Clemson University
Rick Boyles
Clemson PI
Since 2017, Boyles has led the Cereal Grains Breeding and Genetics Program at Clemson University. As a cereal crop breeder and geneticist, Boyles has published 38 research manuscripts in applied genetics and plant breeding.
The objectives of his research program are to (1) develop crop varieties and hybrids with superior performance, (2) broaden genetic diversity in breeding populations, and (3) identify useful genes and alleles for strengthening cereal crops’ resiliency.
In 2023, Boyles was Clemson University’s Junior Researcher of the Year, an award that goes to the top research faculty less than 10 years from receiving a Ph.D.
Boyles has earned a strong reputation in the global sorghum community for sorghum genomics, disease resistance, and yield improvement research. He leads a Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research project to optimize sorghum genetics that improve the grain’s nutritional makeup and incorporate health-promoting properties for humans and animals.
Boyles also worked with the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Crop Improvement (ILCI) to visit international sorghum programs, particularly in Africa, to assess field breeding capacity and provide guidance on crop improvement strategies. _________________________________________________________________________________________
Jenna Hershberger
Clemson Co - PI
Dr. Jenna Hershberger is an Assistant Professor of Vegetable Breeding and Genetics at Clemson University. She received her Ph.D. in plant breeding and genetics from Cornell University.
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Trevor Rife
Clemson Co - PI
Dr. Trevor Rife is an Assistant Professor at Clemson University. The Rife Lab focuses on developing tools, technologies, and methods for global breeding programs to encourage and facilitate digital data collection throughout the breeding process.
These phenotyping apps (PhenoApps.org) provide drop-in solutions that can be adapted to diverse plant and animal breeding systems. Field Book, the most penetrant application from this suite, is actively used by more than 6,000 plant breeders and geneticists around the world.
This global user base allows the deployment of advanced technology to thousands of breeders, including high-precision geospatial systems that allow breeders to survey individual plots and utilize this information to automatically navigate their fields as they collect phenotypes.
Other sensors augment the type of data that is being collected. Portable near-infrared spectrometers allow breeders to easily bring NIR to the field, a commonly used technique to directly or indirectly predict different traits.
With this type of tool, breeders may be able to predict complex traits like yield or protein content before any plant is actually harvested. Additional efforts aim to integrate existing image analysis techniques into routine breeding efforts. _________________________________________________________________________________________