University of Idaho Parma lab hosts unique plant diagnosticians training

Scientists at University of Idaho’s Parma Research and Extension Center recently showcased their state-of-the-art new laboratory during a unique training that attracted crop pest and disease diagnosticians from throughout the country.

U of I opened its 9,600-square-foot Idaho Center for Plant and Soil Health — containing sophisticated laboratory space for research in nematology, fruit crops, plant pathology, microbiology and hops quality — in Parma during the fall of 2024.

James Woodhall, an Extension specialist in plant pathology, organized the three-day training in advanced molecular diagnostics, which entails analyzing biological markers to diagnose diseases. Farmers who submit their samples for testing can identify potential causes of yield losses and make appropriate pesticide choices and management decisions.

Ben Wood, a plant science doctoral student studying diagnostics under Woodhall, and postdoctoral researcher Josh Rosnow helped lead the training, making use of the new laboratory’s ample space, modern equipment and cutting-edge scientific techniques.

“A lot of this workshop is to harmonize and standardize protocols, which helps our stakeholders if all diagnostic labs are on the same page,” Woodhall said.

Participants included 10 National Plant Diagnostic Network (NPDN) delegates from other states, a training coordinator from Florida and two representatives of the Idaho State Department of Agriculture. NPDN is a consortium of plant diagnostic laboratories established by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Office of Homeland Security to enhance biosecurity by detecting instances of biological attacks. The NPDN also protects plant health and productivity of U.S. agriculture and natural ecosystems by providing early detection and identification of plant pests and diseases.

The USDA typically offers plant diagnostics training, which is usually conducted on the East Coast.

“This was a unique opportunity,” Woodhall said. “This was one of the first trainings of its kind in the West and at a land-grant university as opposed to a federal institution.”

Based on the initial success, Woodhall hopes to organize another Parma training in 2026 and anticipates making the NPDN training an annual event at the center heading forward.

Participants were generally impressed by the facility’s layout and design, as well as the protocols used by U of I researchers.

“This is amazing — what everyone strives to be,” said participant Hanna Ayala, head diagnostician with Texas A&M AgriLife Extension. “This really is the future of molecular diagnostics.”

Some of the NPDN members will consider changes to modernize their own facilities based on what they witnessed in Idaho, while others sought guidance on efficiently operating new equipment.

“I came away with many great ideas, and I truly hope that if, or when, a new building becomes a reality for us in Virginia, I will draw inspiration from your layouts and lab designs,” Lina Rodriguiz Salamanca, a training participant who directs the Virginia Tech Plan Disease Clinic, said in an email to U of I organizers following the event.

Sara Wallace, a training participant who works as a plant pathologist at the Oklahoma State University Plant Disease and Insect Diagnostic Lab, said her university plans to build a new lab in the next few years, and the U of I training gave her good ideas for laying out the planned facility. Oregon State University was also among several land-grant universities that received American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to buy a new DNA extraction machine capable of running up to 96 DNA samples at a time, called the KingFisher Apex. U of I’s Parma lab has long used a prior version of the machine and also recently purchased two modern KingFishers with an ARPA grant.

U of I has developed a wide range of protocols for extracting DNA for testing by the KingFisher, including from soil, seed material, potato material, leaf material and spores.

“Some of us got the machine, but we don’t know how to use it,” Wallace said. “I’m interested in learning how they do their setup and what their process is.”

Bringing diagnosticians together for training should also lead to greater collaboration among universities. Even before the training, Woodhall’s lab and Purdue University were partnering on an interlaboratory comparison experiment, which entails Purdue validating certain pathogen testing methods used in Parma in their own laboratory to test if it can work with different personnel and slightly different equipment.

The workshop included two days of laboratory training in Parma. On the third day of the training, the group visited the UI Extension office in Ada County, where Extension educator Sierra Laverty discussed the Extension-run Idaho Master Gardener Program and the role of plant clinics in Extension. Later that afternoon, the group visited the Idaho State Department of Agriculture (ISDA), where ISDA plant pathologist Laura Brown gave a tour of the agency’s diagnostics laboratory and Woodhall presented additional instructional lectures.