Habtamu Kefale Sewenet(PhD)

Full name: – Habtamu Kefale Sewenet

Specialization: – Crop Genetics and Breeding

Academic Rank: – Assistant professor (PhD) (Postdoc fellow)

Department: – Plant Science

Phone number:

Institutional email and alternative email: – habtie.k23@gmail.com  or habtamu_kefale@dmu.edu.et

Short description and research interests: A passionate and ambitious researcher holding a Ph.D. in Crop Genetics and Breeding from OCRI-CAAS (2021–2024), with expertise in phytochemistry, plant physiology, molecular biology, and multi-omics approaches for enhancing crop yield, quality, and stress resilience. During his doctoral studies, he conducted extensive research on the genetic basis of phytochemical variation in crops, identifying key metabolites, genes, and biosynthetic pathways involved in metabolite production. His work contributed to the development of novel molecular markers for crop improvement, particularly for quality-related and stress-response traits. His research interests focus on genetic improvement and breeding for high-value traits, including stress tolerance, nutritional quality, and medicinal properties, utilizing advanced tools such as metabolomics, functional genomics, transcriptomics, and genome-wide association studies (GWAS). He has published his research as first author in several prestigious international journals, including Current Research in Food Science, Frontiers in Genetics, Ecological Genetics and Genomics, Food Research International, Physiologia Plantarum, and Oil Crop Science, reflecting his strong academic and scientific contributions. In addition, he actively serves as a peer reviewer for numerous Scopus- and Web of Science-indexed journals across major publishers such as Elsevier, Springer, Bentham, Frontiers, and Wiley, further demonstrating his commitment to advancing scientific research and maintaining high standards of scholarly excellence. Currently, he serves as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Sanya Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences (CATAS), Hainan, China (since June 2025), where he is part of the cassava molecular breeding research team.

List of Publications: –

1. Kefale, H., Rong Z., Zishu L., Dossou S.S. K., Muez B., Lei W., Ahmed A. A., Yanxin Z., Ting Z., Jun Y., and Linhai W., (2025). Genome-wide association study (GWAS) identifies genetic loci and candidate genes for variation in protein and oil content in Sesamum indicum L.. Oil Crop Science (in production)
2. Abbas. A.A., Berhe. M., Kefale H., Hussien S. A., Zhou R, Zhou T., Li H., Zhan Y., Guan Z., Ojiewo CO., You J. Wang L. 2025. Physiological and biochemical responses to cold stress in sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) during the early growth stage. Plant, Soil and Environment, 71(5), 293-307. https://doi.org/10.17221/79/2025-PSE.  
3. Dossou S.K, Deng Q., Li F., Wang L., Jiang N., Kefale H., Zhou R., Li D., Tan M., and Wang L. (2025). Metabolic profiling of Perilla leaves of different colors: Insights into metabolite variation & bioactive compound distribution. BMC Plant Bio 25, 38. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-024-05984-8
4. Eskezia, A., Kefale, H., and Asrat, M., (2025). Genotype by environment interaction and yield stability analysis of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) varieties in East Gojjam Zone, Northwest Ethiopia. Heliyon, Vol. 11(12): e43500. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2025.e43500  
5. Kefale, H., You, J., Zhang, Y., Getahun, S., Berhe, M., Abbas, A.A. et al. (2024). Metabolomic insights into the multiple stress responses of metabolites in major oilseed crops. Physiologia Plantarum, 176(6), e14596. https://doi.org/10.1111/ppl.14596. 
6. Kefale, H., Rong Z., Zishu L., Dossou S.S. K., Muez B., Lei W., Ahmed A. A., Yanxin Z., Ting Z., Jun Y., and Linhai W., (2024). Biochemical and metabolomic insights into special bioactive compounds and antioxidant activities in the testa and peeled seeds of black oilseeds. Current Research in Food Science, Vol 10, 100939. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crfs.2024.100939
7. Eskezia, A., Kefale, H., and Asrat, M., (2024). Grain yield performance evaluation of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) varieties in East Gojjam Zone. Advanced Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies, Vol 8(2), 1663-1676.
8. Kefale, H., Dossou, S.S.K, Feng, L., Nanjun, J., Rong, Z., Lei, W., Yanxin, Z., Donghua, L., Jun, Y. and Wang, L. (2023). Widely targeted metabolic profiling provides insights into variations in bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity of sesame, soybean, peanut, and perilla, Food Research International, Vol 174 (Part 1), 113586, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodres.2023.113586. 
9. Kefale, H. and Wang, L. (2022), Discovering favourable genes, QTLs, and genotypes as a genetic resource for sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) improvement. Frontiers in Genetics. 13:1002182. https://doi.org/10.3389/fgene.2022.1002182.  
10. Getahun, S., Kefale, H. and Gelaye, Y. (2024). Application of precision agricultural technologies for sustainable crop production and environmental sustainability. A review. The Scientific Journal, vol. 2024, 2126734. https://doi.org/10.1155/2024/2126734. 
11. Getahun, S. and Kefale, H (2023). Problem of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.)) in Lake Tana (Ethiopia): Ecological, economic, and social implications and management options, International Journal of Ecology, Vol. 2023, 4618069. https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/4618069. 
12. Kefale, H & Getahun, S. (2022). Gene Editing Improves the Agronomic Important Traits of Wheat. CRISPR-Cas9 and Cas12/Cpf1. IntechOpen (p. 13). http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.103867
13. Kefale, H., Anley, A.M., Getie, M. A.  (2021). Performance evaluation and participatory varietal selection of improved bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) varieties, the case of Debre Elias District, Northwestern Ethiopia, Journal of Ecological Genetics and Genomics, Vol (19), 100086, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egg.2021.100086. 
14. Kefale, H. and Menzir, A.  (2019). Genetic Variation of Bread Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Varieties Based on Phenological, Morphological, and Quality Traits at Guay Kebele in Debre Elias District, East Gojjam Zone, Ethiopia. Journal of Biology, Agriculture, and Healthcare, Vol, 9(11), http://dx.doi.org/10.7176/JBAH.  
15. Kefale, H. (2019). A review on comparison of complete and incomplete block designs. Journal of Biology, Agriculture, and Healthcare, Vol, 9(9), http://dx.doi.org/10.7176/JBAH/9-9-03. 

 Peer-review contribution

• I have contributed as a peer reviewer to numerous journals indexed in Scopus and Web of Science, spanning a range of publishers including Elsevier, Springer, Bentham, Frontiers, and Wiley. The journals I have reviewed for include Functional Plant Biology, Industrial Crops and Products, Journal of Agriculture and Food Research, Journal of Biotechnology, Journal of Environmental Management, PeerJ, Plant Genetic Resources, Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, and Agronomy Research, as listed on my ORCID profile and Web of Sciences.

Professional networking platforms:

• ORCID ID: – https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7343-7121
• LinkedIn: – https://www.linkedin.com/in/habtamu-kefale-08759ba0/
• Google scholar https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=ZvalFLkAAAAJ
• ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Habtamu-Kefale
• Web of sciences: https://www.webofscience.com/wos/author/record/GQP-5568-2022
• Scopus: https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=57224115132
• SCI: https://sciprofiles.com/profile/2040796
• Loop: https://loop.frontiersin.org/people/1217320/overview