People

James PM Santiago, Ph.D.  (he/him/his), Assistant Professor of Horticulture

James' interests range from horticulture research to cell biochemistry, metabolism, plant nutrition, and stress physiology. During his free time, James loves to read horror novels and watch horror movies. He also dabbled in watercolor painting but soon realized that he should stick to reading novels and watching movies. 

Education & Training

Postdoctoral Fellowship, Michigan State University

Ph.D. Molecular Plant Sciences, Washington State University

M.S. Horticulture, University of Maine

B.S. Agriculture/Horticulture, University of the Philippines Los Baños

Previous Positions:

Senior Scientist, Soli Organic, 2023-2025

Scientist, Soli Organic, 2022-2023

Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Sharkey Lab, Michigan State University, 2018-2022

Yuta Inoue, Ph.D. Student

Yuta is interested in the effects of aboveground (air temperature, humidity, light, CO2) and belowground environments (pH, EC, nutrients, water temperature, dissolved oxygen) on crop production in controlled environments. As a research intern and then visiting fellow at Cornell University under the supervision of Dr. Neil Mattson,  his research focused on water, nutrient, and energy use efficiency in leafy green production as a function of light intensity and spectrum.  Here at U of I, Yuta seeks to further understand the mechanisms of water and nutrient absorption in response to light and connect them to crop production practices to improve plant yield and economic viability of CEA production. Yuta joined the lab in Fall 2025.

Education

Research Intern/Visiting Fellow, Cornell University

M.S. Bioresource Sciences, Nihon University, Japan

B.S. Bioresource Sciences, Nihon University, Japan

Gunho Lee, M.S. Student

Gunho's research focuses on evaluating foliar-applied biostimulants as a sustainable solution to promote pollen thermotolerance in tomato under high temperature. To combat heat stress, he seeks to understand how biostimulant treatments support carbon and nutrient metabolism in reproductive sink tissues under elevated temperatures through physiological and biochemical approaches. Gunho joined the lab in Spring 2026.

Education

B.S. Crop Sciences, Chungbuk National University, South Korea

Raúl Pacheco, Visiting Ph.D. Student

Raúl's research focuses on improving mushroom production and quality by understanding how environmental factors, particularly ultraviolet radiation, affect growth, nutritional composition, and secondary metabolism. His work combines metabolomics and transcriptomics to investigate stress responses in Pleurotus djamor and develop strategies to enhance mushroom production and nutritional value.

Education

Ph.D. in Biosystems Engineering, Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro, Mexico — 2025–present  

M.Sc. in Biosystems Engineering, Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro, Mexico  

Specialization in Food Safety, Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro, Mexico  

B.Sc. in Microbiology, Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro, Mexico

Diana Karina Rangel Sandoval, Visiting M.S. Student

Karina’s research explores the value-added processing and seed germination of native plant resources, focusing on the characterization of bioactive compounds with antidiabetic and health-promoting properties. Her interdisciplinary approach combines metabolic profiling and functional screening to transform these species into high-value ingredients and natural extracts with applications in functional foods, nutraceuticals, and preventive medicine.

Education

M.S. Biosystems Engineering, Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro, México (2025 – Present)

B.S. Microbiology, Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro, México