Sunil is a postdoc studying epigenome variation across plant species through an evolutionary perspective using comparative and population epigenomics with a particular focus on understanding the chromatin dynamics and epigenetic changes in maize and its wild relatives during low-temperature stress. He has also worked on developing molecular markers for orphan legumes through comparative genomics and identification of QTLs for sorghum downy mildew resistance in maize. His dissertation work provided valuable insights into the potential use of induced epigenetic variation in plant breeding for yield and stability related traits. Sunil’s research in soybean showed increased yield and reduced GxE in epigentically modified soybean lines. He also showed disproportionate non-CG methylation variation induced under low-temperature stress in Arabidopsis and identified that these changes do not affect phenotypic changes in the progeny. He expanded his research interests during his postdoc working on comparative gene expression analysis across multiple panicoid grasses. Here he generated the first full length transcriptome of Tripsacum dactyloides, a wild relative of maize. His results suggested significant overlap of targets for natural selection in low temperature adaptation in T. dactyloides and artificial selection in maize during its adaptation to temperate climates.
