KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Phillip Myer, an associate professor in the Department of Animal Science at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, has been awarded the Outstanding Early Career Animal Scientist Award in Research by the American Society of Animal Science (ASAS). The award recognizes outstanding achievements for early career scientists in the area of research activity.
Myer received the award during the Award Ceremony at the 2023 ASAS Southern Section Annual Meeting in Raleigh, North Carolina, on January 23.
Hongwei Xin, dean of UT AgResearch within the UT Institute of Agriculture, congratulates Myer. “Dr. Myer richly deserves this early career award due to his excellent work and dedication to advancing agriculture through improved beef production,” he said.
Among his many honors and awards, Myer received the T.J. Whatley Distinguished Young Scientist Award from UTIA in 2021. This honor recognizes a young scientist who has less than 12 years of professional experience and a minimum of five years of service on the agricultural faculty.
At UTIA, Myer’s research focuses on gut microbiology in beef cattle with an emphasis on the rumen microbiome and its significance to feed efficiency and nutritional physiology. His research has resulted in regional, national and international invitations to speak and has informed reports to congress on advancing agriculture. He helped create the web site rumenmicrobes.utk.edu, where anyone can learn about the science of microorganisms and animal nutrition.
Myer received his B.S. in Biology from Bradley University in 2008 and his Ph.D. in Microbiology in 2013 from Purdue University. As a postdoctoral researcher, he worked at the USDA-ARS-US Meat Animal Research Center from 2013-2015 researching gut microbiome impacts on nutrition and feed efficiency in finishing beef steers. Myer has secured over of $2 million in extramural support and has over 170 publications, including 48 refereed journal articles, two books/chapters, and 74 abstracts. He has advised nine M.S. and three Ph.D. students, four international interns, and three visiting scholars.
ASAS fosters the discovery, sharing and application of scientific knowledge concerning the care and responsible use of animals to enhance animal and human health and well-being.
Through its land-grant mission of research, teaching and extension, the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture touches lives and provides Real. Life. Solutions. utia.tennessee.edu.
