Dr Pauline Okemo
Adjunct Research Fellow
Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation
Researcher biography
Pauline has extensive knowledge and research experience in Molecular biology, Plant tissue culture, transformation and gene modification using CRIPSR/Cas9. Pauline has worked on both cereals and legumes. Her interests are in understanding and underpinning molecular mechanisms used by extremophiles to survive harsh conditions.
Pauline is currently working on understanding rice domestication by using gene editing techniques to modify agronomically important traits in both wild and cultivated rice species. Her ultimate goal is to see high end laboratory research transition to benefit the consumer/breeders/ farmers.
Book Chapter
Okemo, Pauline, Wijesundra, Upendra, Nakandala, Upuli, Ananda, Galaihalage K.S., Vanambathina, Prameela, Hasan, Sharmin, Abdulla, Muhammad, Sharma, Priyanka, Manatunga, Sachini, Pazhany, Adhini, Kharabian Masouleh, Ardy, Nath, Onkar, Mitter, Neena, Furtado, Agnelo and Henry, Robert J. (2022). The use of genome sequencing to improve crops for tropical agriculture. Next-generation sequencing and agriculture. (pp. 59-91) edited by Philipp E. Bayer and David Edwards. Wallingford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom: CAB International. doi: 10.1079/9781789247848.0004
Journal Articles
Nurmansyah, , Furtado, Agnelo, Okemo, Pauline and Henry, Robert J. (2025). Unique starch biosynthesis pathways in wild rice revealed by multi‐omics analyses. Plant Biotechnology Journal, 23 (6), 2429-2445. doi: 10.1111/pbi.70021
Abdullah, Muhammad, Furtado, Agnelo, Kharabian Masouleh, Ardashir, Okemo, Pauline and Henry, Robert (2025). The genomes of the most diverse AA genome rice species provide a resource for rice improvement and studies of rice evolution and domestication. BMC Genomics, 26 (1) 54, 1-15. doi: 10.1186/s12864-025-11246-0
Okemo, Pauline, Wijesundra, Upendra, Nakandala, Upuli, Dillon, Natalie, Chandora, Rahul, Campbell, Bradley, Smith, Millicent, Hardner, Craig, Cadorna, Charles A., Martin, Guillaume, Yahiaoui, Nabila, Garsmeur, Olivier, Pompidor, Nicolas, D’Hont, Angelique and Henry, Robert J. (2024). Crop domestication in the Asia Pacific region: a review. Agriculture Communications, 2 (1) 100032, 100032. doi: 10.1016/j.agrcom.2024.100032
Abdullah, Muhammad, Furtado, Agnelo, Masouleh, Ardashir Kharabian, Okemo, Pauline and Henry, Robert (2024). An improved haplotype resolved genome reveals more rice genes. Tropical Plants, 3 (1) e009. doi: 10.48130/tp-0024-0007
Okemo, Pauline A., Njaci, Isaac, Kim, Young-Mo, McClure, Ryan S., Peterson, Matthew J., Beliaev, Alexander S., Hixson, Kim K., Mundree, Sagadevan and Williams, Brett (2023). Tripogon loliiformis tolerates rapid desiccation after metabolic and transcriptional priming during initial drying. Scientific Reports, 13 (1) 20613, 1-13. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-47456-3
Abdullah, Muhammad, Okemo, Pauline, Furtado, Agnelo and Henry, Robert (2022). Potential of genome editing to capture diversity from Australian wild rice relatives. Frontiers in Genome Editing, 4 875243. doi: 10.3389/fgeed.2022.875243
Okemo, Pauline, Long, Hao, Cheng, Yen, Mundree, Sagadevan and Williams, Brett (2021). Stachyose triggers apoptotic like cell death in drought sensitive but not resilient plants. Scientific Reports, 11 (1) 7099. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-86559-7
Asami, Pauline, Rupasinghe, Thusitha, Moghaddam, Lalehvash, Njaci, Isaac, Roessner, Ute, Mundree, Sagadevan and Williams, Brett (2019). Roots of the resurrection plant Tripogon loliiformis survive desiccation without the activation of autophagy pathways by maintaining energy reserves. Frontiers in Plant Science, 10 459. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2019.00459
Asami, Pauline, Mundree, Sagadevan and Williams, Brett (2018). Saving for a rainy day: Control of energy needs in resurrection plants. Plant Science, 271, 62-66. doi: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2018.03.009
Omer, Rasha Adam, Asami, Pauline and Birungi, Josephine (2018). Callus induction and plant regeneration from immature embryos of sweet sorghum (sorghum bicolor Moench). Biotechnology, 17 (1), 12-18. doi: 10.3923/biotech.2018.12.18
Rachel, Okeyo Ikawa, Nelson, Onzere Amugune, Norman, Chege Njoroge, Pauline, Asami and Timothy, Holton (2016). In planta seed transformation of Kenyan cowpeas (Vigna unguiculata) with P5CS gene via Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Journal of Agricultural Biotechnology and Sustainable Development, 8 (5), 32-45. doi: 10.5897/jabsd2016.0257
Yohannes, Tadesse, Ngugi, Kahiu, Ariga, Emanuel, Abraha, Tesfamichael, Yao, Nasser, Asami, Pauline and Ahonsi, Monday (2016). Genotypic variation for low striga germination stimulation in Sorghum "Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench" landraces from Eritrea. American Journal of Plant Sciences, 07 (17), 2470-2482. doi: 10.4236/ajps.2016.717215
Thesis
Okemo, Pauline Asami (2020). Regulation of plant programmed cell death by energy metabolism in the Australian resurrection grass Tripogon loliiformis. PhD Thesis, Faculty of Science, Queensland University of Technology. doi: 10.5204/thesis.eprints.205617