Louis Otto Kunkel (May 7, 1884 – March 20, 1960) was an American

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

and

plant pathologist Plant pathology (also phytopathology) is the scientific study of diseases in plants caused by pathogens (infectious organisms) and environmental conditions (physiological factors). Organisms that cause infectious disease include fungus, fung ...

who led the Division of Plant Pathology of the Rockefeller Institute for over two decades beginning in 1932. He was known for his work on viral diseases of potatoes, cabbage and other crops. Born near

Mexico, Missouri , image_skyline = Audrain County Missouri Courthouse.JPG , imagesize = 250px , image_caption = The Audrain County Courthouse in downtown Mexico. , image_flag = , image_seal = ...

, he attended the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

, earning the degrees of B.S. (1903), A.B (1910) and M.A. (1911). He earned a PhD in 1914 from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, working with Robert A. Harper. He was elected into the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...

in 1932 and the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

in 1942.

References

External links

* 1884 births 1960 deaths 20th-century American botanists American phytopathologists People from Mexico, Missouri University of Missouri alumni Columbia University alumni Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences Members of the American Philosophical Society {{US-botanist-stub