Johanna Del Castillo Múnera

Johanna Del Castillo Múnera is an Assistant Professor of Cooperative Extension in the Department of Plant Pathology at the University of California, Davis, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. She specializes in sustainable disease management for greenhouse and field crops, focusing on fungal and oomycete pathogens through biological, genetic, and ecological frameworks.

• Ph.D. in Plant Pathology, Michigan State University
• M.S. in Biological Sciences, Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, Colombia
• B.S. in Microbiology, Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, Colombia

Her research integrates Microbial Ecology, Population Genetics, and Community Ecology to develop sustainable agricultural solutions. Recent work emphasizes Phytophthora detection in restoration nurseries and systemic disease management for vegetable transplants and ornamentals.

Scientific Awards:

Johanna mentors graduate student Megan Gastelum and post-doctoral researcher Sergio Gabriel Peralta, while collaborating with junior specialists and undergraduate research assistants on projects like Fusarium wilt of tomato and basal plate rot studies. Her lab engages in extension services, diagnostics, and grant-funded research to improve nursery-to-field disease protocols.