#  HUH Seminar Series - Cathie Aime 

 



####  calendar\_today Date and Time 

 **September 15, 2026** 

 12:00PM - 01:00PM EDT 

####  pin\_drop Location 

 **HUH Seminar Room 125, 22 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge, MA**  



 

 



 

   ![headshot of Cathie Aime, Purdue University](/sites/g/files/omnuum6796/files/styles/hwp_1_1__360x360_scale/public/2026-09/Aime6795.jpg?itok=RyqaMCsq) 

 

**Cathie Aime**  
Professor of Botany & Plant Pathology  
Purdue University

**Title**: The coffee leaf rust fungus: unraveling the origins and causes of a notorious agricultural pathogen

**Abstract**: Coffee is the world’s single most traded agricultural commodity, the production of which supports approximately 125 million people, primarily small shareholders living in low-income countries. Coffee leaf rust (CLR), which is caused by the rust fungus *Hemileia vastatrix*, is the most important limiting factor to global coffee production and has been responsible for notorious epidemics both historically and in modern times that have had profound impacts on human societies. Our lab has applied multiple approaches, drawing on population genetics, genomics, analysis of historical specimens, rust biology, and global field surveys, to trace the path of *H. vastatrix* — from its emergence in the 1860s to its present-day range — and to understand the drivers of epidemic outbreaks and the consequences of these for growers and consumers.



 

 



 

 See also:- [ Herbaria Seminar Series ](/calendar/taxonomy/term/20301)
 
 

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