Plant Breeding Seminar - April 17th, 2024 3:10 room 2020 Agronomy Hall 

Join us (2020 Agronomy Hall) for a presentation by Eli Rodgers-Melnick

Title: "From Cells to Satellites: Using AI to Accelerate Breeding 4.0"

Eli Rodgers-Melnick began his work in maize genetics as a postdoc in the laboratory of Ed Buckler at Cornell University, where he studied the dynamics of maize recombination and chromatin architecture. In 2016, he joined DuPont Pioneer – now Corteva Agriscience –  as a research scientist in the Breeding Technologies group in Johnston, IA. 

Eli started his career in industry by developing a cross-organizational, multi-crop imputation framework for quickly integrating the genomic resources of the legacy organizations that joined to form Corteva. Since then, he has pioneered several major initiatives in statistical machine learning and deep learning by applying domain knowledge in quantitative genetics and genomics. In 2022 he was elected a Corteva R&D Laureate. He currently leads the Artificial Intelligence in Breeding group, focused on discovery research in genomic prediction, modelling GxE interactions, novel phenotyping analytics, and genome editing. 

Abstract: Recent advancements in genomics, genome editing, and high-throughput/automated phenotyping have revolutionized the evaluation and selection of breeding germplasm. These advancements have paved the way for genotyping and phenotyping at scale, allowing for the routine deployment of genomic prediction to efficiently identify superior genetics prior to field evaluation. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence (AI) has shown its versatility in processing complex, unstructured data from diverse sources such as imagery, natural language, and videos. The adoption of AI in plant breeding, inside and outside of industry, is still in its early stages but rapidly advancing. In my presentation, I will outline the implementation of key AI techniques in Corteva's plant breeding pipeline, from the initial characterizations of germplasm to the most pioneering endeavors in genome editing. This discussion will provide insights into how AI is reshaping the workflows and outcomes of modern plant breeding.

Zoom link: https://iastate.zoom.us/j/94094044904?pwd=S2tsV29zbmE0bHpBeFZvdlRtYWlkUT09