Nascimento, Crop Science M.S. Student, Named NAPB Borlaug Scholar

Emanuel Ferrari do Nascimento, a U of A master's degree student in crop, soil and environmental sciences, has been named a 2026 Borlaug Scholar by the National Association for Plant Breeding.

Nascimento, who is from Brazil, is part of the Arkansas Soybean Breeding program, led by assistant professor Caio Canella Vieira in the Department of Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences.

The soybean breeding team develops and releases conventional and herbicide-resistant soybean cultivars tailored to the needs of Arkansas growers. Activities include developing high-yielding commodity and specialty soybean varieties, conducting research on genetic tolerance to yield-limiting biotic and abiotic stressors, improving seed composition, novel breeding methodologies, and mentoring and training undergraduate and graduate students in the science of plant breeding.

Nascimento is assisting the team with field and laboratory activities and contributing to research projects. His research integrates genetics, genomics and high-throughput phenotyping to support the development of more resilient soybean cultivars. One aspect of his work focuses on identifying novel genetic and genomic resources for SRKN resistance and improving understanding of its genetic architecture. He is also using UAV-based high-throughput phenotyping to evaluate the dynamic response of soybean genotypes to SRKN under field conditions.

He has been actively involved in the National Association for Plant Breeding Graduate Student Working Group. At the U of A, he has been involved in the Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Graduate Student Club and the AgriOmics Graduate Student Group.

"I had the opportunity to work with Emanuel for the first time in 2021, when he was still an undergraduate student, and it has been incredibly rewarding to observe his professional and personal growth over the years," Vieira says. "He has become an integral part of our soybean breeding program, taking leadership across multiple research and operational components. I have no doubt that Emanuel will continue to make significant contributions and emerge as a leader in our field in the years ahead."

Nascimento graduated with a bachelor's degree in agronomy from the Federal University of Viçosa - Brazil. His undergraduate experience in plant breeding includes internships in Brazil and a visiting scholar program at the University of Missouri's Fisher Delta Research, Extension and Education Center.

The NAPB Borlaug Scholarship Program started in 2018 and selects high-performing plant breeding students across the country. Participants receive one year's experience from mentors and professionals who are NAPB members in industry, academia or government, as well as financial support to attend the annual meeting and other benefits. 

"Emanuel has been a welcome addition to the soybean breeding program, bringing a contagious enthusiasm and professionalism to the team," Paul DeLaune, CSES Department head, says. "I believe not only will Emanuel greatly benefit from this experience, but that the mentor and hosting breeding group will also greatly benefit from the positive and productive interaction."

In addition to the Borlaug honor, Nascimento recently earned first-place honors in poster competition at the Bumpers College AFLS Symposium, first place in both the oral and poster presentation divisions at the Nebraska Plant Science Symposium and a second-place finish in the poster competition at the Soybean Breeders Workshop.

Vieira is a faculty member in U of A's Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences and a researcher and scientist with the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, the research arm of the U of A System Division of Agriculture.

His soybean program seeks to identify and incorporate economically important traits from genetically diverse accessions into modern, high-yielding genetic backgrounds. Substantial efforts are also made to maximize the efficiency of the soybean breeding program through the implementation of genomic prediction and high-throughput phenotyping strategies throughout all stages of the pipeline.

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture. For more information about Bumpers College, visit our website, and follow us Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and X at @BumpersCollege.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research and Economic Development News.