Advisory Board and Editors Population Biology
Diaa Abd El-Moneim
My academic journey began with an MSc in Plant Breeding and Genetics at Suez Canal University, where my research focused on evaluating drought tolerance and disease resistance in wheat, providing a solid foundation in abiotic stress tolerance. This early work fueled my commitment to understanding and addressing plant resilience under stress conditions. Thanks to an Erasmus Mundus scholarship, I pursued my PhD at Complutense University of Madrid, where I investigated the molecular mechanisms underlying aluminum stress tolerance in rye. Notably, I was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship funded by AECID just before defending my thesis—a pivotal achievement that underscored the relevance of my research. This fellowship enabled me to join the National Center of Biotechnology (CNB) in Madrid. I gained expertise in proteomics, gene expression analysis, and molecular tool development to improve plant abiotic stress resilience. These experiences greatly expanded my knowledge of gene regulation and stress physiology and led to high-impact publications in peer-reviewed journals.
Dr. Abd El Moneim’s research encompasses multiple domains, including the study of morphological , physiological, and molecular mechanisms that govern plant responses to stress factors such as salinity, drought , aluminum toxicity, heat, and pathogens. His work in identifying gene families and stress-responsive proteins is complemented by his efforts to apply DNA barcoding and chloroplast genomic assemblies for species identification and development of molecular markers, as well as contributing to taxonomical and evolutionary concepts and identifying transcriptional regulators critical for stress adaptation, with particular emphasis on crops like wheat and wild plants adapted to extreme environments. His methodologies include designing and analyzing field trials , protein analysis, nucleic acid extraction, fingerprinting , GWAS , and the characterization of chloroplast genomes. Dr. Abd El Moneim’s expertise in molecular breeding and genomics focuses on improving abiotic stress tolerance in staple crops, especially for agriculture in developing countries.
Tika Adhikari
Dr. Adhikari is a principal research scholar and plant pathologist at the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology at North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC. His research interests include exploring population biology, genetic mapping, and plant-pathogen interactions, as well as developing molecular tools for pathogen detection. His work also focuses on improving management practices to enhance plant health and mitigate bacterial and fungal diseases in tomatoes and strawberries.
Sharif S Aly
As a veterinary epidemiologist I specialize in dairy cattle infectious diseases and welfare. I received my veterinary medicine degree from Cairo University (1998), practiced for two years before completing the Food Animal Production Medicine Internship at the Caine Veterinary Teaching Center at the U of Idaho, followed by the Food Animal Reproduction and Herd Health Residency at U of California, Davis. I completed my masters and doctoral degrees at UC Davis in Preventive Veterinary Medicine and Epidemiology, respectively.
Elizabeth A Archie
Associate Professor of Biology at the University of Notre Dame. Associate Director of the Amboseli Baboon Research Project in Kenya. Elizabeth Archie received her PhD from Duke University. She was an undergraduate at Bowdoin College.
The goal of our research is to understand the evolutionary costs and benefits of social relationships, especially how these evolutionary consequences pertain to individual health, disease risk, and survival.
Our research follows two main strands:
* How do social organization and behavior influence the spread of infectious organisms, including bacteria and parasites?
* How does an individual’s social context influence their physiology, immune responses, and life span?
Esteban Balseiro
Dr. Esteban Balseiro is a CONICET Researcher and Professor of Ecology at University of Comahue, Argentina. His area of interest is plankton ecology, food web interaction and ecological stoichiometry. In addition, to this he also researches stream ecology, ecological stoichiometry of aquatic insects and effect of climate change on freshwater food webs.
Gianni Barcaccia
Since 2017, Dr. Gianni Barcaccia is a full Professor of Plant Genetics and Genomics at the School of Agriculture Science and Veterinary Medicine of the University of Padova (Italy) and Adjunct Professor of Plant Breeding at the University of Georgia, Athens (USA). Education: M.Sc. degree in Plant Genetics and Breeding in 1991 and Ph.D. title on Plant Reproductive Systems and Population Genetics in 1995 at the University of Perugia, Italy. Tenured Professor of Plant Genetics and Genomics at the University of Padova from 2001 to 2016.
Head of the Department of Agronomy Food Natural resources Animals and Environment (DAFNAE) at the University of Padova for the academic years 2019-2023 (www.dafnae.unipd.it). Vice-director and Coordinator of the Department Commissions for Scientific Research, Technology Transfer and Third Mission from 2014 to 2019.
Head of the Laboratory of Genomics for Plant Breeding, University of Padova. Research expertise on plant reproductive systems and barriers (male-sterility, self-incompatibility and apomixis), use of molecular markers for population genetics and genomics selection, and marker-assisted breeding. Principal investigator of BreedOmics, a laboratory service of genomics for breeding populations and for genetic identification of varieties and genetic authentication of their foodstuffs. Molecular techniques: DNA fingerprinting, SSR genotyping, SNP haplotyping, DNA barcoding, NGS sequencing (www.giannibarcaccia.com).
Patrick Bergeron
Patrick Bergeron is an associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Bishop's University
His research centers around questions about the ecology, physiology and evolution of vertebrates. Under this large umbrella, work is separated into three main projects, on
Chipmunks, Humans and Wood frogs.
Trine Bilde
Professor in Evolutionary Biology at the Department of Biology at Aarhus University in Denmark.
Viktor V. Brygadyrenko
Dr. Viktor Brygadyrenko is an Associate Professor in the Department of Zoology and Ecology at Oles Honchar Dnipro National University.
His main scientific projects include:
- Effect of heavy metal ions on the development of invertebrates.
- Morphological variability in populations of beetles in conditions of anthropogenically altered ecosystems.
- Trophic relations of species in litter macrofauna of Ukraine.
- Structure of litter macrofauna communities in forest ecosystems of Ukraine.
- Influence of medicinal plants, flavourings and source materials, approved for use in and on foods, on eggs and larvae of nematodes of mammals.
- Ecological niches of ground beetles (Coleoptera, Carabidae) in Ukraine.
- Morphometric variation in ground beetles.
Anthony Caravaggi
Dr. Anthony Caravaggi is a Lecturer in Conservation Biology and course leader for BSc (Hons) Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the The University of South Wales.
His work is broadly focussed on conducting research that increases understanding of species ecologies and informs conservation and management processes.
Gabriele Casazza
My current research interests focus on the study of biogeography and conservation of endemic plants. Research topics include the effects of past and future climate change, the reproductive biology, the phylogeography and the taxonomy.
Federica Costantini
Dr. Federica Costantini is a marine ecologist and associate professor at the University of Bologna, Italy.
Her primary research includes biodiversity conservation and resource management using integrative tools based on morphology and genetics.