Office: AGRI 214
Phone: (479) 575-6643
Email: ahrend@uark.edu
Research Interests: Agricultural finance
Expertise and Instrumentation: Financial institutions and markets, financial management, risk management, asset valuation, econometrics.

Phone: (479)-575-2073
Email: qqhuang@uark.edu
Research Interests: Dr. Huang’s areas of research include natural resource economics (with an emphasis on water and land) and development issues including education, migration and labor market outcomes. Her current research projects include water resource management in north China, irrigated agriculture in Arkansas and the impact of cognitive and non-cognitive skills on labor market outcomes.

Phone: (479) 575-2697
Email: nkemper@uark.edu
Research Interests: Food policy economics and marketing.

Phone: (479)-575-6038
Email: adurand@uark.edu
Research Interests: Rice trade and rice modeling.

Office: AGRI 224B
Phone: (479)-575-2544
Email: mckenzie@uark.edu
Research Interests: Price risk management and commodity marketing.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Grain merchandising; hedging using futures and options.

Office: AGRI 223
Phone: (479)-575-3253
Email: jlmitche@uark.edu
Research Interests: meat and livestock economics, price analysis, commodity marketing
Research Methods:  Econometrics, price analysis.

Office: AGRI 218A
Phone: (479) 575-6818
Email: llnalley@uark.edu
Research Interests: Research emphasis is on international agricultural policy, the economics of public plant breeding, crop modeling with focus on climate change and international development.

Office: AGRI 223A
Phone:(479) 575-6838
Email: mpopp@uark.edu
Research Interests: Risk analysis, crop insurance, commodity futures and options.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Bayesian econometrics, risk modeling, options pricing.

Office: AGRI 223A
Phone: (479) 575-6838
Email: mpopp@uark.edu
Research Interests: Farm, agribusiness and risk management.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Crop and livestock production management, risk modeling, applied econometrics, agribusiness analysis.

Office: 216 AGRI
Phone: 479-575-2323
Email: jt074@uark.edu
Research Interests: Poultry and livestock economics, animal health economics, trade.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Applied econometrics, agribusiness analysis, and microeconomic modeling.

Office: 205 Agriculture Building
Phone: (479) 575-2040
Email: ccrumle@uark.edu
Research Interests: Leadership development, social media and website communications, emotional intelligence, and ethical decision making.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Technology use and computer skills assessments, qualitative research.

Office: AFLS E111
Phone: 479-575-203
Email: estepp@uark.edu
Research Interests: Motivation and student engagement; Teaching effectiveness; The role of culture in recruiting, retaining, engaging, and preparing college of agriculture students.
Expertise and Instrumentation:  Quantitative & Qualitative methods; Survey research; Student motivation; Teaching methods.

Office: AFLS E110
Phone: 479-575-6335
Email: hkildow@uark.edu 
Research Interests: Agricultural Education.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Assessment of student aspirations; Quantitative methods; Survey Research.

Office: AFLS E111A
Phone: 479-575-3799
Email: wd009@uark.edu 
Research Interests: Improving human capital in agricultural education; Making SAEs relevant for all student; Improving agricultural education teacher preparation programs; Improving instructional strategies for better teaching and learning.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Quantitative methods; Survey research; Experimental design; Managing an agricultural education program; Teaching methods.

Phone: (479) 575-2039
Email: dmjohnso@uark.edu
Research Interests: Agricultural Systems Technology
Expertise and instrumentation: Engine performance and emissions testing, technical education.

Phone: (479) 575-5650
Email: jdmiller@uark.edu
Research Interests: Agricultural Communications:
Expertise and instrumentation: Communication evaluation, agricultural communication curriculum development, qualitative research and evaluation.

Phone: (479) 575-3506
Email: kjrucker@uark.edu
Research Interests: Agricultural Leadership and Communications: Scholarship of teaching and learning in agricultural communications and leadership; workforce preparation, development and training; and generational differences. 
Expertise and Instrumentation: Communication and leadership curriculum development and evaluation, qualitative research, and leadership assessments.

Phone: (479) 575-2038
Email: wardlow@uark.edu
Research Interests: Teacher Education, Teaching Effectiveness, Agricultural Systems Technology.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Land surveying and coordinate mapping.

Office: AFLS B106E 
Phone: (479) 575-2112
Email: kcoffey@uark.edu
Research Interests: Ruminant nutrition
Expertise and instrumentation: Forage nutrition, grazing management, applied animal nutrition, beef production management.

Office: AFLS B106D
Phone: (479) 575-6397
Email:yxh010@uark.edu
Research Interests:Nutritional Skeletal Muscle Biology
Expertise and Instrumentation: Meat science, muscle biology, mitochondrial function and metabolism. western blot, PCR, cell culture, immunohistochemistry staining, and mitochondrial activity assay.

Phone: (479) 575-6300
Email: kjogan@uark.edu
Research Interests: Design, implementation and assessment of effective teaching and learning methodologies, quantitative research.

Office: AFLS B110E 
Phone: (479) 575-3050
Email: ekegley@uark.edu
Research Interests: Nutrition and Immunology with stocker cattle
Expertise and Instrumentation: Cattle Nutrition; Mineral Nutrition; UV/VIS Spectrophotometry; Immunology; ELISA; Radial Immunodiffusion; Cell Isolation.

Office: AFLS B107D
Phone: (479) 575-8413
Email: bplitt@uark.edu
Research Interests: Areas of research interest broadly encompass beef cattle physiology and specifically include reproduction, prenatal programming, and epigenetics.

Office: AFLS B111B 
Phone: (479) 575-3745
Email: looper@uark.edu
Research Interests: Cattle, Forage, Animal Production, Animal Husbandry, Animal Physiology, Pasture Management, Animal Biotechnology, Husbandry.

Office: AFLS B107B 
Phone:(479) 575-7914
Email: dphilipp@uark.edu 
Research Interests: Forage ecology
Expertise and Instrumentation: Improved forage utilization and grazing management related to increased profitability and water quality.

Office: B110C AFLS
Phone: (479) 575-5136
Email: jerpow@uark.edu
Research Interests: Diseases of animals
Expertise and instrumentation: Emphasis on health management, disease prevention, parasitology, animal wellbeing and immunology focused on beef cattle, swine and sheep.

Office: AFLS B10G

Phone (479) 575-2346

Email: dericos@uark.edu 

Research Interests: Meat Science and Muscle Biology

Expertise and Instrumentation: Post-harvest processing, value-added products, muscle biology, meat quality, western blot, metabolomics, proteomics.

Office: AFLS B110B 

Phone (479) 575-4380

Email: jtshore@uark.edu

Research Interests: Equine reproduction and physiology 

Expertise and Instrumentation: Equine reproduction, selection and evaluation for performance, behavior and training.

Office: AFLS B106C
Phone: (479) 575-7283
Email: vierck@uark.edu 
Research Interests: In our research investigations, we use a combination of basic and applied approaches to examine red meat quality and improve the consumer eating experience, as well as reduce food waste through extending shelf life of meat products. Other research interests include pre and post-harvest influences on meat flavor precursors and flavor development during cooking, improving shelf life at retail through development of lipid and protein oxidation mitigation strategies, and enhancing value of meat products through underutilized product enhancement and packaging.

Office: POSC O-202
Phone: 479-575-2759
Email: sweimer@uark.edu
Research Interests: Animal Welfare
Expertise and Instrumentation: Management, stress physiology, behavior, health and welfare of poultry and livestock.

Dr. Weimer also serves as the Director of the Center for Food Animal Wellbeing. 

Office: B103E AFLS
Phone: (479) 575 6323
Email: jzhao77@uark.edu
Research Interests: Human and animal microbiome in health and disease
Expertise and Instrumentation: Multi-omics including microbiome, metagenome, metatranscriptome, metabolomics, DNA, RNA, protein and metabolites extraction, PCR, next-generation sequencing, bioinformatics, bacterial and fungal cultivation.

Office: POSC O-308 
Phone: 479-575-6916
Email: aashwor@uark.edu
Research Interests: Nutrient cycling; soil health; water quality; grassland and pasture systems; poultry litter utilization; best management practices.
Expertise and Instrumentation: C:N analyzer, particle size analysis, pressure plate extractor, forage quality (Ankom; ADF, NDF, CP, etc.), root morphology scanner, drone (hyper and multispectral camera/sensor) Skalar, pH, and EC. 

Office: AGRI 123 
Phone: (479) 575-5742
Email: kbrye@uark.edu
Research Interests: Soil Physics, Pedology, and Agronomy
Expertise and instrumentation: Land use and management practice effects on soil physical, chemical, and biological properties related to soil health and sustainability; greenhouse gas emissions; and struvite effects on soil properties and crop growth and production.

Office: DTAS 280
Phone: (479) 530-8987
Email: nburgos@uark.edu
Research Interests: Physiology, biology, ecology, molecular biology, evolution and population genetics of weedy plants, weed adaptation to climate change. Physiology of herbicide action and mechanisms of resistance to herbicides.
Expertise and instrumentation: Plant physiology and molecular biology, herbicide action, use of 14C isotope for herbicide action research, liquid scintillation spectroscopy, biological material oxidizer, plant resistance to herbicides, DNA fingerprinting

Office: AGRX 109
Phone: 479-575-5677
Email: samuelbf@uark.edu
Research Interests: Quantitative Genetics, Plant Breeding, Molecular Breeding, Genomics, Genetic Architecture of Correlated Traits
Expertise and Instrumentation: R, Data Analysis, Applied Multivariate Methods.

Office: 309 Engineering Hall
Phone: (479) 387-5547
Email: haggard@uark.edu
Research Interests: Harmful algal blooms, land use and water quality, and water quality changes over time.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Water quality chemistry and certified lab with instrumentation, data analysis and organization, and experimental design.

Office: Agriculture Bldg. 106
Phone: (479) 575-5747
Email: dmmiller@uark.edu
Research Interests: Soil chemistry
Expertise and instrumentation: Surface chemistry, reclamation of soils with poultry litter and phosphorus chemistry.

Office:  POSC 305
Phone: 479-675-3834
Email: Phillip.owens@usda.gov; prowens@uark.edu
Research Interests: Digital soil mapping, landscape analysis; spatial soil data; precision agriculture.
Expertise and Instrumentation: GIS, GPS, Continuous EC measurements; GPS Tractor Guidance; Geostatistics; Spatial Predictions; Pedology.

Office: Plant Sciences Building 112
Phone: (479) 575-8435
Email: apereira@uark.edu
Research Interests: Plant molecular genetics

Office: 118 Crop Science
Phone: (479) 575-6752
Email: tlrobert@uark.edu
Research Interests: Soil Nutrient Management and Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems.
Expertise and instrumentation: N15.

Office: DTAS 281
Phone: (479) 575-5740
Email: msavin@uark.edu

Research Interests:  Microbial ecology, fate of contaminants (e.g. antibiotic resistance), and soil and water quality.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Culture-based (MPN), physiological (gas emissions, enzyme assays, functional diversity profiles), extraction and microdialysis (in-situ diffusion based collections) for nutrient analyses, and molecular (PCR and qPCR) approaches to understand microbial and food web interactions and functional responses to management or disturbance.

Office: 109 Plant Science Building
Phone: (479) 575-4872
Email: vibhas@uark.edu
Research Interests: Life Sciences
Expertise and instrumentation: Develops molecular tools for gene transfer in crop plants and develops gene tagging systems for rice.

Office: FDSC N223
Phone: (479) 575-5678
Email: amauro@uark.edu 
Research Interests: Visual data mining, statistical computing, experimental design, generalized linear models, applied multivariate methods, and data mining.
Expertise and instrumentation: Data analysis software.

Office: DTAS 104 
Phone: (479) 575-4118
Email: Slspeir@uark.edu 
Research Interests: Ecosystem ecology and stream biogeochemistry of human- and climate-impacted streams and rivers.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Water quality monitoring, denitrification, conservation/restoration, high-frequency sensing, membrane inlet mass spectrometry (MIMS), analytical chemistry.

Office: Agricultural Annex 104
Phone: (479) 575-2445
Email: adamsrh@uark.edu
Research Interests: What happens to species and their genomes when introduced to new environments and climates? The Adams Analytics Groups studies fundamental questions about the origins and evolution of genome structure and function, and we develop new statistical tools to search for answers. We are actively recruiting students interested in many areas: from statistics and machine learning, to genomics, bioinformatics, entomology, evolution, and beyond!
Expertise and Instrumentation: We leverage a diversity of skillsets and expertise needed to understand complex biological datasets, including (but not limited to): coding and programming, bioinformatics, genetics, genomics, machine learning, data science, statistical prediction, evolutionary theory, and mathematical biology.

At the moment, our research group is primarily computational in nature. We use a lot of computers, including the Arkansas High Performance Computing Center (AHPCC) here on campus. We also collaborate with faculty across the University as well as other institutions to collect and analyze many different data types generated from a diversity of instruments.

Phone: (479) 575-2677
Email: bbluhm@uark.edu
Research Interests: Molecular plant pathology
Expertise and Instrumentation: Fungal diseases of crop species, plant-fungal interactions, molecular genetics, functional genomics. metabolomics, mycology.

Phone: (479) 575-2445 
Email: nclay@uark.edu 
Research Interests: My research integrates ecology and entomology to understand how resource availability impacts forest ecosystems. My lab explores everything from the world below your feet, where detritivores, microbes, and predators interact to regulate decomposition and nutrient cycling, to the canopy where organismal activity and physical conditions lead to myriad connections between the canopy and forest floor. 
Expertise and Instrumentation: I use field and laboratory experiments and naturally occurring environmental gradients to examine natural phenomena in these systems and ultimately contribute to a healthy forest ecosystem.

Phone: (479) 575-2676
Email: me021@uark.edu
Research Interests: Fungal Cell Biology 

Office: AGRI 321
Lab: AGRI 310
Phone: (479) 575-387-9238
Email: rkariyat@uark.edu

Research Interests: Crop Entomology and Sustainable Pest Management
Expertise and Instrumentation: My lab is interested in developing pest management strategies against major and minor insect pests in row crops, including but not limited to rice, soybean, corn, and sorghum.  A combination of field entomology, chemical ecology and metabolomic profiling are used to accomplish the research objectives.

Office: Rosen Alternative Pest Control Center
Phone: (479) 575-5191
Email: kkorth@uark.edu
Research Interests: Plant biotechnology
Expertise and Instrumentation: Molecular plant-insect interactions, pathogen and insect resistance pathways, cellular control of enzymes involved in isoprenoid metabolism.

Office: PLSC 211
Phone: (479) 575-7601
Email: jkud@uark.edu
Research Interests: Molecular and biochemical plant-nematode interactions
Expertise and Instrumentation: My research program focuses on understanding the virulence strategies deployed by plant-parasitic nematodes to successfully invade their hosts. Using molecular, biochemical, and genetic approaches, we are investigating nematode parasitic behavior in response to chemical cues from different hosts, the mechanisms behind the nematode's ability to adapt and break down existing host resistance over time, and the biological relevance of nematode effector proteins used to suppress plant immunity. Plant-parasitic nematodes relevant to soybean and cotton production, including cyst nematodes, reniform nematodes, and root-knot nematodes, are our major areas of interest.

Phone: (479) 575-6446
Email: emcdermo@uark.edu
Research Interests: Medical and veterinary entomology
Expertise and Instrumentation: Ecology, control and surveillance of arthropod vectors, mosquito biology, biting midge biology, tick biology, livestock pests

Phone: (479) 575-2445
Email:jarojas@uark.edu
Research Interests:  Ecology, evolution and biology of soilborne fungi and oomycetes
Expertise and Instrumentation: Mycology, plant-fungal interactions and ecology, evolution and genomics of fungi.  Structure and function of the plant microbiota.  My research focuses on the interaction of plant and root-associated microorganisms and their effects on plant growth and health.  These include the interaction between fungal and oomycete pathogens, fungal endophytes and other guilds that are present in agricultural and natural ecosystems.  We are focused on the biology and genetics of soilborne fungi and oomycetes and how we can modulate or manage the impact of these organisms in agricultural crops.

Office: 217 Plant Sciences Building
Phone: (479) 575-2778
Email: jrupe@uark.edu 
Research Interests: Soybean diseases
Expertise and Instrumentation: Epidemiology and control of plant diseases, ecology of soybean pathogens.

Office: 213 Plant Sciences Building
Phone: (479)575-3180
Email: itzaneta@uark.edu
Research Interests: Virology
Expertise and Instrumentation: Characterization and epidemiology of new viruses. Reverse genetics of soybean.

Office: 312 Agriculture Building
Phone: (479) 575-2482
Email: adowling@uark.edu
Research Interests: Acarology, molecular systematic of mites and insects. Historical Ecology: coevolution, biogeography and host-association. Population genetics (phylogeography) of recently invading pest mites.

Office: 330 Agriculture Building
Phone: (479) 575-6751
Email: fgoggin@uark.edu
Research Interests: Host plant resistance to insects and nematodes
Expertise and Instrumentation: Aphid biology, bioassay design, nucleic acid purification and gene expression analysis. Liquid scintillation counter, UV visible spectromenter, thermal cyclers, capillary electrophoresis unit.

Office: 315E Agriculture Building
Phone: (479) 575-2451
Email: fstephen@uark.edu
Research Interests: Forest entomology, insect ecology
Expertise and Instrumentation: Ecology and biological control of forest insects.

Office: 301 Agriculture Building
Phone: (479) 575-4342
Email: aszalan@uark.edu
Research Interests:
Insect genetics, Molecular Diagnostics
Expertise and Instrumentation: Population Genetics, Molecular Diagnostics, Molecular Phylogenetics, Urban Entomology.

Phone: (479) 575-2108
Email: jcacuff@uark.edu
Research Interests: Dr. Acuff's research investigates strategies to improve fresh and processed food safety. The primary goals of Jennifer's laboratory research are to:
1) Develop and evaluate thermal and non-thermal interventions to inactivate foodborne pathogens on low moisture foods,
2) Integrate research and Cooperative Extension efforts to answer food safety problems unique to local food processors, and 3) Provide novel solutions for local and national meat processors that address concerns related to pre- and post-harvest food safety, such as probiotics and environmental control of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, Campylobacter and Salmonella spp. within processing facilities.

Determination of thermal inactivation kinetics of Salmonella and a surrogate in dairy powders, Partnership with the dairy industry members to address how dairy powders should be thermally treated in order to inactivate Salmonella that may contaminate the product. Also addressed will be the evaluation of a surrogate for in-plant validations, and how the water activity of the powders affect the inactivation kinetics.

Office: N-216 Food Science
Phone: (479) 575-4474
Email: baum@uark.edu
Nutrition Research: Research focus is on the role of macronutrients (e.g. dietary protein quality and quantity, source of fatty acids, etc. on body composition, energy metabolism and metabolic health using a molecule-to-man approach.

Office: N-220 Food Science
Phone: (479) 575-6844
Email: keg005@uark.edu
Research Interests: Food safety research: Research focus is on the fate and transport of pathogens within our food systems with a focus on human noroviruses and fresh produce as well as retail food safety.

Phone: (479)-575-6843
Email: atungulu@uark.edu
Research Interests: The focus of Dr. Atungulu'sresearch is to engineer effective strategies to maintain grain (rice, corn, soybean and grain-sorghum) quality and prevent mycotoxin development, especially in on-farm, in-bin drying and storage systems.
Specific points addressed in Dr. Atungulu's research include:

1. Studying  kinetics  of  grain  quality  degradation, mold  growth,  and  mycotoxin development during on-farm, in-bin drying and storage of grains

2. Determination of accurate EMC models for use in the new on-farm, in-bin drying and storage systems

3. Use of mathematical modeling to optimize performance of the on-farm, in-bin grain drying and storage systems

4. Development of novel techniques for detection, decontamination, and detoxification of harmful grain molds and mycotoxins

• Office: FDSC N217
  Phone: (479) 789-3292 
  Email: scottla@uark.edu
  Research Interests: Dr. Lafontaine's research interests include understanding the important chemical drivers of aroma, taste, and mouthfeel which define food and beverage quality, and how different factors (i.e. raw material quality, production methods, etc.) influence these analytes in value-added products (i.e. beer, wine, nonalcoholic products, sake, etc.).
  Research Goals include: 
  Investigating volatile compounds responsible for the flavor of different rice varieties in malt, beer, and steamed/ parboiled rice.
• Evaluating the impact of smoke on rice quality.
• Determining the flavor thresholds of transition metals in beer and non-alcoholic beer.
• Characterizing the volatile profile of blackberries.

Office: N-211 Food Science
Phone: (479) 575-6921
Email: sunok@uark.edu
Research Interests: Focuses on investigating the role of functional foods/bioactive components in the prevention of chronic diseases and its bioavailability/bioefficacy.

Phone: (479) 575-4737
Email: mahfuz@uark.edu
Research Interests: Plant-based protein,  plant-based alternative cheese and meat, non-thermal processing technologies (e.g., ultrasound, cold plasma), shelf-stable food products, and biodegradable packaging.

Office: N-215 Food Science
Phone: (479) 575-4778
Email: hanseok@uark.edu
Research Interests: Sensory and consumer sciences: Chemosensory perception and multisensory integration, food neuropsychology, food choice and eating behavior

Office: FDSC B-3
Phone: 479-575-4677
Email: rthrelf@uark.edu
Research Interests: Production, postharvest, and processing impacts on quality, sensory, and physicochemical attributes. of specialty horticultural crops including wine grapes, table  grapes, muscadine grapes, blackberries, strawberries, peaches, and hops. Value-added processing of horticultural crops. Viticulture (grape growing) and Enology (wine making) focus. 
Expertise and instrumentation: Physicochemical, sensory, and postharvest marketability evaluations of fresh and processed horticultural crops, HPLC analysis of acids, sugars, and phytonutrients and GC-MS analysis volatile aroma compounds in horticultural crops.

Phone: 479-575-5782
Email: dongyiw@uark.edu
Research interests: Aritifical Intelligence; Machine vision systems; Imaging systems (color, 3D, spectral); Smart food manufacturing; Robotics.

Phone: 479-575-4677
Email: uali@uark.edu
Research interests: Dr. Ubeyitogullari’s research interests revolve primarily around food engineering and novel food processing technologies with a specific focus on enhancing health benefits and quality of foods. The overarching goal of his research program is to improve human health and wellness through food by employing innovative technologies. Specifically, the Ubeyitogullari Lab is interested in enhancing bioavailability of micronutrients using nanoscale science and engineering based on supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) technology and 3D food printing.

Email: bertucci@uark.edu
Research Interests: Turf weed management, pasture weed mangement, roadside and right of way weed management.
Expertise and instrumentation: Dr. Bertucci conducts applied research to evaluate the efficacy of herbicides in turf, pastures, and roadsides. His research further investigates cultural practices and integrated pest management stra

Phone: 479-575-2603
Email: ryand@uark.edu
Research Interests: Fertilizer and pH, irrigation and water quality, environmental factors (light, temperature, CO₂), postharvest, economics for greenhouse and controlled-environment crop production.

Office: 316 Plant Science
Phone: (276) 952-8186
Email: wendellh@uark.edu 
Research interests: Turfgrass science, turfgrass pathology, precision turf management with new technologies.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Wendell Hutchens’ research focus is on turfgrass science, particularly turfgrass pathology. Turfgrass diseases cause massive damage and losses to sod farms, golf courses, athletic fields, parks, and home lawns. My research is centered around how to maintain healthy turfgrass and combat turfgrass diseases with traditional cultural and chemical practices as well as with cutting-edge new technology such as drones and GPS-guided sprayers.

Office: 315 Plant Science
Phone: (479) 575-8780
Email: gmcdonald@uark.edu
Research Interests: Landscape Horticulture
Expertise and Instrumentation: urban horticulture, sustainable systems, practical landscape design, landscape management, native landscape plant materials, low-input landscapes.

Office: 309 Plant Science
Phone: (479) 575-2860
Email: mricha@uark.edu
Research Interests: Turfgrass Management and Physiology
Expertise and Instrumentation: Water potential, greenhouse experimentation, and photosynthesis.

Office: 306 Plant Science
Phone: (479) 575-2122
Email: mlwothi@uark.edu
Research Interests: Plant breeding, emphasizing fruit crops using molecular and classical breeding techniques.

Office: 321 Plant Science
Phone: (479) 575-2670
Email: ashi@uark.edu
Research Interests:Vegetable breeding and molecular biology.

Office: POSC 0-404
Phone: 479-575-2095
Email: aakhalaf@uark.edu 
Website: Center of Excellence Faculty
Research Interests: Our research group is investigating the causes, epidemiology, transmission, and prevention of Bacterial Chondronecrosis with Osteomyelitis BCO lameness in broiler chickens.  We use a wire flooring system developed by Dr. Robert Wideman and the bacterial challenge with Staphylococcus agnetis to induce lameness. We have worked with several industry partners to try to identify feed additives that can help reduce the incidence of BCO lameness in broilers.

Office: POSC 0-304
Phone: 479-575-4952
Email: karsi@uark.edu

Office: Poultry Science O-405
Phone: (479) 575-2575
Email: wbottje@uark.edu
Research Interests: Physiology
Expertise and Instrumentation: Conducts research on mitochondrial function in health and disease of poultry with particular emphasis on antioxidants and oxidative stress. Bottje is also the Director of the Center of Excellence for Poultry Science.

Phone: 479-575-4375
Email: fdclark@uark.edu 
Research Interests: Reoviruses, rotaviruses and avian diagnostics

Office: Poultry Science O-311
Phone: (479) 575-2837
Email: vcaputi@uark.edu
Research Interests: Enteric Neurophysiology
Expertise and Instrumentation: Study of the development and function of the enteric nervous system in avian models of early life stress, intestinal parasites and foodborne pathogens infections.

Office: Poultry Science O-211
Phone: (479) 575-4134
Email: ccoon@uark.edu
Research Interests: Poultry Nutrition
Expertise and Instrumentation: Nutrient utilization, environmental interactions with nutrition, feedstuff evaluation and amino acid metabolism in poultry.

Office: Poultry Science O-406
Phone: (479) 575-2583
Email: dridi@uark.edu
Research Interests: Avian endocrinology and molecular genetics. Peripheral and central molecular mechanisms involved in the regulation of energy homeostasis and fat metabolism in avian species for the improvement of growth efficiency.

Office: POSC O-410
Phone: (479) 575-8664
Email: gferf@uark.edu
Research Interests: Immunologist
Expertise and instrumentation: Avian immunology with emphasis on cell-mediated immunity, autoimmunity, tumor regression and immunology of the skin.

Office: POSC O-208
Phone: (479) 575-3681
Email: bmahaffe@uark.edu
Research Interests: Parasitology and Intestinal Health.

Office: Poultry Science O-308
Phone: (479) 466-8678
Email: bhargis@uark.edu
Research Interests: Veterinarian
Expertise and Instrumentation: Poultry health and ante mortem food safety intervention, poultry immunology and endocrinology.

Office: POSC O-306
Phone: (479) 575-2229
Email: pjesudha@uark.edu 
Research Interests: Vaccine development.
Expertise and Instrumentation: Conducting researchon controlling human foodborne pathogens in chickens.

Office: Poultry Science O-114
Phone: (479) 575-3699
Email: mkidd@uark.edu
Research Interests: Research in the areas of broiler amino acid, mineral, and enzyme nutrition.

Office: Poultry Science O-403
Phone: (479) 575-6112
Email: wkuenzel@uark.edu
Research Interests: Physiology and Neurobiology
Expertise and instrumentation: Avian neuroendocrinology with emphasis on the neural regulation of early sexual maturation, food intake and hypothalamic function in poultry.

Office: Poultry Science O-213
Phone: (479) 575-4935
Email: ykwon@uark.edu
Research Interests: Expertise and instrumentation: Conducts research on genetic/genomic analysis of foodborne bacterial pathogens important in poultry.

Office: Poultry Science O-411
Phone: (479) 575-2881
Email: yanbinli@uark.edu
Research Interests: Food Safety and Food Processing
Expertise and Instrumentation: Food processing and engineering, electrical pasteurization, chemical spraying and thermal process modeling for food safety and quality.

Office: POSC O-305 
Email: jmlyte@uark.edu 
Research Interests: Microbiota-gut brain axis

Office: POSC O-204
Phone: (479) 575-6687
Email: toobe@uark.edu
Research Interests: Poultry Food Safety Microbiology
Expertise ad Instrumentation: Research focus includes evaluating the effects of different mitigation strategies to optimize the reduction/control of foodborne pathogens in poultry and poultry processing environments; and the impacts of environmental conditions on the adaptation and resistance of foodborne pathogens.

Office: POSC 0-207
Phone: 479-575-4952
Email: orlowski@uark.edu 
Research Interests: poultry management and genetics

Office: Poultry Science O-209
Phone: (479) 575-4281
Email: cmowens@uark.edu
Research Interests: Poultry Products
Expertise and Instrumentation: Effect of preslaughter environmental conditions and processing techniques on muscle metabolism and meat quality of poultry.

Office: Science Engineering 524
Phone: (479) 575-7396
Email: drhoads@uark.edu
Research Interests: Poultry Genomics Expertise and instrumentation: DNA isolation, DNA library construction. SNP/genotype development. Molecular genetic analysis of production traits, with special emphasis on the male reproductive system.

Office: POSC 409
Phone: 479-575-2322
Email: xiaoluns@uark.edu
Research Interests: Understanding the dynamic interaction among host cellular events, molecular signaling, intestinal microbiome, and bacterial pathogens during health and disease and to identify signaling pathways and microbiome which attenuate microbe-mediated intestinal diseases in human and poultry.

Office: POSC O-202
Phone: 479-575-2759
Email: sweimer@uark.edu
Research Interests: Animal Welfare
Expertise and Instrumentation: Management, stress physiology, behavior, health and welfare of poultry and livestock.

Dr. Weimer also serves as the Director of the Center for Food Animal Wellbeing.