Bourlaye Fofana, Ph.D.

Cultivated potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is the third most consumed food crop after rice and wheat. Potato is an auto tetraploid crop species having a highly heterozygous genetic base and a complex genome making its genetic studies tedious. Recently, diploid potato breeding has regained interest in the potato genetics community. Genetically, diploid potatoes are easy to work with and can be used in the cultivated potato breeding process as genetic resources and also they can be grown on their own as varieties. However, diploid breeding continuum faces many challenges including anti-nutritional factors and self-incompatibilities. Whereas conventional breeding strategies contributed to the releasing of varieties with low SGA, substantial resources are still required to minimizing these anti-nutritional factors. Recently, we developed and characterized an ethyl methane sulfonate mutagenized pre-breeding diploid potato population for identifying lines with low anti-nutritional factors. The data will be presented and discussed in relation to the high potential for diploid potatoes as a complement to tetraploid potatoes and in pre-and post-harvest management contexts.

https://www.eventscribe.com/2018/ASPB/searchbyposterbucket.asp?pfp=PosterBucket

https://pag.confex.com/pag/xxvi/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/30375

RNA transcriptome DGE deciphering between resistant and susceptible potato cultivars to common scab

2018 - View publication details

Fofana, B., Ghose, K., McCallum, J.L., Somalraju, A., Cloutier, S., Deyholos, M.K., and Rowland, G.G. (2016). "Developing EMS flax mutant lines with altered SDG lignan glucosides.", PAGXXIV 2016, San Diego, USA, January 9-13, 2016.

Bizimungu, B., B Fofana, D. Main, J. McCallum, L. Kawchuk, and H. Tai. (2016) Development and characterization of diploid potato lines with agronomic and processing traits. “Breeding”, 100th Annual Meeting of The Potato Association of America, July 31- August 4, 2016, Amway Grand Plaza Hotel, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA. (Presentation) http://potatoassociation.org/

Alkhnajari, A., Ghose, K., Somalraju, A., Samis, K., and Fofana, B. (2015). "Metagenomics of the buckwheat rhizophere's microbial diversity in wireworm-infested and non-infested soils.", UPEI Graduate Day, UPEI, MacDougall Hall, May 2015.

Somalraju, A., Alkhnajari, A., Ghose, K., Main, D., and Fofana, B. (2015). "Use of NGS and Phenotyping for Developing EMS-Mutagenized Pre-breeding Potato lines Potentially Low In Anti-nutritional Factors.", Botany 2015 Joint Conference: Science and plants for people, Shaw Convention Center, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, July 25-30, 2015. (Poster)

Somalraju, A., Alkhnajari, A., Ghose, K., Main, D., and Fofana, B. (2015). "Characterizing EMS-Mutagenized pre-breeding potato lines using NGS and Phenotyping.", UPEI Graduate Day, UPEI, MacDougall Hall, May 2015. (Poster)