• Physiology
• Functional genomics and biotechnology of cereal crops
• Plant hormone metabolism (emphasis on gibberellin)
• Abiotic stress tolerance
• Feedstock development for bioproducts

• Wheat breeding and genetics
• Modelling crop development and yield
• Genetics of resistance to leaf spotting diseases
• Development and evaluation of breeding methodologies
• Genetics of herbicide resistance
• Development of Fusarium Head Blight resistant germplasm
• Development of wheat for fuel and feed

 
 Douglas J. Cattani
 Acting Associate
 Department Head
 Ph.D. (Wageningen, the Netherlands)
 (204) 474-6071
 cattani@cc.umanitoba.ca

• Perennial grain breeding including grains and oilseeds
• Companion crop development
• Plant growth and development and its utilization for selection in perennial crop breeding programs
• Polyculture development

• Molecular mechanisms of plant-microbe interactions, with emphasis on plant defenses and pathogen counterdefenses
• Mechanisms of biological control of plant diseases
• Role of secodary metabolites in plant defense and defense signaling
• Role of inducers and suppressors in induced disease resistance and susceptibility

 Robert W. Duncan,
 Ph.D. (UC Davis)
(204) 474-6076
duncanrw@cc.umanitoba.ca
 

• Hybrid rapeseed/canola cultivar development.
• Conventional and herbicide tolerant rapeseed/canola breeding
• Development of end-use quality
• Breeding and genetics of disease resistance
• Brassica agronomic research.
  

  
   

• Organic cropping systems
• Long term organic vs conventional crop production systems
• Farmer participatory organic crop breeding
• Crop-livestock integration
• Tropical agriculture

 
 W.G. Dilantha Fernando
 Ph.D. (Oregon)
 (204) 474-6072
 fernando@ms.umanitoba.ca
Fernando Home Page

• Canola and wheat pathology
• Breeding for disease resistance
• Applied and molecular approaches to understanding the epidemiology of plant pathogens
• Biological control and mode of action by antagonists on plant pathogens
• Isolation, identification and characterization of microbial genes involved in pest control
• SSH techniques in host-pathogen resistance
• IPM in sustainable agricultural systems

• Gene expression in plants during resistant or susceptible interactions with fungal or bacterial pathogens
• Genetic engineering of disease resistance
• Bioinformatics

 
 Robert Gulden
 Ph.D. (Saskatchewan)
 (204) 474-6080
 gulden@cc.umanitoba.ca
 Weed Ecology & Management Lab

• Weed biology, ecology and eco-physiology
• Integrated weed management
• The impact of management techniques on weed community assembly
• Crop/weed competition
• Extracellular DNA in the environment

• Agronomy and cropping systems research
• Cover Crops
• Plant and soil interactions
• Plant and soil management to address agricultural and environmental challenges

• Plant genomics and molecular biology
• Genetic mapping, gene cloning, gene functional analysis and molecular marker development
• Gene manipulation in glucosinolates, fatty acids and seed coat color
• Resistance gene identification for blackleg, sclerotinia and clubroot in Brassica crops 

 
 Gary Martens
 P.Ag. (Manitoba)
 (204) 474-6097
 Gary_Martens@umanitoba.ca

• Certified Crop Advisor
• Expertise in field crop scouting diagnosis and crop management

• Open pollinated population and hybrid canola/rapeseed breeding
• Open pollinated population and hybrid herbicide tolerant canola/rapeseed breeding
• Agronomy and genetic studies in canola/rapeseed
• Bio-products and bio-fuels research and development

• Physiology and molecular biology of embryogenesis
• Role of hemoglobin during embryo development
• Identification of candidate genes required for proper embryo formation