W.Va. State University Welcomes Renowned Scientist for Free Seminar

10/30/2013

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Contact: Kimberly Osborne
(304) 766-3363
kosborne@wvstateu.edu    
INSTITUTE, W.Va. – Dr. Boddupalli Prasanna, director of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) Global Maize Program in Nairobi, Kenya, will present a free seminar on the campus of West Virginia State University (WVSU) Friday, Nov. 1, at 1 p.m. in Hamblin Hall, room 107.  

“It is a great honor for WVSU scientists and students working on various crop biotechnology programs to host an international leader like Dr. Boddupalli Prasanna,” said Dr. Umesh Reddy, associate professor of biology at WVSU. “Dr. Prasanna is currently leading maize genetics in an effort to feed third world countries across the globe.”

Reddy, along with WVSU associate research professor Dr. Padma Nimmakayala, traveled with a group of students to CIMMYT in Kenya for two weeks over the summer to study disease resistance in crops, changing climates and environmental conditions. This was part of a collaboration between WVSU and several non-profit agricultural research organizations in Asia, Africa and Mexico.

Prasanna will discuss “Germplasm Characterization and Molecular Breeding for Tropical Maize Improvement” at the seminar, which is open to the public.

As the CIMMYT Global Maize Program Director, Prasanna leads a strong team of maize scientists focused on the development and dissemination of high-yielding, stress-resilient and nutritionally enriched maize cultivars. He works in close collaboration with an array of public and private institutions and has helped build partnerships with leading multinational companies for leveraging cutting-edge technologies for maize improvement.

Prasanna’s current global maize program is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, whose primary goal is to enhance health care and reduce extreme poverty worldwide, as well as expand educational opportunities and access to information technology across the United States.

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West Virginia State University is a public, land grant, historically black university, which has evolved into a fully accessible, racially integrated, and multi‐generational institution, located in Institute, W.Va. As a “living laboratory of human relations,” the university is a community of students, staff, and faculty committed to academic growth, service and preservation of the racial and cultural diversity of the institution. Its mission is to meet the higher education and economic development needs of the state and region through innovative teaching and applied research.