Samir C Debnath

Title : Technological advances for in vitro culture and genetic enhancement of horticultural crops

Abstract:

I n vitro and molecular techniques are important biotechnological tools that can speed up production technologies in horticultural crops. Small fruits including Fragaria (strawberry; Rosaceae), Rubus (brambles: raspberry and blackberry; Rosaceae) and Vaccinium (blueberry, cranberry and lingonberry; Ericaceae) are commercially important health-promoting horticultural crops that are believed to have significant role in anti-tumor, anti-ulcer, anti-oxidant and antiinflammatory activities. Lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium spp. L.), cranberry (V. macrocarpon Ait.) and lingonberry (V. vitis-idaea L.) are three berry crops important to Canadian cool climates. Wildberry production systems are changing to a more intensive cultivated system leading to an urgent need for developing new techniques for selecting and establishing high-yielding, quality crops which are well-adapted to diverse biotic and abiotic conditions. The presentation concentrates on: wild berry germplasm characterization at molecular, biochemical and morphological levels and their utilization in hybrid development using in vitro and molecular techniques. Technological advances in bioreactor micropropagation in a liquid medium and use of in vitro and molecular techniques in hybrid development of berry crops have been described in detail. Epigenetic studies in micropropagated plants and biodiversity analysis in wild germplasm will contribute significantly in planning future production and improvement programs of horticultural crops.

Biography:

Dr. Samir C. Debnath, P.Ag. is a Research Scientist at the St. John’s Research and Development Centre of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) in Newfoundland and Labrador and an Adjunct Professor of Biology at the Memorial University of Newfoundland. He has authored and co-authored more than 100 publications in peer-reviewed journals including review papers and book chapters. He has been a keynote speaker and an invited speaker at a number of international and national conferences and meetings, was the President of the Newfoundland and Labrador Institute of Agrologists (P.Ag.) and the Canadian Society for Horticultural Science, and the Editor-in-Chief of the journal: Scientia Horticulturae. He is the Country Representative for Canada and the Council Member of the International Society for Horticultural Science. His research concerns biotechnology along with conventional method-based value-added small fruit and medicinal plant production, propagation and genetic enhancement. Much of his current work focuses on wild germplasm, antioxidant activity, biodiversity and micropropagation for berry crop improvement using in vitro and molecular techniques combined with conventional methods.