Haftom Mesfin

My academic background is in genetics and plant biotechnology, with a particular focus on unraveling the genetic mechanisms underlying tolerance to heavy metal stress and heavy metal accumulation. I have experience identifying markers associated with low cadmium accumulation, initiating genomic prediction analyses, and studying marker–trait associations for both qualitative and quantitative traits in pea. I am always eager to learn, grow scientifically, and contribute to collaborative, team-oriented research environments.

During my MSc and PhD studies, I focused on genetic diversity, tolerance to soil acidity, transcriptomic analyses, and the development of hydroponic screening systems. My research also included genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in finger millet to identify genomic regions linked to key stress-tolerance traits.

Currently, I am working on a Grogrund-funded cadmium project, where my research focuses on developing genomic prediction models and identifying genomic regions associated with grain cadmium accumulation in wheat and oat. In addition, I have been involved in genetic diversity analyses and the identification of genes and markers linked to agriculturally and nutritionally important traits in pea.

1. Kiros Tekle*, Teklehaimanot Haileselassie, Kassahun Tesfaye, Kibrom B. Abreha, Haftom Brhane and Mulatu Geleta. RNA-Seq–Based Transcriptomics Reveals Differential Gene Expression Between Two Pisum sativum Subspecies and Uncovers Their Molecular Marker Profiles. - Accepted for publication in BMC

2. Atsbeha, G., Mekonnen, T., Brhane, H., Kebede, M., Haileselassie, T., & Tesfaye, K. (2025). Genome-wide association study of seedling–plant resistance to stripe rust in bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) genotypes. Frontiers in Plant Science, 16, 1554216. 

3. Brhane H. and Hammenhag C. (2024). Genetic diversity and population structure analysis of a diverse panel of pea (Pisum sativum). Frontiers in Genetics, 15.

4. Brhane, H., Haileselassie, T., Tesfaye, K., Ortiz, R., Hammenhag, C., Abreha, K. B., & Geleta, M (2024). Genome-wide association mapping and comparative genomics identifies genomic regions governing aluminum tolerance traits in finger millet (Eleusine coracana L. Gaertn.). Plant and Soil. 1-16.

5. Brhane, H., Haileselassie, T., Tesfaye, K., Ortiz, R., Hammenhag, C., & Geleta, M (2023) Hydroponic Optimization and Screening of Aluminum Tolerance on Finger Millet (Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn.) Accessions and Cultivars. Agronomy, 13. 

6. Brhane, H., Haileselassie, T., Tesfaye, K., Ortiz, R., Hammenhag, C., Abreha, K. B., & Geleta, M. (2022). Finger millet RNA-seq reveals differential gene expression associated with tolerance to aluminum toxicity and provides novel genomic resources. Frontiers in plant science, 13.