Dr. Karanjeet Sandhu

Biography

Karanjeet Sandhu is a Wheat Rust Pathologist at the Plant Breeding Institute, School of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Sydney. He coordinates the research project "Optimising genetic control of wheat rusts with improved phenotyping". His research focuses on high-throughput phenotyping of rust diseases in wheat, utilizing robotics, novel imaging techniques, and machine learning data analysis. He has managed research projects aimed at mitigating the effects of stripe rust on wheat production in South Asia and Eastern Africa and was instrumental in developing the National Myrtle Rust Screening Facility. Sandhu received his PhD in 2011 from the University of Sydney and has a Master’s degree from Punjab Agricultural University. His career began as an Assistant Professor in Plant Protection at PAU before transitioning to Australia, where he initially worked as a Plant Pathologist at the Leslie Research Centre in Queensland. His research has contributed to mapping new seedling genes and characterizing genetic variations related to various pathogens. Sandhu's current interests lie in developing Integrated Disease Management Practices and co-supervising PhD students focusing on ecological restoration projects.

Research Interests