Ron Knox, Ph.D.

Research Scientist

Wheat biotechnology and pathology

Current research and/or projects

Dr. Knox is a plant pathologist and geneticist developing and applying to wheat breeding DNA markers for disease resistance and other important agronomic and grain quality traits.

Research and/or project statements

Wheat Cluster: Molecular breeding, doubled haploid production, breeding for disease resistance, marker validation and adoption.
ADF/SaskWheat/Genome Prairie/Alberta Wheat: An integrated approach for enhancing Fusarium head blight resistance in durum wheat.

Key publications

Neupane A., Morrison M.J., Humphreys D.G., Cuthbert R., Knox R.,Griffiths S., Hawkesford M., Riche A., Hiebert C., Kumar S., Graf R.J. , Brauer E.K., Gahagan A.C., Hotte T., Tabori M., Wang X., McDonald E., Thomsen C., Nicoll J., Burt A.J. Multi-omics approaches for understanding yield and yield stability in wheat (Triticum aestivum). Joint annual meeting of Canadian Society of Agronomy and Canadian Weed Science Society CWSS-CSA, Halifax, Canada, November 14-17, 2022.
2022 - View publication details
Sangha et al. (2022). Spectral reflectance indices reveal wheat variety response to heat and drought stress. CSA-CWSS joint meeting, November 14-18, 2022, Halifax, NS
2022 - View publication details
Burt et al (2021) Determining the physiological basis of yield and yield stability in spring and winter wheat populations using the PlotCam. Poster & Abstract Presentation. 2021 Tri-Society Virtual Conference (CSA-CPS-CSHS). July 5-9, 2021.
2021 - View publication details
Sangha J.S., et al. (2021). Physiological responses of doubled haploid wheat lines differing in grain yield under rainfed and irrigated environments. Canadian Society of Plant Biologists annual meeting, 7-10 June 2021, Saskatoon, SK.
2021 - View publication details
Kumar, S., Fetch, T.G., Knox, R.E., Singh, A.K., Clarke, J.M., Depauw, R.M., Cuthbert, R.D., Campbell, H.L., Singh, D., Bhavani, S., Pozniak, C.J., Meyer, B., Clarke, F.R. (2021). Mapping of Ug99 stem rust resistance in Canadian durum wheat. Canadian Journal of Plant Pathology, [online] 43(4), 599-611. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07060661.2020.1843073
2021 - View publication details
Yao, Z., You, F.M., N'Diaye, A., Knox, R.E., McCartney, C., Hiebert, C.W., Pozniak, C., Xu, W. (2020). Evaluation of variant calling tools for large plant genome re-sequencing. BMC Bioinformatics, [online] 21(1), http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12859-020-03704-1
2020 - View publication details
Stefani, F., Dupont, S., Laterrière, M., Knox, R., Ruan, Y., Hamel, C., Hijri, M. (2020). Similar Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal Communities in 31 Durum Wheat Cultivars (Triticum turgidum L. var. durum) Under Field Conditions in Eastern Canada. Frontiers in Plant Science, [online] 11 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2020.01206
2020 - View publication details
Sari, E., Cabral, A.L., Polley, B., Tan, Y., Hsueh, E., Konkin, D.J., Knox, R.E., Ruan, Y., Fobert, P.R. (2019). Weighted gene co-expression network analysis unveils gene networks associated with the Fusarium head blight resistance in tetraploid wheat. BMC Genomics, [online] 20(1), http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12864-019-6161-8
2019 - View publication details
Sangha J.S., Knox R.E., Cuthbert R.D., Ruan Y., Berraies S., Soolanayakanahally R.Y. (2019). Leaf stomatal traits, ∆13C grain carbon isotope discrimination, and grain yield of an elite double haploid bread wheat population under different moisture regimes. 1st International Wheat Congress (IWC), July 21-26, 2019, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.
2019 - View publication details
Berraies, S., Cuthbert, R., Knox, R.E., Ruan, Y., Henriquez, M.A., Burt, A., Kumar, S., Pozniak, C., N’Diaye, A. 2019. Quantitative trait loci associated with resistance to fusarium head blight in a CDC hughes x AAC concord derived wheat population. 1st International Wheat Congress Saskatoon, Canada, July 21-26, 2019.
2019 - View publication details
Piché, I., Konkin, D.J., Knox, R., Menzies, J.G., Ruan, Y., Cuthbert, R., Poppy, M., Colenutt, T., and Campbell, H. 2019. Validation of exome capture sequence facilitated marker improvement for ergot resistance screening in durum wheat. 1st International Wheat Congress, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, July 21-26, 2019.
2019 - View publication details
Ruan, Y., Yu, B., Knox, R., Zhang, W., Singh, A.K., Cuthbert, R., Fobert, P., DePauw, R., Berraies, S., Sharpe, A., Fu, B.X., and Sangha, J. 2019. Mapping quantitative trait loci for grain protein concentration in Canadian durum wheat. 1st International Wheat Congress, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, July 21-26, 2019.
2019 - View publication details
Knox, R.E., Bokore, F.E., Cuthbert, R.D., Campbell, H.L., Meyer, B., Pozniak, C.J., Hiebert, C.W., McCartney, C.A., Sharpe, A., Ruan, Y., and DePauw, R.M. 2019. Identification of qtl associated with shattering in two spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) populations using high-density SNP markers. 1st International Wheat Congress, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, July 21-26, 2019.
2019 - View publication details
Zhang, W., Ruan, Y., Knox, R.E., Berraies, S., Campbell, H.L., Ragupathy, R., Boyle, K., Polley, B., Henriquez, M.A., Burt, A., Kumar, S., Cuthbert, R.D., Fobert, P.R., Buerstmayr, H., and DePauw, R. 2019. Genome wide association analysis to characterize Fusarium head blight resistance in durum wheat. 1st International Wheat Congress, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, July 21-26, 2019.
2019 - View publication details
Berraies, S., Cuthbert, R., Knox, R.E., Bokore, F., Ruan, Y., Xiao Fu, B., Henriquez, M.A., Burt, A., Kumar, S., Pozniak, C., N’Diaye, A., Sangha, J., and Meyer, B. 2019. Challenges of trait complexes in spring wheat breeding. 1st International Wheat Congress Saskatoon, Canada, July 21-26, 2019.
2019 - View publication details
Sari, E., Knox, R., Ruan, Y., Konkin, D.J., Berraies, S., Cuthbert, R., Kumar, S., Hsueh, E., Tan, Y., Fobert, P.R., Zhang, W., Cabral, A.L., Campbell, H.L., Meyer, B., and Sidebottom, C.H. 2019. High-density genetic mapping of leaf spot resistance quantitative trait loci in a durum wheat × T. Turgidum ssp. Carthlicum population. 1st International Wheat Congress, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, July 21-26, 2019.
2019 - View publication details
Zhang, W., Yu, B., Hsueh, M., Sidebottom, C., Gao, P., Polley, B., Baumann, A., Lokuruge, P., Konkin, D., Knox, R., Pozniak, C., Cuthbert, R., Ruan, Y., McCallum, B., Henriquez, M.A., K Boyle, K., Fobert, P., and Sharpe, A. 2019. Canadian wheat-nam (cannam): a powerful resource for the wheat research community. 1st International Wheat Congress, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, July 21-26, 2019.
2019 - View publication details
Sari, E., Cabral, A.L., Polley, B., Tan, Y., Konkin, D.J., Hsueh, E., Nilsen, K.T., Walkowiak, S., Haile, J.K., Pozniak, C.J., Ruan, Y., Knox, R.E., and Fobert, P.R. 2019. Insight into candidate Fusarium head blight resistance genes associated with a quantitative trait locus on chromosome 1A of Triticum turgidum ssp. Carthlicum. 1st International Wheat Congress, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, July 21-26, 2019.
2019 - View publication details
Sari, E., Cabral, A.L., Polley, B., Tan, Y., Konkin, D.J., Hsueh, E., Knox, R.E., Ruan, Y., and Fobert, P.R. 2019. Transcriptomic analysis unveils gene networks associated with the Fusarium head blight resistance transferred from Triticum turgidum ssp. carthlicum into durum wheat. International Society for Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions XVIII Congress, Glasgow, Scotland, July 14-18, 2019.
2019 - View publication details
Bokore, F.E., Sharpe, A.G., Sari, E., Boyle, K., Meyer, B., Piche, I., Knox, R., Ruan, Y., Cuthbert, R., and Campbell, H. 2019. Validation and discovery of genetic markers associated with loose smut resistance genes in a durum wheat (Triticum durum L.) doubled haploid population DT676/DT802. Plant Canada 2019, Guelph, ON, Canada, July 07-10, 2019.
2019 - View publication details