Faculty of Sciences - University Saint Joseph

Last update: 6 October 2015

The research unit is interested in the Eastern Mediterranean Region plants. Molecular markers and cytological techniques such as cytogenetics and flow cytometry are used to understand their phylogeny and phylogeography as well as how they are affected by contemporary and historical evolution processes. The identification of these processes that shape biodiversity at different timescales and levels of organisation is the core of the research.

Laboratory of “Genome characterization of Plants”

The aim of the unit is to investigate the origin of the flora of the eastern Mediterranean region as well as elucidating the evolutionary mechanisms that led to the diversification of this flora.

A wide range of topics are investigated, ie. phylogeography, palaeogenetics, molecular evolution, population genetics, parentage analyses, speciation and conservation genetics of trees and endemic taxa. Such studies can be combined with analyses of range reductions and genetic diversity among populations in order to provide information for informed conservation planning at the species level.

Dr. Magda BOU DAGHER KHARRAT, PhD in Plant molecular Biology, is associate professor and Director of the Department of Life and Earth Science at the Faculty of Science in Saint-Joseph University (USJ) Beirut.

She leads the team of the laboratory of “Genome characterization of Plants” composed by five full time researchers and many early stage researchers. Experts in GIS, in communication as well as administrative staff support the researchers.

Current projects

Two European ENPI CBCMED projects are on going in the lab:

GREATMED - Generating a Risk and Ecological Analysis Toolkit for the Mediterranean.

ECOPLANTMED - ECOlogical use of native PLANTs for environmental restoration and sustainable development in the MEDiterranean region.

Two PhD students are currently working on Astragalus and Iris genus, respectively, in order to characterise their genomes and elucidate their taxonomy and phylogenetic relationships.

Major axes are also developped on Important Plant Area identification and “red listing” of endangered species.

Localization

Faculty of Sciences,
Campus of science and technology,
University Saint-Joseph
B.P. 11-514 Riad El Solh
1107 2050, Beirut, Lebanon

DYNAMIC team

M. Bou Dagher Kharrat (associate professor) and R. Kahalé (master student)
Technical team from the laboratory of “Genome characterization of Plants”

Dr M. Bou Dagher Kharrat is an expert in conifer genetic diversity. Her researches rely on the use of genomic tools in order to study conifer tree populations (Juniperus, Cedrus and Abies) and flowering plants and to understand their phylogeny and phylogeography, as well as how they are affected by contemporary and historical evolution processes.