HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-01: Plant Genomics and Molecular Breeding for Climate-Resilient Agriculture in Water- and Nutrient-Scarce Environments

Research expertise and potential contribution

I am Assoc. Prof. Muhammad Azhar Nadeem, Associate Professor of Plant Biotechnology at Mersin University, Türkiye, with extensive research experience in plant genomics, molecular breeding, genetic diversity, and crop improvement.

My research focuses on the application of next-generation sequencing (NGS), DNA molecular markers, genome-wide association studies (GWAS), marker–trait association analysis, and marker-assisted selection (MAS) to identify and utilize genetic variation for improving agriculturally important traits, particularly in cereals and legumes.

Within the Horizon Europe topic HORIZON-CL6-2027-02-FARM2FORK-01, I am interested in contributing genomic and molecular breeding approaches to enhance crop resilience and productivity under water- and nutrient-scarce environmental conditions.

Potential contributions to the project include:

• Characterization and evaluation of diverse crop germplasm to identify genetic resources with improved adaptation to drought, heat, and nutrient-deficient conditions.

• Identification of genomic regions and marker–trait associations underlying drought tolerance, water-use efficiency, nutrient-use efficiency, root architecture, and yield stability.

• Application of GWAS and next-generation sequencing approaches to identify candidate genomic regions and potential molecular markers associated with stress-adaptive traits.

• Development and validation of KASP and other diagnostic molecular markers for marker-assisted selection and accelerated crop improvement.

• Evaluation of genotype-by-environment interactions (G×E) to identify stable and locally adapted genotypes under contrasting environmental conditions.

• Integration of molecular, genomic, and field-based phenotypic data to support data-driven crop improvement and precision breeding.

• Identification and utilization of promising genetic resources for developing climate-resilient and resource-efficient crop varieties.

Research experience and collaboration capacity

I have participated in several national and international research projects, including ERA-NET SusCrop, COST Actions, TÜBİTAK 1001, 1003 and 1007 programmes, TAGEM-funded projects, and university-funded research projects.

My scientific contributions include more than 100 SCI/SCIE-indexed publications, over 4,700 citations, an h-index of 34, and seven edited books published by Springer. I have also been recognized among the World's Top 2% Scientists by Stanford University and Elsevier (2023–2026).

Expected collaboration

I am interested in joining an international Horizon Europe consortium as a research partner, particularly in work packages focusing on crop genetic resources, stress tolerance, molecular breeding, genomic-assisted selection, field evaluation, and the development of climate-resilient crop varieties.

I welcome collaboration with universities, agricultural research institutes, plant breeding organizations, digital agriculture specialists, technology providers, and SMEs working on precision agriculture, remote sensing, digital phenotyping, soil and crop monitoring, and sustainable crop production.

My objective is to bridge plant genomics and molecular breeding with digital agricultural innovations to accelerate the development and deployment of productive, climate-resilient, and resource-efficient crop varieties for sustainable agriculture.