BLACKSBURG, Virginia, Nov. 18 -- Virginia Tech issued the following news: With expertise in plant pathology, entomology, and molecular biology, Shirin Parizad is well-equipped to address the challenges posed by vector-borne plant viruses in agricultural fields. While obtaining her Ph.D. in plant pathology from the University of Tehran, she realized that understanding insect vectors or how insects transmit disease is critical for minimizing the transmission of plant viruses in crops. After dec  more