Christian Silva: Plant Physiology First Author

Christian Silva, first author of “Botrytis cinerea infection accelerates ripening and cell wall disassembly to promote disease in tomato fruit”

Current Position:

Financial Advisor at Wells Fargo Advisors

Education:

Ph.D. in Plant Biology, University of California, Davis, 2021;  B.S. in Molecular Genetics, University of Rochester, 2016

Non-scientific Interests:

Cooking and biking, hiking with my corgi, jazz piano, PC building

Brief bio:

I began my scientific research career at the University of Rochester studying the genomics of beetles and fireflies. After developing an interest in using genetics to improve agricultural production, I applied to various plant biology/genetics programs in the U.S. and was thrilled to accept an invitation to the Plant Biology department at the University of California, Davis. There, I joined the lab of Dr. Barbara Blanco-Ulate and focused my attention on using genomic and physiological analyses to untangle the connection between fruit ripening and susceptibility to fungal pathogens. During that time, we made significant progress in clarifying the impact of cell wall degrading enzymes, ethylene, and other susceptibility factors in promoting disease in tomato and other fruit. After graduating from UC Davis in 2021, I decided to leverage my skills in data analysis, problem solving, and interdisciplinary work gained during my Ph.D. to join my mother in her financial advisory practice at Wells Fargo Advisors.