Research Interests
Interested in the development of improved germplasm and products. Keen to integrate and utilize multi-disciplinary approach and tools to modernize the breeding programs, and for speedy development of the products and efficient management of resources.
Education
Ph.D., Agronomy, Specialization in Plant Breeding and Genetics
University of Nebraska - Lincoln, May 2017
- Advisor: Dr. Stephen Baenziger
- Dissertation: “Development of High-Density Linkage Map and QTL Mapping For Agronomic Traits in Bread Wheat Evaluated Across Multiple Rainfed Environments”
M.S., Plant Breeding and Genetics
SKUAST-K, Srinagar, India, December 2011
- Advisor: Dr. Gulzar Singh Sanghera
- Dissertation: “ Genetic Studies on Heterosis and Combining Ability for Hybrid Rice (Oryza sativa) Development Under Temperate Conditions”
B.S., Agriculture
SKUAST-K, Srinagar, India, June 2009
Professional Positions
Rice Breeder (Scientist-I)
September 2019 to present
Rice Breeding platform
International Rice Research Institute, Los Banos, Philippines
100% Research
Wheat Breeder (Associate Scientist-II)
May 2017 to December 2017
Maharashtra Hybrid Seed Company (MAHYCO), Aurangabad, Jalna, India
100% Research
Research Experience
Postdoctoral Research Associate
March 2018 to July 2019
Department of Animal Sciences and Agronomy and Horticulture, University of Nebraska –Lincoln
Ph. D (ICAR International Fellow and Graduate Research Assistantship)
January 2014 to April 2017
Research Fellow (INSPIRE Fellowship)
March 2012 to December 2013
Agricultural University, CSKHPKV, Palampur India
Graduate Research Assistant (M.S.)
June 2009 to December 2011
Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
Hussain, et al .2018. Variance heterogeneity genome-wide mapping for cadmium in bread wheat reveals novel genomic loci and epistatic interactions. The Plant Genome.
Paul P, Dhatt BK, Sandhu J, et al. Divergent phenotypic response of rice accessions to transient heat stress during early seed development. Plant Direct. 2020;4:1–13.
Kariyawasam, G. K., Hussain, W., Easterly, A., Guttieri, M., Belamkar, V., Poland, J., et al. 2018. Identification of quantitative trait loci conferring resistance to tan spot in a biparental population derived from two Nebraska hard red winter wheat cultivars. Mol Breeding. 38.
Hussain, W., Campbell, M., Walia, H., and Morota, G. 2018. ShinyAIM: Shiny-based application of interactive Manhattan plots for longitudinal genome-wide association studies. Plant Direct. 2:e00091.
Sallam, A., Mourad, A. M. I., Hussain, W., and Stephen Baenziger, P. 2018. Genetic variation in drought tolerance at seedling stage and grain yield in low rainfall environments in wheat. Euphytica. 214:169.
Hussain, W., Guttieri, M. J., Belamkar, V., Poland, J., Sallam, A., and Baenziger, P. S. 2018. Registration of a bread wheat recombinant inbred line mapping population derived from a cross between ‘Harry’ and ‘Wesley.’ Journal of Plant Registrations. 12:411–414.
Belamkar, V., Guttieri, M. J., Hussain, W., Jarquín, D., El-basyoni, I., Poland, J., et al. 2018. Genomic Selection in Preliminary Yield Trials in a Winter Wheat Breeding Program. G3: Genes|Genomes|Genetics. 8:2735–2747.
S. Jamwal, N., K. Chaudhary, H., Badiyal, A., Hussain, W., Katoch, P., and Kumar, N. 2018. Success in inducing effective rooting in triticale x wheat and wheat x wheat derived haploid plantlets in cocopeat mixture. International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences. 7:15–23.
Hussain, W., Baenziger, P. S., Belamkar, V., Guttieri, M. J., Venegas, J. P., Easterly, A., et al. 2017. Genotyping-by-sequencing derived high-density linkage map and its application to QTL mapping of flag leaf traits in bread wheat. Scientific Reports. 7:16394.
Bai, G., Ge, Y., Hussain, W., Baenziger, P. S., and Graef, G. 2016. A multi-sensor system for high throughput field phenotyping in soybean and wheat breeding. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture. 128:181–192.
Badiyal, A., Chaudhary, H. K., Jamwal, N. S., Bhatt, A. K., and Hussain, W. 2016. Comparative assessment of different auxin analogues on haploid induction in triticale x wheat derived backcross Generations. Agricultural Research Journal. 53:157.
Jamwal, N. S., Chaudhary, H. K., Badiyal, A., and Hussain, W. 2016. Factors influencing crossability among triticale and wheat and its subsequent effect along with hybrid necrosis on haploid induction. Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica, Section B — Soil & Plant Science. 66:282–289.
Sood, V. K., Rana, I., Hussain, W., and Chaudhary, H. K. 2016. Genetic Diversity of Genus Avena from North Western-Himalayas Using Molecular Markers. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., India, Sect. B Biol. Sci. 86:151–158.
Chaudhary, L., Sood, V.K., and Hussain, W.2015. Genetic analysis for grain and forage yield and its component traits in genus Avena under North western Himalayas. Range Management and Agroforestry. 35:2.
Badiyal, A., Chaudhary, H. k., Jamwal, N. s., Hussain, W., Mahato, A., and Bhatt, A. k. 2014. Interactive genotypic influence of triticale and wheat on their crossability and haploid induction under varied agroclimatic regimes. Cereal Research Communications. 42:700–709.
Sanghera, G. S., and Hussain, W. 2012. Heterosis and combining ability estimates using Line x Tester analysis to develop rice hybrids for temperate conditions. Notulae Scientia Biologicae. 4:131–142.
Hussain, W., and Sanghera, G. S. 2012. Exploitation of heterosis in rice using CMS system under temperate conditions. Electronic Journal of Plant Breeding. 3(1):695-700.
Sanghera, G. S., Wani, S. H., Hussain, W., Shafi, W., and Haribhushan, A. 2011. The magic of heterosis: New tools and complexities. Nature and Science. 9(11).
Sanghera, G. S., Wani, S. H., Hussain, W., and Singh, N. . 2011. Engineering cold stress tolerance in crop plants. Curr. Genomics,12, 30–43.
Book Chapters
- Chaudhary, H.K., Badiyal, A., Hussain, W., Jamwal, N.S., Kumar, N., Sharma, P and Singh, D. (2019). In: book: Genomics Assisted Breeding of Crops for Crop Stresses, Vol, II. Innovative Role of DH Breeding in Genomics Assisted-Crop Improvement: Focus on Drought Tolerance in Wheat. Springer, pp 69-90. Link
- Rana,M., Sood, A., Hussain, W., Kaldate, R., Sharma, T.R., Gill, R.K., Kumar, S., Singh, S. (2019). In: Mohar Singh (eds), Gene Pyramiding and Multiple Character Breeding, Lentils: Potential Resources for Enhancing Genetic Gains, 2019, Pages 83-124. Link.
- Sanghera, G.S., Wani, S.H., Hussain, W., and Singh, N.B. (2015). Genetic Engineering for Cold Stress Tolerance in Crop Plants. In book: Advances in Genome Science, Edition: Volume 4, Publisher: Bentham Science, Editors: Atta-ur-Rahman, pp. 173-201. Link
- Chaudhary, H.K., Kaila, V., Rather, S.A., Badiyal, A., Hussain, W., Jamwal, N.S., and Mahato, A. (2013). In: Pratap and J. Kumar (eds.), Alien Gene Transfer in Crop Plants, Volume Achievements and Impacts. Springer, pp 1-26. Link
- Hussain, W., Sanghera, G.S., Jamawal, N.S, and Badiyal,A. (2013). Crop improvement through genomic interventions in sustainable way. In: Malik CP, Sanghera GS and Sharma P(ed) Crop improvement: An integrated approach. MD Publications Pvt Ltd, New Delhi. pp 61-68. ISBN 978-81-7533-456-4. Link
- Dar, S.H., Hussain, W., and Sanghera, G.S. (2013). Advances in hybrid rice technology through applications of novel technologies. In: Malik CP, Sanghera GS and Sharma P(ed), Crop improvement: An integrated approach. MD Publications Pvt Ltd, New Delhi. pp 1-12. Link
Teaching Experience
Teaching Experience 1
- Lecture on GWAS and practical demonstration on course ASCI 944/STAT 844-Quantitative Methods for Genomics of Complex Traits taught by Dr. Gota Morota.
Teaching Experience 2
- Lecture on R data visualizations in Rclub hosted by students in the Agronomy and Horticulture department, University of Nebraska, Lincoln.
Teaching Experience 3
- Two lectures on genomic predictions and GWAS in the course STAT 892-007- Integrative Data Science for Plant Phenomics taught by multiple instructors.
Talks
May 01, 2019
Invited/Interview talk at International Rice Research Institute, Los Banos Philippines, Los Banos, Laguna, Philippines
November 06, 2018
Conference Talk at ASA, CSSA Meeting (2018), Baltimore, Maryland
May 05, 2018
Invited Talk at University of Nebraska Department of Statistics, Lincoln, Nebraska
April 05, 2017
Invited Talk at Plant Breeding and Genetics Symposium, Manhattan, Kansas
February 10, 2017
Invited Talk at Maharashtra Hybrid Seed Company (MAHYCO) India, Dawalwadi, Jalna, Maharashtra, India
March 29, 2016
Invited symposium Talk at Nebraska Plant Breeding Symposium 2017, Lincoln, Nebraska
August 05, 2014
Ph.D seminar talk at University of CSKHPKV, Palampur India Deptt. of Crop Improvement, Palampur, India
June 03, 2009
M.Sc Seminar Talk at University SKUAST-K, Deptt. of Plant Breeding & Genetics, Srinagar, J and K, India
Fellowships and Awards
- Open Science Grid User School Travel Grant Award 2018. Link.
- Travel Grant Award Kansas State Plant Breeding Symposium-2017. Link
- USDA ICQG Award-2016. Link.
- Best Oral Presentation Award, UNL Plant breeding Symposium-2016. Link
- Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)-International Fellowship(2014-2017). Link
- Inspire Fellowship (Ministry of Science & Technology, Department of Science & Technology, India (2012-2104). Link
- University Merit Certificate (M.Sc. Plant breeding & Genetics) (2011). Link
- Qualified ASRB National Eligibility Test 2012, 2013 and 2014 for Assistant Professorship. Link
Research Grants Funded
ICAR International Fellowship for Ph.D. Research
- Jan. 2014- Dec. 2016
- Indian Council of Agricultural Research, $80,000
- Proposal: Using Advanced Genomic Tools to Improve Wheat Under Drought Conditions
INSPIRE Fellowship for Ph.D. Research
- June 2012-Dec. 2013
- Department of Science and Technology, India, $16,000
- Proposal: Diversity analysis and mapping of powdery mildew resistance in oats
Professional Training
- Software Carpentry Workshop on computational skills, including task automation, version control, and modular programming. Learn Bash, Git and Python. Holland Computing Center, University of Nebraska, Lincoln. August 13 & 14, 2018. Link
- Open Science Grid (OSG) User School 2018: Workshop on High Throughput Computing and Running Large Scale Computing Applications at University of Wisconsin Madison. July 9-13. Link
- Work shop Series on Unix Shell, Git and use of HCC’s High-Performance Computing, High Throughput Computing and Cloud computing resources. Holland Computing Center, University of Nebraska Lincoln. June 05-26, 2018. Link
- Short term bioinformatics training (RNA-seq and DNA-seq). ArrayGen Technologies, India, Pune . 23 Oct-21 Nov. 2017. Link
- Next-generation Plant and Animal Breeding Program. Animal Science Department, University of Nebraska, Lincoln. March 21- 25, 2016.
- From raw sequence to annotated genome-a systems biology tutorial. University of Nebraska Lincoln, Oct. 2015.
- Understanding genome-wide association studies and other big data biological applications. University of Nebraska, Lincoln. June 23-24, 2014.
- Fundamental writing skills workshop researchers. University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Sept 2015.
- Write Wining Grant Proposals, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, March 18, 2016.
Open Source Contributions
ShinyAIM: Shiny-based Application of Interactive Manhattan Plots for Longitudinal GWAS using R and Shiny. The application is available online at https://chikudaisei.shinyapps.io/shinyaim/. The source code and materials can be downloaded from GitHub https://github.com/whussain2/ShinyAIM
R for Plant Breeding: This is an open source-resource to learn the Plant Breeding and Genetics related data analysis and visualizations Link
Leadership Roles
- A representative of Department of Agronomy and Horticulture Seminar Committee in the year 2019.
- A representative of Department of Agronomy and Horticulture Safety Committee in the year 2015.
- Member of organizing a committee of UNL plant breeding symposium-2016.
- Hosted 2015- World Food Prize Nebraska Youth Institute in Department of Agronomy and Horticulture.
- Poster Judge (Undergraduate and Graduate) at University of Nebraska, Lincoln Spring Research Fair-2018.
- Poster Judge (Undergraduate) at ASA, CSSA Annual meetings in Baltimore, Maryland-2018.
Professional Memberships
- ASA, CSSA,and SSSA since June-2014
- National Association of Plant Breeders since Feb. 2018
- American Society of Plant Biologists since April 2018
Professional Experience
- Associate Editor: Agronomy Journal (March 2018 to present)
- Peer Reviewer: Agronomy Journal (American Society of Agronomy); PLOSONE; BMC Genetics; PNAS, Biological Sciences, India; Physiology and Molecular Biology of Plants; Agronomy (MPDI).
Posters
- Lata, S., Guleria, S.K., Thakur, K., Kumari, R., Rana, M., and Hussain, W: Introgression of Opaque2 Gene Through Marker-Assisted Backcross Breeding in Elite Maize Inbred Lines. 13th Asian Maize Conference and Expert Consultation on Maize for Food, Feed, Nutrition and Environmental Security, Ludhiana, India October 8-10,2018. P140. Link
- Venegas, J.P., Graybosch, R., Hussain, W., Bai, G., St Amand, P., Baenziger, P.S., Blecha, S: High-Density Linkage Map Construction and Mapping of Mutant Low Phytate QTLs in Winter Wheat (Triticum Aestivum L.) Using Genotyping-By-Sequencing (GBS). ASA, CSSA and SSSA Tampa, Florida, Oct. 22-25, 2017. Link
- Rana, M., Verma, P., Hussain,W., Kaldate, R., Shikha, D., Kaachra, A., Chahota, R.K., Bhatia,S., and Sharma, T.R: Molecular Mapping of QTLs for Drought Tolerance and Yield Traits in Lentil. InterDrought-V, Hyderabad International Convention Center (HICC), At Hyderabad India, 21-25 Feb. 2017. Link
- Belamkar, V., Guttieri, M.J., El-Basyoni, I., Hussain, W., Poland, J., Jarquín, D., Lorenz, A.J., Baenziger, P.B: Translating Genomic Research into Cultivar Development in the Nebraska Wheat Program. Plant and Animal Genome Conference XXIV, San Diego, CA; 01/2017. Link
- Sallam, A., Hussain, W., Belmaker, V., and Baenziger, P.S: QTL Mapping for Traits Associated with Drought Tolerance and Combined Drought and Heat Tolerance in Seedling Winter Wheat. Plant and Animal Genome Conference, San Diego, CA; 01/2017. Link.
- Hussain, W.,Stephen, P.B., Belamkar, V., Guttieri, M.J., Easterly, A., Venegas, J.P., Guedira, G.B., Poland, J: Development of High Density Linkage Map and Genome-Wide QTL Mapping for Grain Yield in Wheat Across Multiple Rainfed Environments. ASA, CSSA and SSSA Minneapolis, Nov. 6-9, 2106. Link
- Sallam, A., Hussain, W., Belmaker, V., and Baenziger, P.S: Molecular Genetic Dissection to Improve Seedling Drought Tolerance inn Winter Wheat Using QTL Mapping. At: Nebraska City, USA, Conference: Plant Science Retreat-october 2016. Link
- Kariyawasam, G., Hussain, W., Easterly, A., Guttieri, M.J., Belamkar, V., Venegas, J.P., Baenziger, P.B., Poland, J., Faris, J., Xu, S., Rasmussen, J., and Liu, Z: QTL Mapping of Resistance to Tan Spot in a Winter Recombinant Inbred Line Population Derived from Cross between Harry and Wesley. Conference: American Phytopathological Society Annual Meeting-2016, At Tampa, Florida. Link
- Hussain, W., Baenziger, P.B., Belamkar, V., Guttieri, M.J., Easterly, A., Venegas, J.P., Guedira, G.B., Poland, J: SNP Discovery in Wheat RIL Population Using Genotyping-by-Sequencing and Genome-Wide QTL Mapping for Plant Height. Conference: 5th International Conference on Quantitative Genetics, At Madison, Wisconsin, USA. Link
- Belamkar, V., Guttieri, M.J., El-Basyoni, I., Hussain, W., Poland, J., Jarquín, D., Lorenz, A.J., Baenziger, P.B: Genomic Selection Shows Promise for Improving Winter Wheat: Insights from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Wheat Breeding Program. Conference: 5th International Conference on Quantitative Genetics, At Madison, Wisconsin, USA. Link
- Belamkar, V., Guttieri, M.J., El-Basyoni, I., Hussain, W., Poland, J., Jarquín, D., Lorenz, A.J., Baenziger, P.B: Integration of Genomic Selection in the Nebraska Wheat Breeding Program. Plant and Animal Genome Conference XXIV,, San Diego, CA; 01/2016. Link
- Hussain, W., Stephen, P.B, Guttieri, M.J., Easterly, A., Venegas, J.P., Guedira, G.B., Poland, J: Mapping QTLs for Plant Height Variation in RIL Population Derived from Cross Between Harry X Wesley Semi-Dwarf Wheat Lines. ASA, CSSA and SSSA Minneapolis, Nov. 15-18, 2105. Link
Skills
Quantitative Skills
