Center of Biotechnology & Plant Breeding
Special mission: resilient crop development with marker-assisted selection and phenotype-to-genotype pipelines.
Focus
- Marker-Assisted Selection: Development and validation of molecular marker panels (SSR, SNP, KASP) for accelerated trait-targeted breeding cycles.
- Genetic Engineering: CRISPR/Cas9 and T-DNA insertion strategies for targeted gene editing in staple crops to enhance yield, stress tolerance, and nutritional quality.
- High-Throughput Phenotyping: Image-based and sensor-driven platforms for rapid, scalable trait measurement across large field and greenhouse populations.
- Climate-Resilient Crop Development: Breeding programs targeting drought, salinity, and heat tolerance using integrated genomic and physiological data.
- Bioinformatics Pipelines: QTL mapping, GWAS, and genomic prediction workflows for linking genotype to phenotype at population scale.
- Automated lab workflows for DNA extraction, genotyping, and data quality control.
- Decision support tools to optimize crossing designs and accelerate selection cycles.
Research Domains
Molecular Breeding
Marker-assisted backcrossing and forward selection pipelines for introgressing beneficial alleles into elite lines. Standardized SSR and SNP marker panels with automated QC ensure reproducibility across breeding seasons.
Genetic Engineering
CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing and transgenic approaches for improving crop traits. Current targets include drought-responsive transcription factors, pest resistance genes, and biofortification pathways in rice and wheat.
High-Throughput Phenotyping
UAV-mounted multispectral cameras, ground-based LiDAR, and RGB imaging for non-destructive phenotyping at scale. Machine learning models extract canopy architecture, NDVI, and biomass estimates from raw sensor data.
Genomics & Bioinformatics
Whole-genome sequencing, GWAS, and genomic selection models for large breeding populations. Custom bioinformatics pipelines for SNP calling, imputation, haplotype phasing, and polygenic trait prediction.
Climate-Resilient Crops
Multi-environment field trials and controlled-stress screening for heat, drought, and salinity tolerance. Integration of physiological markers with genomic data to identify and pyramid stress tolerance QTLs.
Breeding Decision Support
Data-driven tools for cross combination planning, progeny evaluation, and harvest scheduling. Statistical models help breeders prioritize candidates and reduce the number of generations required to fix desirable traits.
Active Projects
Marker Suite
Standardized SSR and SNP marker panels with automated QC workflows. Deployed across multiple crop species for trait introgression and diversity assessment in collaborative breeding programs.
Phenotype Engine
Integrated image acquisition, segmentation, and trait extraction pipeline for field and greenhouse trials. Supports multi-environment trial harmonization and automatic outlier flagging for large-scale datasets.
Cycle Accelerator
Breeding management platform combining genomic selection predictions with field logistics. Reduces selection cycle duration by prioritizing crosses based on predicted genetic gain and environmental fitness scores.