Global Biotech Potato Partnership researcher receives leadership award
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EmailGlobal Biotech Potato Partnership researcher receives leadership award.
Mary Mwangi is a researcher based at the International Potato Center (CIP) in Nairobi, Kenya and a 2024 AGBT's (Advances in Genome Biology and Technology Agriculture) Next Gen Leadership Award receipent. The award is given to graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and early-career researchers.
Mary explains her work and impact of the award.
"I am a research assistant at International Potato Center (CIP) based in Kenya. My research focuses on Bacteria Wilt disease of potato which is the second devastating potato disease after Late blight in Kenya. It is caused by a vascular bacteria known as Ralstonia solanacearum. Being a soilborne pathogen, there has been limited control methods, another great challenge has been smallholder farmers are known to recycle tubers in different planting seasons.
Under the Global Biotech Potato Partnership in collaboration with The Sainsbury Laboratory (TSL), UK we bioengineered farmer preferred and promising potato varieties against bacterial wilt disease by leveraging on host resistance.
As an early-career African female scientist being recognized at AGBT Ag ’24 a preeminent genome science and technology conference as one of AGBT’s Next Gen Leadership Award recipient it was very validating moment for me. This award has given me confidence and motivation to continue working on bringing sustainable agricultural solutions, to smallholder farmers using biotechnology tools.
Another highlight was presenting a poster on the promising results from greenhouse bioassays titled Development of Bacterial Wilt Resistant Potato Using Efr, Roq1 and Jim2 Genes."
Congratulations Mary!
