The Department of Production Engineering and Plant Genetics (formerly Agronomy and Plant Breeding) was established in 1955 as the first department of Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz (formerly Jondi Shapour University). Currently, 16 faculty members (3 professor, 6 associate professor and 7 assistant professors) in different disciplines are due to teach and train more than 70 undergraduate and 145 postgraduate students in this department. At the moment, 9 fully-equipped laboratories with high-tech devices, several phytotrons, and more than 6 hectares of experimental fields and greenhouses provide a nice atmosphere for students to study and research. 

Academic Infrastructures:

In spite of several environmental and ecological constraints, Khuzestan has considerably increased agricultural production in recent years. Extensions of land use, the development of better seeds and crop rotation cycles, an increase in the use of fertilizer and pesticides, and other inventions have contributed to this growth. Indeed, Production Engineering and Plant Genetic Department possesses a major role in the growth of crop production in this province.

The excellent academic infrastructures in this department are introduced here at a glance:

Agronomy and Crop Physiology:

Much of the increase in food production must come from semiarid regions worldwide. Some countries in this region, such as Iran and Turkey have included the goal of becoming self-sufficient grain producers in their long-term plans. The attainment of this goal will require developing vastly improved production methods for the semiarid land. Over the last 65 years, cereals, industrial, and forage plants were investigated within an encompassing agronomical and physiological research. Faculty members of the department in the field of Agronomy and Crop Physiology have presented practical methods and biological hints, including a much larger scope to improve crop production in the semiarid land of Iran. The physiological aspects of crops under environmental stress are other topics of interest in this department.

Plant Breeding and Biotechnology:

Although the genetic makeup of the crop plants limits the yield of variety, but it is believed that it would permit considerable, perhaps endless, changes and improvements. Plant breeding deals with these aspects which are vital for the crop production and consists of conventional and molecular principles and methods required for favorably changing the genetic constitution of crop plants. Plant breeders and biotechnologists in the Department of Production Engineering and Plant Genetics are conducting several projects on improving the genetic makeup of cereals, oilseeds, and medicinal plants to improve the production and the response of plants to environmental stress. The projects are technically operated with the combination of conventional and molecular plant breeding techniques. 

Agroecology:

Agroecology is the science of applying ecological concepts and principles to the agricultural production systems. Agroecologists may study the questions related to productivity, stability, sustainability, and equitability in an interconnected and integral policy to the success of an agrosystem. The contribution of no-tillage and cover plants in increasing the soil organic matters, the process of composting, and the intercropping in multiple cropping systems are the major practices of agroecologists in this department.

 

Laboratories

Plants Chemistry and Analysis Lab

Technical Officer: Sara Rahdarian

Equipment: Soxhlet oil extraction device, Spectrophotometer, Flame photometer, pH meter, EC meter, Electrical furnace, Kjeldahl nitrogen meter, Lab balances, Lab mill, Shaker, Vacuum pump, Fiber meter, Vortex, Clevenger, Centrifuge, Rotary evaporator, ELISA reader, Bomb calorimeter bomb, Bain-Marie, Homogenizer, Dispenser, Autoclave, Hotplate stirrer, Deionizer

Cytogenetic Lab

Technical Officer: Karim Sorkheh Tamimi

Equipment: Camera bearing microscope and stereomicroscope, Oven, Hood, Polyploidy determination device, Bain-Marie, Lab balances

Crop Physiology Lab

Technical Officer: Abdolreza Ameri

Equipment: Leaf area meter, Porometer, SPAD Chlorophyll meter, Fluorometer, Leaf chamber analyzer for photosynthesis and transpiration, Oven, Germinator, -70 C freezer, Lab balances, Osmometer, Pressure bomb

Botany I Lab

Technical Officer: Mina Pedram

Equipment: Microscope, Stereomicroscope, Oven, Lab balance

Botany II Lab

Manager: Dr. Fatemeh Nasernakhaei

Equipment: Stereomicroscope, Plant press-drying tools

Seed Technology Lab

Technical Officer: Farkhondeh Eskandari

Equipment: Heating grain moisture meter, Digital grain moisture meter, Germinator, Vibrating sieve, Seed meter, Stereomicroscope, Lab balances

Plant Breeding Lab

Technical Officer: Karim Sorkheh Tamimi

Equipment: Microscopes, Germinator, Lab balances, Hood, Oven

Genetics Lab

Technical Officer: Karim Sorkheh Tamimi

Equipment: Microscopes, Stereomicroscope, Oven

Abiotic Stress Physiology Lab

Technical Officer: Sara Rahdarian

Equipment: Laminar hood, Vortex, Spin, PCR thermocycler, Gel documentation, Real-time PCR, Refrigerator, Micropipettes

Phytotron

Technical Officer: Abdolreza Ameri

Equipment: Growing room, Germinator, Seed conservation refrigerating room

 

Faculty Members:

 

Name	Title & Field of Study	Position	Email
Majid Nabipour	Ph.D. in Crop Physiology from Newcastle University (England)	Professor	m.nabipour@scu.ac.ir
Amir Aynehband	Ph.D. in Crop Ecology from Ferdowsi University of Mashhad (Iran)	Professor	aynehband@scu.ac.ir
Moosa Meskarbashee	Ph.D. in Crop Physiology from Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz (Iran)	Professor	mmeskarbashee@scu.ac.ir
Peyman Hassibi	Ph.D. in Crop Physiology from Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz (Iran)	Associate Professor	p.hassibi@scu.ac.ir
Esfandiar Fateh	Ph.D. in Crop Ecology from Tehran University (Iran)	Associate Professor	e.fateh@scu.ac.ir
Afrasyab Rahnama	Ph.D. in Crop Physiology from Tehran University (Iran)	Associate Professor	a.rahnama@scu.ac.ir
Daryoosh Nabati Ahmadi	Ph.D. in Classical and Molecular Plant Breeding from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (USA)	Associate Professor	dnabati@scu.ac.ir
Mohammadreza Siahpoosh	Ph.D. in Plant Breeding and Molecular Physiology from University of Potsdam (Germany)	Associate Professor	siahpoosh@scu.ac.ir
Habibollah Roshanfekr	Ph.D. in Crop Physiology from Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz (Iran)	Associate Professor	h.roshanfekr@scu.ac.ir
Khosro Mehdikhanlou	Ph.D. in Agricultural Biotechnology from Ghent University (Belgium)	Assistant Professor	k.mehdikhanlou@scu.ac.ir
Ali Monsefi	Ph.D. in Weed Science from The Indian Agricultural Research Institute (India)	Assistant Professor	a.monsefi@scu.ac.ir
Masoumeh Farzaneh	Ph.D. in Weed Physiology from Agricultural University of Vienna (Austria)	Assistant Professor	m.farzaneh@scu.ac.ir
Karim Sorkheh	Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics from Shahrekord University (Iran)	Assistant Professor	k.sorkheh@scu.ac.ir
Fatemeh Nasernakhaei	Ph.D. in Plant Systematics from Isfahan University (Iran)	Assistant Professor	f.nasernakhaei@scu.ac.ir
Leyla Nejadsadeghi	Ph.D. in Agricultural Biotechnology from Tehran University (Iran)	Assistant Professor	l.nejadsadeghi@scu.ac.ir
Iman Kamranfar	Ph.D. in Molecular Biotechnology from University of Potsdam (Germany)	Assistant Professor	i.kamranfar@scu.ac.ir