World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
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Plant Science and Agronomy
USA
2026

D-Index & Metrics

Plant Science and Agronomy

D-Index
90
Citations
42453
World Ranking
272
National Ranking
96

Microbiology

D-Index
90
Citations
42449
World Ranking
671
National Ranking
314

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Plant Science and Agronomy in United States Leader Award
  • 2012 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Overview

What is he best known for?

The fields of study he is best known for:

  • Botany
  • Fungus
  • Genetics

His main research concerns Phylogenetic tree, Genetics, Phylogenetics, Botany and Fusarium. His work focuses on many connections between Phylogenetic tree and other disciplines, such as Nectriaceae, that overlap with his field of interest in Genus and Nectria. His study brings together the fields of Genetic diversity and Genetics.

The Phylogenetics study combines topics in areas such as Locus, Nuclear gene and DNA sequencing. In most of his Botany studies, his work intersects topics such as Species complex. The concepts of his Fusarium study are interwoven with issues in Contact lens, Fusarium solani and Fusarium oxysporum.

His most cited work include:

  • Reconstructing the early evolution of Fungi using a six-gene phylogeny (1413 citations)
  • Two divergent intragenomic rDNA ITS2 types within a monophyletic lineage of the fungus Fusarium are nonorthologous (1225 citations)
  • Multiple evolutionary origins of the fungus causing Panama disease of banana: Concordant evidence from nuclear and mitochondrial gene genealogies (1096 citations)

What are the main themes of his work throughout his whole career to date?

His scientific interests lie mostly in Fusarium, Botany, Phylogenetic tree, Genetics and Phylogenetics. The various areas that he examines in his Fusarium study include Taxonomy, Mycotoxin, Species complex and Microbiology. His Botany research incorporates themes from Pathogen and Molecular phylogenetics.

His research in Phylogenetic tree intersects with topics in Ribosomal RNA, DNA sequencing and Genetic diversity. His work on Gene, Ribosomal DNA, Genetic variation and Sequence analysis as part of general Genetics research is often related to Fungal genetics, thus linking different fields of science. Much of his study explores Phylogenetics relationship to Intergenic region.

He most often published in these fields:

  • Fusarium (50.00%)
  • Botany (48.90%)
  • Phylogenetic tree (31.32%)

What were the highlights of his more recent work (between 2013-2021)?

  • Fusarium (50.00%)
  • Botany (48.90%)
  • Species complex (18.68%)

In recent papers he was focusing on the following fields of study:

Kerry O'Donnell mainly focuses on Fusarium, Botany, Species complex, Clade and Genetics. His Fusarium study combines topics in areas such as Taxonomy, Pathogen and Phylogenetic tree. His Phylogenetic tree study integrates concerns from other disciplines, such as Ribosomal RNA, DNA sequencing and Genetic diversity.

His work carried out in the field of Botany brings together such families of science as Heterothallic and Molecular phylogenetics. His Species complex research focuses on subjects like Canker, which are linked to Torreya and Torreya taxifolia. Phylogenetics covers Kerry O'Donnell research in Clade.

Between 2013 and 2021, his most popular works were:

  • A phylum-level phylogenetic classification of zygomycete fungi based on genome-scale data (522 citations)
  • Sequence-based classification and identification of Fungi (106 citations)
  • DNA sequence-based identification of Fusarium : Current status and future directions (102 citations)

In his most recent research, the most cited papers focused on:

  • Botany
  • Fungus
  • Genus

His primary areas of study are Fusarium, Botany, Trichothecene, Ecology and Genetics. His Fusarium research incorporates elements of Fungus, Hyaline, Species complex and Genetic diversity. His research on Species complex concerns the broader Phylogenetic tree.

His research in Phylogenetic tree is mostly concerned with Clade. His Agapanthus study in the realm of Botany interacts with subjects such as Northern italy. His Trichothecene study also includes fields such as

  • Fumonisin that connect with fields like Moniliformin, Beauvericin, Molecular phylogenetics and Species diversity,
  • Genetic structure which connect with Fusarium culmorum, Population genetics and Biological dispersal,
  • Veterinary medicine and related Phylogenetics.

Best Publications

  • Multiple evolutionary origins of the fungus causing Panama disease of banana: Concordant evidence from nuclear and mitochondrial gene genealogies

    K O'Donnell;H C Kistler;E Cigelnik;R C Ploetz

  • Two divergent intragenomic rDNA ITS2 types within a monophyletic lineage of the fungus Fusarium are nonorthologous

    Kerry O'Donnell;Elizabeth Cigelnik

  • Reconstructing the early evolution of Fungi using a six-gene phylogeny

    Timothy Y. James;Frank Kauff;Conrad L. Schoch;P. Brandon Matheny

  • FUSARIUM-ID v. 1.0: A DNA sequence database for identifying Fusarium

    David M. Geiser;María del Mar Jiménez-Gasco;Seogchan Kang;Izabela Makalowska

  • A phylum-level phylogenetic classification of zygomycete fungi based on genome-scale data

    Joseph W. Spatafora;Ying Chang;Gerald L. Benny;Katy Lazarus

  • Molecular systematics and phylogeography of the Gibberella fujikuroi species complex.

    Kerry O'Donnell;Elizabeth Cigelnik;Helgard I. Nirenberg

  • Fusarium and its near relatives

    K O'donnell

  • The Fusarium graminearum Genome Reveals a Link Between Localized Polymorphism and Pathogen Specialization

    Christina A. Cuomo;Ulrich Güldener;Jin Rong Xu;Frances Trail

  • Gene genealogies reveal global phylogeographic structure and reproductive isolation among lineages of Fusarium graminearum, the fungus causing wheat scab

    Kerry O'Donnell;H. Corby Kistler;Beth K. Tacke;Howard H. Casper

  • Assembling the fungal tree of life: progress, classification, and evolution of subcellular traits

    François Lutzoni;Frank Kauff;Cymon J. Cox;David McLaughlin

  • Fusarium pathogenomics.

    Unknown

  • The Ascomycota Tree of Life: A Phylum-wide Phylogeny Clarifies the Origin and Evolution of Fundamental Reproductive and Ecological Traits

    Conrad L. Schoch;Gi Ho Sung;Francesc López-Giráldez;Jeffrey P. Townsend

  • New Fusarium species and combinations within the Gibberella fujikuroi species complex

    Helgard I. Nirenberg;Kerry O'Donnell

  • Genealogical concordance between the mating type locus and seven other nuclear genes supports formal recognition of nine phylogenetically distinct species within the Fusarium graminearum clade

    Kerry O’Donnell;Todd J. Ward;David M. Geiser;H. Corby Kistler

  • Multistate outbreak of Fusarium keratitis associated with use of a contact lens solution

    Douglas C. Chang;Gavin B. Grant;Kerry O’Donnell;Kathleen A. Wannemuehler

  • A Multigene phylogeny of the Gibberella fujikuroi species complex: Detection of additional phylogenetically distinct species

    Kerry O’Donnell;Helgard I. Nirenberg;Takayuki Aoki;Elizabeth Cigelnik

  • Internet-Accessible DNA Sequence Database for Identifying Fusaria from Human and Animal Infections

    Kerry O'Donnell;Deanna A. Sutton;Michael G. Rinaldi;Brice A.J. Sarver

  • Ancestral polymorphism and adaptive evolution in the trichothecene mycotoxin gene cluster of phytopathogenic Fusarium

    Todd J. Ward;Joseph P. Bielawski;H. Corby Kistler;Eileen Sullivan

  • An adaptive evolutionary shift in Fusarium head blight pathogen populations is driving the rapid spread of more toxigenic Fusarium graminearum in North America

    Todd J. Ward;Randall M. Clear;Alejandro P. Rooney;Kerry O’Donnell

  • Global molecular surveillance reveals novel Fusarium head blight species and trichothecene toxin diversity.

    David E. Starkey;Todd J. Ward;Takayuki Aoki;Liane R. Gale

  • Molecular phylogeny of the Nectria haematococca-Fusarium solani species complex

    Kerry O'Donnell

  • MOLECULAR PHYLOGENETIC DIVERSITY, MULTILOCUS HAPLOTYPE NOMENCLATURE, AND IN VITRO ANTIFUNGAL RESISTANCE WITHIN THE FUSARIUM SOLANI SPECIES COMPLEX

    Kerry O'Donnell;Deanna A. Sutton;Annette Fothergill;Dora McCarthy

  • Gene Genealogies and AFLP Analyses in the Fusarium oxysporum Complex Identify Monophyletic and Nonmonophyletic Formae Speciales Causing Wilt and Rot Disease

    Robert P. Baayen;Kerry O'Donnell;Peter J. M. Bonants;Elizabeth Cigelnik

  • Members of the Fusarium solani Species Complex That Cause Infections in Both Humans and Plants Are Common in the Environment

    Ning Zhang;Kerry O'Donnell;Deanna A. Sutton;F. Ameena Nalim

  • A two-locus DNA sequence database for typing plant and human pathogens within the Fusarium oxysporum species complex

    Kerry O'Donnell;Cécile Gueidan;Stacy Sink;Peter R. Johnston

  • Phylogenetic Diversity and Microsphere Array-Based Genotyping of Human Pathogenic Fusaria, Including Isolates from the Multistate Contact Lens-Associated U.S. Keratitis Outbreaks of 2005 and 2006

    Kerry O'Donnell;Brice A. J. Sarver;Mary Brandt;Douglas C. Chang

  • DNA sequence-based identification of Fusarium : Current status and future directions

    Kerry O’Donnell;Todd J. Ward;Vincent A. R. G. Robert;Pedro W. Crous

  • Members of the Fusarium solani species complex that cause infections in both humans and plants are common in the environment

    N. Zhang;K. O’Donnell;D.A. Sutton;F.A. Naim

Frequent Co-Authors

David M. Geiser
David M. Geiser Pennsylvania State University
Todd J. Ward
Todd J. Ward United States Department of Agriculture
Robert H. Proctor
Robert H. Proctor United States Department of Agriculture
H. Corby Kistler
H. Corby Kistler University of Minnesota
Deanna A. Sutton
Deanna A. Sutton The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
Susan P. McCormick
Susan P. McCormick United States Department of Agriculture
Stanley Freeman
Stanley Freeman Agricultural Research Organization
Randy C. Ploetz
Randy C. Ploetz University of Florida
Pedro W. Crous
Pedro W. Crous Utrecht University
Seogchan Kang
Seogchan Kang Pennsylvania State University

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