Plant Breeding Seminar Series

Wednesday, February 18th, 2026

Agronomy 3140, 3:00 – 4:00 pm

“Trends in stomatal density and size in maize hybrids representing 100 years of long-term breeding for yield"
Memis Bilgici,

Description: Maize hybrid breeding over the past century has increased yield and vigor through improved genetics alongside greater fertilizer and pesticide use, higher planting densities, and mechanization. Because stomata respond to rising atmospheric CO₂ and temperature anomalies, we examined stomatal traits in Corteva ERA maize hybrids spanning 100 years. Across 27 hybrids, stomatal density increased while stomatal size and leaf area declined, resulting in reduced total stomatal pore area per leaf—driven mainly by smaller leaves. Total pore area also decreased in relation to historical increases in CO₂ and temperature, consistent with climate-driven adaptation. This study provides the first crop-focused evidence that long-term breeding coincided with shifts in stomatal traits.

Memiş Bilgici is a PhD candidate in Plant Breeding at Iowa State University, supervised by Dr. Thomas Lübberstedt, studying within the REGENPGC (Regenerative Perennial Ground Cover Crops-PGC) Project (https://www.regenpgc.org/). He has a BS in Agricultural Engineering from Ankara University and an MS degree from Bangor University (UK), and previously worked at the Ministry of Agriculture in Türkiye.

His research investigates maize breeding and the physiological and genetic basis of adaptation to PGC systems, addressing whether dedicated maize breeding programs are needed for PGC. He evaluates ISU-DH genotypes and Corteva germplasm in field and studies shade-avoidance responses and stomatal traits, examining how these traits relate to yield stability and environmental adaptation. 

“Identifying useful and beneficial exotic maize germplasm using sparse testing designs”
Kiara Kappelmann,

Bio/Description of research: Kiara Kappelmann is a PhD candidate in Plant Breeding at Iowa State University co-advised by Dr. Adam Vanous and Dr. Jianming Yu. Her research is funded by the USDA-ARS Germplasm Enhancement of Maize (GEM) Program, and focuses on integrating genomics, doubled-haploid populations, and designed testing schemes to improve the evaluation and utilization of exotic maize germplasm.  This work includes sparse testing designs and multi-environment field trials, soon to be coupled with genomic data to be used for generating predictions and informing selections of exotic-derived germplasm. A robust phenotypic dataset has been generated that will be publicly released alongside corresponding genotypic data, providing a resource for both public and private breeding efforts.

"Investigating the genetic control of monoterpene yield in Monarda fistulosa"
Austin Jones,

Description: Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot) is a perennial mint (Lamiaceae) species native to the prairie ecosystems of the Midwest United States.  Interest is growing in M. fistulosa extracts for both human health and animal production applications, due to the unique chemical profile of essential oils and solvent extracts, which vary for the predominance and total accumulation of various monoterpenes.  In this context, a breeding program has been initiated to develop varieties which are suitable for large scale production of biomass highly concentrated in target monoterpenes.  With genomic resources lacking in M. fistulosa, we propose to investigate the genetic control of traits influencing monoterpene yield by 1) completing whole genome sequencing and de novo assembly to establish a high-quality reference genome, and 2) utilize a panel of 375 diverse clonal lines to facilitate association studies and causal gene identification for the traits of interest.  These traits include monoterpene identity and accumulation level, oil-bearing trichome density on leaves, leaf:stem ratio, spring emergence, and flowering time.

Austin Jones is a PhD graduate student in plant breeding under the co-supervision of Dr. Maria Salas-Fernandez and Dr. Pat Schnable. Austin received a BS and MS from the University of Northern Iowa, both in biology. He has since worked in industry, spending two years at Corteva Agriscience in various maize research group. He spent the past 10 years at his current employer, Kemin Industries (Des Moines, IA), as part of a small team of plant scientists who breed and develop specialty crops for the commercial production of plant-derived chemical ingredients.