Anne Fennell

Title

Distinguished Professor

Office Building

Edgar S. McFadden Biostress Lab

Office

254B

Mailing Address

McFadden Biostress Laboratory 254B
Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science-Box 2140C
University Station
Brookings, SD 57007

Education

• Ph.D. | University of Minnesota
• M.S. | University of Minnesota
• B.S. | Iowa State University

Academic Interests

• Grapevine bud dormancy and cold hardiness
• Grapevine genetics and genomics
• Plant physiology and molecular biology

Academic Responsibilities

• HO411/511 Fruit Crop Production Systems (rotating crop topics: tree fruits, grapevine, brambles, native fruits, strawberries)
• Bio/PS664 Molecular Plant Physiology (team taught)
• PS763 Crop Physiology (Fennell, Gu, Nleya)
• PS781 Graduate Seminar
• HO/NUTR/PS 426/526 Production Wine, Beer Spirits

Committees and Professional Memberships

Committee Activities

• University Promotion and Tenure
• AHPS Executive Team
• Organizer of International Plant and Animal Genome Conference Plant Dormancy Workshop 2016-2018
• Mentor for students through NSF Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU)

Professional Memberships

• Executive Committee Member and Co-PI of VitisGen3 Research
• Executive Committee Member and Co-PI of USDA/AFRI CAP Research Project
• Member of the National Committee of Visitors for NSF funded Viticulture and Enology Science and Technology Alliance (VESTA) Center of Excellence (2013-present)
• Advisory Committee Member of NSF funded Grape Research Coordination Network (2010-2013)
• Member of the National Grape Research Alliance Natural Resources and Environmental Research Committee (2017-present)
• South Dakota State representative for the NE1720 Multi-state coordinated evaluation of wine grape cultivars and cultivars (2008-2016 NE1020, NE1720 2017-present)

Awards and Honors

• College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences Outstanding Researcher, 2021
• South Dakota State University Distinguished Professor, 2020
• Faculty Award for Global Engagement (International Research, SDSU), 2019
• John Robertson Award, South Dakota Horticulture Society, 2017
• College of Agriculture and Biological Sciences Distinguished Research Award, 2008
• Gamma Sigma Delta Research Award of Merit (SDSU), 2008
• Women of Distinction Faculty Award (SDSU), 2007
• F.O. Butler Award for Excellence in Research (SDSU), 2006
• ABS Dean’s Team Award for Entrepreneurship, Production, and Agritourism in Horticulture Specialty Crops, 2004
• Sigma Xi Scientific Research Society (SDSU), 1997
• ABS Dean’s award of research excellence in recognition of research contributions to the South Dakota’s new farm winery industry, 1997
• Pi Alpha Xi Ornamental Horticulture Society, 1992

Grants

• USDA-NIFA Acquisition of a GC-TQMS for Metabolomics Research and Teaching.
• USDA-NIFA Completing the grapevine powdery mildew resistance pipeline: From genes on the shelf to sticks in the ground.
• USDA-Specialty Crop Grant, Mitigating freezing damage in emerging wine and seedless table grapes during fall acclimation and spring deacclimation.
• NSF MRI: Acquisition of a Heterogeneous High‐Performance Computing Cluster Driven by Computational and Data‐Intensive Multidisciplinary Research.
• USDA-NIFA Establishing best practices to maximize yield of the culturally relevant Amelanchier (Juneberry).
• NSF Research PGR: Adapting perennial crops for climate change: Graft transmissible effects of rootstocks on grapevine shoots.

Work Experience

• (2020-present ) Distinguished professor, SDSU, Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science Department.
• (2011-present) Professor, SDSU, Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science Department
• (2002-2011) Department of Horticulture, Forestry, Landscape and Parks (HFLP)
• (2010) Visiting professor to University of Verona, Verona, Italy
• (2007) Visiting professor to INP - ESNAT, Castanet, France
• (2000) Sabbatical faculty appointment, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon
• (1997-2002) Associate professor, SDSU, Department of Horticulture, Forestry, Landscape and Parks
• (1992-1997) Assistant professor, SDSU, Dept. Horticulture, Forestry, Landscape and Parks

Areas of Research

Bud dormancy is an integral component of growth cycling, productivity and winter survival in perennial plant systems. It is an adaptive strategy for the survival of drought, high temperature, low temperature and freeze-dehydration stress. In a changing climate timing of dormancy induction and release are critical for sustainable production. Dormancy is not a static state, rather a dynamic phase of plant development that impacts the geographical range, yields and management strategies of many woody species, including grapevines (Vitis). My lab’s research programs are focused on the genetic, physiological and phenotypic aspects of grapevine bud dormancy, cold hardiness and chilling fulfillment. Specifically, to identify genes, pathways and genetic architecture which impact sustainable production of grapevine and other perennial systems. This knowledge is key to marker assisted selection of new materials, and identifying existing cultivars that are well-adapted to changing northern temperate environments and development of management strategies for sustainable production.

Shotgun proteomic analysis of photoperiod regulated dormancy induction in grapevine

• Proteome development in grapevine bud during dormancy induction.
• Grapevine bud proteins and protein functional categories up-regulated in long (paradormant buds) and short (endodormant buds) photoperiods.

Next Generation Mapping of Enological Traits in an F2 Interspecific Grapevine Hybrid Family

• QTL mapping for enological traits.
• Grapevine bud proteins and protein functional categories up-regulated in long (paradormant buds) and short (endodormant buds) photoperiods.

Short day transcriptomic programming during induction of dormancy in grapevine

• Grapevine bud dormancy.
• Paradormancy maintenance and endodormancy induction in grapevine.

Grapevine Adventitious Root Morphology

• Unraveling the genetic underpinnings of the adventitious root system architecture (RSA) is important for improving own-rooted and grafted grapevine sustainability for a changing climate. 
• Root morphology QTL hotspots and enriched gene networks are identified.

Grape Berry Enological Traits and Candidate Genes

• Three grape berry enological traits mapped to candidate genes using an F2 mapping population.