Potato is the most important non-cereal in the world and is the fourth largest crop after wheat, rice and corn. It is an important part of the diet of over 1.5 billion people. A primary interest of our group is to maximize the nutritional potential of potatoes. As the most eaten vegetable by far in the United States, potato is uniquely positioned to be a major source of vitamins and phytonutrients in the diet.  Because of the high consumption, a nutritionally maximized potato would be a major source of dietary phytonutrients and health-promoting compounds. We are using multiple complimentary approaches towards this goal, including LCMS targeted metabolic profiling of diverse potato germplasm to identify genotypes particularly rich in desirable compounds. We are also working with potato breeders to use the results of our metabolic profiling to develop new lines through traditional breeding. Finally we are using molecular approaches for phytonutrient manipulation, including phenolics and folate.

We are also interested in developing new potato genotypes with superior disease resistance, thereby decreasing the cost of production and reducing pesticide usage.  Scientific progress towards understanding how plants resist disease accelerated at a remarkable pace during the last decade, primarily due to the availability of increasingly powerful molecular and biochemical tools. Ultimately, such research will lead to the production of healthy, superior plants with high natural levels of disease and stress resistance—characteristics increasingly important not only for demanding consumers and profitability, but for feeding a burgeoning global population.

Primary Research Projects:

1.      Identification, characterization and development of potato varieties with enhanced nutritional properties.

2.      Characteriziation of secondary metabolites/small molecules that have health-promoting properties or that are involved in potato pest/pathogen resistance.

3.      Analysis of potato disease resistance mechanisms and defense signaling.