Horticulture: Personnel : Faculty

Peggy Ozias-Akins

Professor

Coastal Plain Research Station
Tifton, GA 31793

Campus:  Tifton
Phone:  229-386-3902
Email:  pozias@uga.edu

The research program in my lab focuses on female reproduction and gene transfer in plants. Apomixis is a naturally occurring mode of reproduction that results in embryo formation without the involvement of meiosis or fertilization of the egg. Seed-derived progeny of an apomictic plant are genetically identical to the maternal parent. In order to assist the conventional transfer of apomixis into pearl millet as well as enhance the potential for introduction of this trait across taxonomic boundaries through gene transfer, we have an ongoing molecular marker program to tag and clone the gene(s) for apomixis.

We also have developed a reproducible transformation system for peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) that can result in the production of dozens of independently transformed cell lines after microprojectile bombardment of embryogenic peanut tissues. Many of the genes we are introducing, such as a synthetic Bacillus thuringiensis insecticidal crystal protein gene, tomato anionic peroxidase, and a soybean lipoxygenase gene should offer resistance strategies for targeting Aspergillus flavus and aflatoxin contamination of peanut.

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