Debora Wilk

Debora Wilk has over 30 years of experience in the field of plant science. Debora began their career in 1990 as a M.Sc student at ARO, Volcani Center, where they studied the mode of action of CO2 in delaying senescence of Chervil (Anthriscus cerefolium) leaves. In 1993, they moved to The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where they completed their dissertation on the molecular basis for the regulation of ripening of Citrus fruit by growth regulators. In 1999, they began their postdoctoral research at the Department of Plant Biology, University of California, Davis, where they identified new genes and protein-protein interactions important in cellulose biosynthesis.

In 2012, Wilk joined Marrone Bio Innovations as a Senior Scientist Microbiologist, where they developed and optimized the Plant Health screening platform, and built in-house Molecular Biology capabilities and resources. Debora also screened microbial collections for plant growth promotion and moved candidates to pre-development. In 2016, they were promoted to Senior Scientist Plant Molecular Biology, where they developed gene markers and a plant gene expression analysis platform to inform the selection and isolation process of beneficial microbial teams. Debora also used Quantitative Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR) to monitor and characterize plant-microbe interactions. In 2017, Wilk was promoted to Senior Scientist BioControl at BioConsortia, Inc.

Debora Wilk received their Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem between 1994 and 1999. Debora also earned their M.Sc in Plant Physiology and Biochemistry from the same university between 1990 and 1993. Lastly, they received their B.Sc in Food Sciences from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1990.