Education: B.S., Horticultural Science (Concentration: Plant Breeding & Biotechnology), North Carolina State University, 2025
About: Ellen is a first-year Ph.D. student in the Genetics & Genomics program at NC State. Prior to beginning her doctorate, she spent three years as an undergraduate researcher in the Blueberry Genetics and Genomics Laboratory, where she spearheaded the development and deployment of KASP marker assays for functional allele tracking and designed RT-qPCR workflows for gene expression analysis. Building on that foundation, her current Ph.D. research focuses on developing an intact-tissue agroinfiltration system for rapid gene validation in blueberry, with an emphasis on epicuticular wax biosynthesis genes and their role in fruit durability, postharvest quality, and stress resilience. Her work aims to establish the first practical transient expression platform for functional screening of candidate genes in blueberry leaves and fruit.
Notable Achievements
Genetics & Genomics Scholars Program, NC State University, 2025
Provost Professional Experience Program Grant, NC State University, 2024
NC Horticultural Council Scholarship, NC State University, 2023
Publications
Kelso, F., White, E., Ascencio-Ibáñez, T., Da, K., Dewey, R. E., Liu, W., & Ashrafi, H. (2026). Unraveling morphogenetic pathways governing tissue culture, regeneration, and transformation in highbush blueberry (In Preparation).
Kelso, F., White, E., Farlow, B., Liu, W., Dewey, R. E., Da, K., & Ashrafi, H. (2026). Enhancing Vaccinium corymbosum regeneration by genome engineering. Acta Horticulturae. In press.
