Tim Langdon

Tim Langdon is a Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Biological, Environmental, and Rural Sciences (IBERS) at Aberystwyth University, where he leads research in oat genetics and genomics. He works within the oat breeding group at IBERS, where varieties from winter and spring breeding programs provide the bulk of the UK oat crop. Dr. Langdon has been actively publishing research since the early 2000s and currently leads multiple research projects, including NAM populations as a platform to validate oat genomics models (2024-2027) and NIAB_2024 research (2024-2026).

Dr. Langdon's research focuses on understanding the genetic and genomic resources of oats to improve variety performance. His work explores oat's late domestication history, examining how oats spread from Turkey to Central Europe as a weed before being cultivated. He investigates the greater genetic diversity and resilience oats may have retained compared to other cereals due to less intensive human selection. Current projects include assembling the genome sequence of red oat (Avena byzantina) and developing genetic resources like the Avena A-genome zipper and hexaploid oat populations.

His recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on oat genomics, with particular attention to chromosome structure, genetic diversity in wild relatives, and applications for crop improvement. His work spans fundamental research on gene function and practical applications for breeding programs, with increasing emphasis on climate resilience and sustainable agriculture.

Dr. Langdon actively collaborates with researchers worldwide, hosting visitors from Canada, Brazil, and previously from Poland, Spain, Turkey, Kazakhstan, and Japan. He has participated in numerous international conferences and workshops, presenting on developing tools and resources for oat breeding.

His research contributes to several UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those related to food security, sustainable agriculture, and climate action. Dr. Langdon's work is supported by multiple funding sources including the Royal Society, BBSRC, NIAB Ltd, and international collaborations.