Babatunde Kareem

Babatunde Kareem is a Ph.D. student in Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology at Cornell University, with a minor in Plant Breeding and Genetics. He is co-advised by Dr. Zachariah Hansen and Dr. Xiaohong Wang. Originally from Nigeria, he holds a B.Agric. in Plant Physiology and Crop Production from the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta; an MSc in Plant Protection from the Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences; and an MSc in Global Plant Health from The Sainsbury Laboratory in Norwich, UK.

His dissertation focuses on discovering and characterizing late blight resistance in wild potato germplasm. His research combines disease phenotyping with molecular and genetic approaches to understand resistance to Phytophthora infestans, identify candidate resistance genes and investigate their function, and explore how resistance from wild potato can support potato improvement. His work spans molecular plant-microbe interactions, plant immunity, resistance gene discovery, and resistance breeding.  

Babatunde is also interested in science communication, mentoring, and professional development for early-career scientists.