Sonia Negrao

Sonia Negrao is an Associate Professor in the School of Biology and Environmental Science at University College Dublin (UCD), where she has been working since July 2018. She leads the Crop Stress Interaction Lab (CSI-Dublin), focusing on how crops respond to environmental stress using advanced phenotyping techniques.

Dr. Negrao's research focuses on plant responses to abiotic stresses, particularly waterlogging and salinity. Her work integrates genomic approaches with high-throughput phenotyping to understand the genetic mechanisms underlying stress adaptation in crop species. She has a particular interest in exploring underutilized germplasm including landraces and 'old cultivars' to identify stress tolerance traits.

Her current research projects include: barley responses to waterlogging; nitrogen use efficiency in old barley cultivars; genetic regions responding to stress throughout time; and exploring underutilized genetic resources by linking ancient history and modern plant sciences. These projects align with her broader research interests in plant genomics, plant physiology, crop breeding, abiotic stress responses, Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS), high-throughput phenotyping, and genetic diversity.

Dr. Negrao has secured multiple research grants including DIVERSICROP (European Cooperation in Science and Technology), 'Recovering and Exploiting Old and New Barley Diversity for Future-Ready Agriculture,' and 'CROPREVIVE: mapping underutilised crops in Ireland -- past present and future.'

• Interdisciplinary Research Collaboration Award (2023)

As an educator, Dr. Negrao coordinates several modules including 'Experimental Plant Physiology,' 'Life on Earth,' and 'Plant Phenotyping.' She also supervises PhD and MSc students, focusing on plant stress physiology and genomics. Her teaching philosophy emphasizes inspiring students to find their passion in science, develop critical thinking skills, and think creatively 'outside the box.'