Sivakumar Swaminathan

Position: Research Scientist II

Education History

• 2022 – Ph.D. Entomology, Indian Agricultural Research, Institute New Delhi, India
• 1997 – M.S. Entomology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, TN, India
• 1995 – B.S. Agriculture, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, TN, India

Biography

25 years of research experiences that Dr. Swaminathan gained at Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), International Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) and Iowa State University (ISU) contributed to his success in the field of host plant-insect/pathogens interactions and contributed to his inter-disciplinary knowledge in the field of Agriculture, Molecular genetics, Microbiology, Genomics, Biochemistry and Biotechnology. Apart from learning, Dr. Swaminathan has great enthusiasm to give the knowledge that he gained to others and enjoys mentoring PhD and undergraduate students.

Current Project:  

Evaluation and understanding the molecular biology of soybean biotic and abiotic stress tolerance

Soybean production is heavily affected by both biotic and abiotic stress. At Midwest of USA, soybean yield is reduced by soybean cyst nematode (SCN), sudden death syndrome (SDS), white mold, drought, flood, iron deficiency chlorosis (IDC), etc. The current project is mainly focused on breeding soybean lines resistant to these biotic and abiotic stresses and understanding molecular factors/genes governs the resistance to these stresses. Part of the project is to develop molecular markers to speed up the breeding process and cultivar releases.