Ein gemeinsames Seminar des Lehrstuhls für Systematik, Biodiversität & Evolution der Pflanzen, der Botanischen Staatssammlung München und des Botanischen Gartens München-Nymphenburg
Wann? Dienstag um 16:15 Uhr (während des Semesters, wenn nicht anders angegeben)
Wo? Großer Hörsaal im Botanischen Institut, Menzinger Str. 67, 80638 München.
Dr. Oleksandr Zinenko, Karazin Kharkiv National University, Kharkiv, Ukraine.
ONT Sequencing as an Enabling Technology for Biodiversity Research in Ukraine
Historically underfunded and technologically constrained, organismal biology and biodiversity research in Ukraine have often relied on international partnerships to access modern molecular technologies. Russia's full-scale invasion has further exacerbated these challenges, disrupting research infrastructure, access to equipment, electricity supply, and funding.
In this seminar, I will discuss how portable and relatively affordable Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) sequencing is opening new opportunities for biodiversity research in Ukraine. This technology, combined with necessity-driven innovation (invention by subtraction) and adaptation to challenging working conditions, is changing what can be achieved with limited resources.
I will illustrate this transformation with examples from my research and collaborations, including bacterial genome sequencing, large-scale DNA barcoding of plants, fungi, and animals, collection genetic digitalization, environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis, and metabarcoding. Together, these examples demonstrate how accessible sequencing technologies can expand research capacity, support biodiversity documentation, and foster new approaches to biological research even under exceptionally challenging conditions.
Host: Marc Gottschling