Deborah Ngunengen Oluwasanya
Graduate Student, Soil and Crop Sciences, Cornell University

 Research Group: Dr. Tim Setter
The goal of my research is to facilitate the breeding of improved cassava varieties through more reliable flowering. To achieve this, I am studying (1) the role of abiotic factors on flower induction (especially ambient temperature). This is because daylength in the tropics do not change significantly throughout the year whereas cassava is a tropical crop. (2) the role of phytohormones (specifically cytokinins) on post-induction developmental processes - namely flower longevity and proliferation. (3) the regulation of gene expression in response to above named factors. Studies are carried out under field conditions in Nigeria exploiting diverse agroecologies that result in contrasting flowering behaviours of identical cassava clones as well as under controlled conditions (green house and growth chamber) in Ithaca.