Meryem İpek

Professor Meryem İpek is a leading expert in horticultural biotechnology at Uludag University Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Horticulture. With a career spanning over two decades, she specializes in plant genetic diversity assessment, molecular marker development, and stress tolerance research for crops like garlic and olive.

• PhD in Garden Plants, University of Wisconsin (2003)
• Master's in Garden Plants, University of Wisconsin (1998)
• Licence in Garden Plants, Cukurova University (1991)

Her research focuses on plant genetics and molecular breeding, particularly using AFLP, SSR, RAPD markers for genetic diversity analysis, marker-assisted selection, and gene expression profiling. She has pioneered studies on garlic genome organization and cytoplasmic markers linked to bolting phenotypes, while also investigating phospholipid metabolism in cold-stressed olive plants.

Recent publications reveal trends in garlic phylogenetics, olive oil biochemistry, and molecular marker applications for crop improvement. Her team's work spans from basic genetic studies to practical biotechnology applications in horticulture.

• T.C. Ministry of National Education Foreign Study Scholarship, 1996
• Vilas Travel Grant, University of Wisconsin, 2002
• TÜBİTAK Scientific Publications Incentive Award, 2005-2009
• USDA Postdoctoral Fellowships, 2006 & 2010
• Uludağ University Scientific Publication Award, 2008

She has managed multiple international research projects including TUBITAK and Uludağ University BAP initiatives. Her lab at Uludağ University serves as a hub for molecular horticulture research, specializing in genetic resource characterization and stress adaptation studies.