effects on things that matter, like carbon sequestration, nutrient movement and what we’re particularly interested in — the legacy effects on plants,” said co-author Maggie Wagner, associate professor of ecology & evolutionary biology at the University of Kansas.
“We got interested in this because other researchers, for years, have been describing this type of ecological memory of soil microbes having some way to remember from their ancestors’ past,” she said. “We thought this was really fascinating. It has a lot of important implications for how we can grow plants, including things like corn and wheat. Precipitation itself has a big influence on how plants grow, but also the memory of the microbes living in those soils could also play a role.”
According to Wagner, while legacy effects previously have been reported, they aren’t well characterized. A better understanding could eventually benefit farmers and agricultural biotech firms, which could build on the research.
“We don’t really understand how legacy effects work,” she said. “Like, which microbes are involved at the genetic level, and how does that work? Which bacterial genes are being influenced? We also don’t understand how that legacy of climate moves through the soil to the microbes, and then eventually to the plant.”
By sampling soils from six sites across Kansas — from its lower, rainier eastern half to the state’s western High Plains, higher in altitude and drier because of the rain shadow of the Rocky Mountains — the researchers aimed to determine differences in legacy effects.
“This was a collaboration with a team at the University of Nottingham in England,” Wagner said. “We divided up the work, but the bulk of the experiment — actually, the entire experiment — was conducted here at KU, and we also focused on soils from Kansas for this work.”
Back at KU, Wagner and her colleagues began testing the soils to better understand legacy effects of the samples’ microbes.
“We used a kind of old-school technique, treating the microbes as a black box,” she said. “We grew the plant in different microbial communities with different drought memories and then measured plants’ performance to understand what was beneficial and what was not.”
The researchers challenged the microbial communities for five months, either with plenty of water or very little water.
“Even after many thousands of bacterial generations, the memory of drought was still detectable,” Wagner said. “One of the most interesting aspects we saw is that the microbial legacy effect was much stronger with plants that were native to those exact locales than plants that were from elsewhere and planted for agricultural reasons but weren’t native.”
While more plant species will need to be tested to confirm this hypothesis — the researchers tested one crop (corn) and one native plant (gamagrass) — the researchers said the findings could offer important context for farmers who want to use beneficial microbes to improve yields.
“We think it has something to do with the co-evolutionary history of those plants, meaning that over very long periods, gamagrass has been living with these exact microbial communities, but corn has not,” she said. “Corn was domesticated in Central America and has only been in this area for a few thousand years.”
Additionally, the research team performed genetic analysis on both microbes and plants to better understand on the molecular level how legacy effects might function.
“The gene that excited us most was called nicotianamine synthase,” Wagner said. “It produces a molecule mainly useful for plants to acquire iron from the soil but has also been recorded to influence drought tolerance in some species. In our analysis, the plant expressed this gene under drought conditions, but only when grown with microbes with a memory of dry conditions. The plant’s response to drought depended on the memory of the microbes, which we found fascinating.”
The KU researcher said gamagrass is being looked at as a possible source of genes to improve corn performance under challenging conditions.
“The gene I mentioned earlier could be of interest,” she said. “For biotech firms focused on microbial additions to crops, this gives hints about where to look for microbes with beneficial properties. Microbial commercialization in agriculture is a multibillion dollar industry and still growing.”
Wagner’s KU collaborators were lead author Nichole Ginnan, now of the University of California-Riverside, and Natalie Ford, now of Pennsylvania State University; Valéria Custódio, David Gopaulchan, Dylan Jones, Darren Wells and Gabriel Castrillo of the University of Nottingham; Isai Salas-González of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; and Ângela Moreno of the Ministério da Agricultura e Ambiente in Cabo Verde.
“One of the things that makes this work valuable is how interdisciplinary it was,” Wagner said. “We brought together genetic analysis, plant physiology and microbiology, allowing us to ask and answer questions that couldn’t have been addressed before.”
This research was funded by the National Science Foundation’s Division of Integrative Organismal Systems.
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A study by global analytics firm Lightcast quantifies KU’s annual statewide impact at $7.8 billion.
https://economicdevelopment.ku.edu/impact
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Contact: Joe Monaco, [email protected]
Chancellor Girod begins term as board chair of Association of American Universities
LAWRENCE — The member presidents and chancellors of the Association of American Universities have elected University of Kansas Chancellor Douglas A. Girod as chair of the AAU Board of Directors.
Girod succeeds Princeton University President Christopher Eisgruber, who had served as AAU’s board chair since October 2024. AAU board chairs serve a one-year term.
“I am honored to serve as board chair for the Association of American Universities and to have the opportunity to partner with colleagues across the nation on issues that impact higher education,” Girod said. “America’s leading research universities are vital to our nation’s prosperity, health and security, and AAU plays a crucial role in advocating on their behalf and helping them work together. This is an important moment for higher education, and I look forward to collaborating with AAU peers, policymakers and industry leaders to ensure our nation’s research universities are positioned to continue benefitting society.”
As chair, Girod will help guide AAU’s work and serve as a spokesperson for the association, particularly on federal policy issues affecting research universities. He will also represent AAU in discussions with lawmakers, help develop the association’s national policy positions, and play a significant role in determining AAU’s agenda during the coming year.
Girod previously served as vice chair of the AAU board.
“I have had the pleasure of working with Chancellor Girod as one of AAU’s longest-serving university leaders, and I have had the pleasure of working with him for many years,” said AAU President Barbara R. Snyder. “He is an exceptionally talented leader who approaches complex challenges with thoughtfulness and deliberation. As a public university leader, he deeply understands the transformative power of higher education and the critical role universities play in driving local, state, and national economies. I look forward to collaborating with him to ensure that America’s leading research universities continue to foster groundbreaking scientific and technological advancements that serve the public good and keep our nation globally competitive.”
In addition to his role with the AAU, Girod currently serves as chair of the Big 12 Conference’s board of directors, and as a member of both the NCAA Division I board of directors and the NCAA board of governors.
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For every $1 invested in KU, taxpayers gain $2.90 in added tax revenue and public sector savings.
https://economicdevelopment.ku.edu/impact
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Contact: Chance Dibben, [email protected]
Sen. Jerry Moran among honorees as KU celebrates first-generation Jayhawks, advocates
LAWRENCE — LAWRENCE — The Center for Educational Opportunity Programs (CEOP) will celebrate first-generation Jayhawks and their advocates during the seventh annual “I Am First Too” poster unveiling ceremony from 3-4 p.m. Nov. 3.
“I Am First Too” recognizes students, alumni, faculty and staff who were the first in their families to earn a college degree or who champion first-generation success.
I Am First Too logo
This year’s honorees embody the persistence and leadership that define KU’s first-generation community. Among the honorees is U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas, a KU alumnus honored for his longstanding commitment to expanding educational access and supporting students across Kansas and beyond.
“As a first-generation college student, I recognize a college education can be an avenue to open new doors and opportunities for young people,” Sen. Moran said. “Throughout my time in Congress, I have supported programs like TRIO and other initiatives to help first-generation students succeed because our state is stronger when every student – no matter their background – has the opportunity to achieve their goals.”
2025 “I Am First Too” honorees are:
Alumni: Sen. Jerry Moran, Sabrina Gregersen, Ashley Hernandez, Curtis Nelson
Faculty: Dallas Doane, Jennifer Delgado, Marsha McCartney
Staff: Cassie Nix, Jesus Cooper-Pereda, Jody Johnson, Kevin Foster
Student: Emily Costner
“I Am First Too” is an initiative of CEOP’s TRIO Student Support Services (SSS) program, which provides personalized support services to eligible students, helping them achieve academic success and graduate with a bachelor’s degree.
Gretchen Heasty, director of TRIO SSS, said the event helps first-generation students see themselves reflected in KU’s broader community.
“When students see their stories reflected in others, it reminds them they’re not alone,” Heasty said. “The ‘I Am First Too’ campaign honors those who have blazed their own path and now use that experience to lift others up. It’s about belonging, pride and shared purpose.”
Ngondi Kamatuka, CEOP director, said the initiative also reflects KU’s ongoing commitment to expanding opportunity and supporting student success.
“First-generation students embody the determination that defines the University of Kansas,” Kamatuka said. “By recognizing leaders like Senator Moran and the many Jayhawks who have walked this path, we celebrate both individual achievement and the collective effort that makes those successes possible.”
Posters from the “I Am First Too” campaign are displayed across the Lawrence campus to highlight the many Jayhawks who share first-generation experiences and to remind students that support is always within reach.
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KU spent $78.9 million across Kansas on research-related goods and services in FY23.
https://ku.edu/distinction
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Note to editor: Hometown interest for Lawrence, Olathe, Spring Hill, Tonganoxie, Victoria and Wichita, as well as Kansas City and Liberty, Missouri.
Contact: Dan Rolf, 785-864-3027, [email protected]
KU Design students, faculty and alumni win AIGA Kansas City awards
LAWRENCE – University of Kansas Department of Design students, faculty and alumni were recognized at AIGA Kansas City’s 20th Annual A-Awards & Gala last month at the Zhou B Art Center in the 18th and Vine Jazz District.
KU students took home a total of 13 awards in the student category, including Holly Covington’s Best in Class Award for Brand and Identity. Matthew Cook, an assistant professor in the animation and illustration programs, won two awards in the professional category.
Among multiple awards won by KU alumni, Carpenter Collective, the branding agency founded by Jayhawks Jessica and Tad Carpenter, received Best in Class and Juror’s Choice awards.
Student category winners:
Branding and Identity: Maxwell Commer, Wichita; Holly Covington, Lawrence (two awards, including Best in Class).
Editorial, Print Design: Wes Kemnitzer, Kansas City, Missouri; Kalani Rio, Liberty, Missouri.
Environmental, Public Art: August Oppeau, Spring Hill; Ami Weicker, Munsbach, Luxembourg.
Illustration: Kate Uecker, Kansas City, Missouri.
Lettering, Typeface Design: Lauren Waldo, Olathe.
Packaging: Audrey Keltner, Tonganoxie; Kalani Rio; Kristin Weidner, Downers Grove, Illinois; Kaitlyn Windholz, Victoria.
Awarded student projects were mentored by design faculty members Alex Anderson, Andrea Herstowski, Sam Meier and Jeremy Shellhorn.
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