Omics Technologies and Crop Improvement

Noureddine Benkeblia is a professor of crop science involved in food science, focusing on food-plants biochemistry and physiology. His work is mainly devoted to pre- and postharvest metabolism in crops. A few years ago, he introduced a new concept in systems biology-metabolomics-to investigate the mechanisms of biosynthesis and accumulation of fructans in liliaceous plants. Professor Benkeblia received his BSc, MPhil, and Doctor in Food Sciences from the Institut National Agronomique (Algeria) and Doctor in Agriculture (PhD) from Kagoshima University (Japan). After a few years teaching in Algeria, he joined the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, Avignon, France, as a postdoctoral scientist from 2000. From 2002 to 2007, he worked as a visiting professor at the University of Rakuno Gakuen, Ebetsu, Japan, and research associate at Hokaido University.Professor Benkeblia joined the Department of Life Sciences, the University of the West Indies, Jamaica, in 2008, continuing his work on the physiology, biochemistry, and metabolomics of fructan-containing plants in Jamaica. He also works on the postharvest physiology and biochemistry of local fruits. Professor Benkeblia has published over 150 papers, and over 37 books and book chapters, and has been the recipient of many awards, including the University of the West Indies Award for the Most Outstanding Researcher in 2011 and 2013.

• Omics Databases and Gene Expression Networks in Plant Sciences. Foodomics Strategies for the Analysis of Genetically Modified Crops. Genomics in Hardwood Tree Improvement: Applications of a Growing Resource. MicroRNA Omics Approaches to Investigate Abiotic and Biotic Stress Responses in Plants. Genome-Wide View of the Expression Profiles of NAC-Domain Genes in Response to Infection by Rice Viruses. Plant Molecular Breeding: Perspectives from Plant Biotechnology and Marker-Assisted Selection. A Comprehensive Forage Development Model for Advancing the Agricultural and Rural Economy of Pakistan through Integration of Agronomic and Omics Approaches. New Approaches for Detection of Unique Qualities of Small Fruits. Marker-Assisted Selection in Coffee. Advances in Papaya Genomics. Advances in Omics for Improved Onion and Potato Quality. Omics-Based Approaches for Improvement of the Common Bean. Genomics, Transcriptomics, and Molecular Breeding for Improving Cereals. Next-Generation Sequencing: Principle and Applications to Crops. Linking Plant Amino Acids with Energy and Stress: A Systems Biology Perspective.